Research evidence and theoretical accounts of honor point to differing definitions of the construct in differing cultural contexts. The current studies address the question "What is honor?" using a prototype approach in Turkey and the Northern United States. Studies 1a/1b revealed substantial differences in the specific features generated by members of the two groups, but Studies 2 and 3 revealed cultural similarities in the underlying dimensions of self-respect, moral behavior, and social status/respect. Ratings of the centrality and personal importance of these factors were similar across the two groups, but their association with other relevant constructs differed. The tripartite nature of honor uncovered in these studies helps observers and researchers alike understand how diverse responses to situations can be attributed to honor. Inclusion of a prototype analysis into the literature on honor cultures can provide enhanced coverage of the concept that may lead to testable hypotheses and new theoretical developments. © 2013 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc

We tested the hypotheses that Turkish and (Northern) American cultures afford different honor-relevant situations and different responses to these situations. In Study 1, we found that honor-attacking situations generated by American participants focused more on the individual than did situations generated by Turkish participants, whereas situations generated by Turkish participants focused more on close others and involved more references to an audience than did situations generated by American participants. Moreover, the situations most frequently generated by both groups tended to also differ in nature. In Study 2, new participants evaluated these situations for their impact on the self, close others, and acquaintances" feelings about their family. Turkish participants tended to evaluate situations as having greater impact on all targets than did American participants. Turkish participants also evaluated all situations to have a similar impact on their own feelings and close others" feelings about themselves, whereas Americans evaluated the situations to have more extreme impact on their own feelings than on the feelings of close others. Situations generated by Turkish participants were evaluated to have stronger impact on all targets. What Is Honor?Honor was initially studied by anthropologists in Middle Eastern, North African and Mediterranean cultures. Later, primarily social psychological work in Western parts of the world (e.g., Rodriguez Mosquera, Manstead, & Fisher, 2000, 2002a, 2002b demonstrated that the experience of honor is not limited to the Mediterranean and surrounding regions; honor is a concept woven within the Western heritage which plays an important role in shaping human psychology (Gregg, 2007). There are, however, distinct differences in the meaning and salience of honor in these two cultural worlds. In Western 4 cultural contexts, honor is generally defined as "strong moral character or strength, and adherence to ethical principles" (Encarta Dictionary). This definition focuses on the individual alone as the source of honor and defines honor as primarily a property of the individual. Although present, honor is not a very salient feature of everyday psychological experiences of members of Western societies (with the exception of Southern US, see e.g., Cohen, Nisbett, Bowdle, & Schwarz, 1996;.In contrast, honor in circum-Mediterranean regions is viewed more complexly and is typically defined as positive moral standing and pride that is related to one"s own perception of worth and to other people"s respect (Peristiany, 1965). In these contexts, honor is a value deeply ingrained in individuals" social worlds to the extent that "…people automatically respond to events and build reputations, personalities, or selves in its [honor"s] terms" (Gregg, 2007, p. 92).Societies where honor is a salient concept which directs much of people"s behavior have been termed honor cultures. In such cultures, prestige and respect are hard to gain and easy to lose; people therefore engage in a varie...

The main goal of the current research is to investigate emotional reactions to situations that implicate honor in Turkish and northern American cultural groups. In Studies 1a and 1b, participants rated the degree to which a variety of events fit their prototypes for honor-related situations. Both Turkish and American participants evaluated situations generated by their conationals as most central to their prototypes of honor-related situations. Study 2 examined emotional responses to Turkish or U.S.-generated situations that varied in centrality to the prototype. Highly central situations and Turkish-generated situations elicited stronger emotions than less central situations and U.S.-generated situations. Americans reported higher levels of positive emotions in response to honor-enhancing situations than did Turkish participants. These Lee, & Xu, 2013;Vandello & Cohen, 2003). This interest has resulted in research that has taken a predominantly comparative perspective in an attempt to understand the meaning of honor and its psychological significance in different cultural contexts. This social psychological work on honor has contributed much to the earlier ethnographic work that focused on what honor is and how it shapes human behavior, with a particular focus on Mediterranean (e.g., Peristiany, 1965, Abu-Lughod, 1999 Gilmore, 1987;Murphy, 1983;Wikan, 1984) and Middle Eastern (e.g., Abou-Zeid, 1965;Antoun, 1968;Gilmore, 1990;Ginat, 1987;Gregg, 2007) cultures. Despite this growing interest in honor among social psychologists, most of the recent research has focused on European and North American populations. In the present studies, we turn to Turkey, a part of the world that has largely gone unexamined by honor researchers (for recent exceptions see Cross et al

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