Social Axioms

Abstract

Downloaded from JOURNAL OF CROSS-CULTURAL PSYCHOLOGY Leung et al. / SOCIAL AXIOMSTo broaden our conceptual framework for understanding cultural differences, the present article reports two studies that examined whether pancultural dimensions based on general beliefs, or social axioms, can be identified in persons from five cultures. A Social Axioms Survey was constructed, based on both previous psychological research primarily in Europe and North America on beliefs and qualitative research conducted in Hong Kong and Venezuela. Factor analyses of these beliefs from student as well as adult samples revealed a pancultural, five-factor structure, with dimensions labeled as: cynicism, social complexity, reward for application, spirituality, and fate control. In the second study, this five-factor structure, with the possible exception of fate control, was replicated with college students from Japan, the United States, and Germany. The potential implications of a universal, five-factor structure of individual social beliefs were discussed, along with the relation of this structure to indigenous belief systems and to culture-level analyses.Culture has long been a fuzzy concept, and numerous attempts have been made to define and measure it (e.g., Kroeber & Kluckhohn, 1952;Rohner, 1984). The now-classic work of Hofstede (1980) on work-related values represented a major step forward in classifying cultures. For instance, individualism-collectivism, one of his cultural dimensions, has been used to account for a wide range of cross-cultural similarities and differences among nations (e.g., Triandis, 1995). Subsequently, several major projects have adopted a similar approach in the search of cultural dimensions. Using values salient to the Chinese people, the Chinese Culture Connection (1987) identified one additional dimension that Hofstede (1980) did not capture, Confucian work dynamism, or short-term versus long-term orientation (Hofstede, 1991). Schwartz (1994) has established a more psychologically grounded mapping of cultures with seven cultural-level value dimensions. Finally, Smith, Dugan, and Trompenaars 286 AUTHORS' NOTE: We would like to thank Shalom Schwartz, Karen Phalet, and the reviewers for their highly valuable comments. Downloaded from (1996) identified three major value dimensions at the cultural level. Smith and Bond (1998, chap. 3) concluded that these different surveys produced converging results despite differences in instrumentation, subject populations, and time periods during which the data were collected.The value-based approaches to culture described above have all been pitched at the national level. However, both Schwartz (1992) and Bond (1988) have provided value-based approaches to cultural differences pitched at the individual level of analysis. That is, the domains or dimensions along which people from different nations may be compared in their studies were derived by analyzing the data in ways that adduce individual-level constructs, thereby enabling researchers to compare people rather than...

Fate control and well-being in Chinese rural people living with HIV: mediation effect of resilience

“…This construct consists of two dimensions: fate determinism (e.g., "Fate determines one's success and failure") and fate alterability (e.g., "There are certain ways for people to improve their destiny"). Fate control has been used as a single construct (Leung et al, 2002;Safdar et al, 2006) and confirmatory factor analysis in this study found that the single-factor model showed a better fit than the two-factor model. Cronbach's α was .84 in the present study.…”

“…Fate control was measured using the eight-item "fate control" subscale of the Social Axioms Scale (Leung et al, 2002;Safdar, Lewis, & Daneshpour, 2006). This construct consists of two dimensions: fate determinism (e.g., "Fate determines one's success and failure") and fate alterability (e.g., "There are certain ways for people to improve their destiny").…”

“…Influenced by the Buddhist and Taoist philosophies, Chinese people tend to possess a belief in "fate" as an external force to determine life adversities (Leung, 1996). Fate control refers to the belief that a fatalistic force drives life events (Leung, 1996;Leung et al, 2002). This concept consists of two dimensions: fate determinism and fate alterability (Leung et al, 2012).…”

When self-help materials help: Examining the effects of self-discrepancy and modes of delivery of positive self-statements

“…Similarly, text and audio materials were prepared using the Social Axioms Survey (Leung et al, 2002) items for the control conditions; sample items include 'Human behaviour changes with the social context' and 'Most disasters can be predicted'. The Social Axioms Survey was chosen as control material because the measure focuses on people's general beliefs about the world rather than self-related perception (Leung et al, 2002). The Chinese version of the Social Axioms Survey items was used.…”

Predictors and Outcomes of Experiences Deemed Religious: A Longitudinal Investigation

“…The horizontal dimension embodies a concern with social justice, charity toward fellow human beings, and serving humanity in mercy and justice. Religiosity refers to an axiomatic belief in a supernatural power and its positive benefits to people's lives (Leung et al, 2002). We proposed the following hypotheses:…”