Name: Rawd Halawani al-Tamimi Date: 11 Sep 2019

TC ID: T00033935

Ethnocentrism in Psychological Research

A useful theory should fulfill four main objectives: description, explanation, prediction, and

control (Ewen, 2009). However, a theory cannot produce insightful and applicable findings

unless its constructs transcend cultural boundaries. Recent efforts in various psychological fields

reveal a conformity to Western ideologies and cultural values. This adherence can jeopardize the

neutrality of psychological science as it “perpetuates the socio-political status quo” by

disregarding moral concepts that lie outside of the dominant view (Christopher & Hickinbottom,

2008, p.565 ).

Sumner (1906) introduced the term ethnocentrism which refers to “the tendency of people to

elevate their own cultures and to denigrate the cultures of others” (Keith, 2010, p.8 )

Philosophers and social theorists (including Berger & Luckmann, 1966; Kuhn, 1970; Taylor,

1985) argue that “culture-free psychology” does not exist as they acknowledge that the social

and cultural context, in which social scientists are embedded, inform their research endeavors

(Christopher & Hickinbottom, 2008).

Christopher & Hickinbottom, (2008) claim that ethnocentrism can be detected within the positive

psychology research field. Positive Psychology founders Martin Seligman and Mihály

Csikszentmihályi (2001) defended their work by arguing that the humanity that all individuals

encompass indicates that there are common goals that all humans strive to achieve regardless of

their cultural or social environment. They also implied that their discipline is unsusceptible to

questionable assumptions because they employ scientific methods and empirical data in their

research (Christopher & Hickinbottom, 2008).

Name: Rawd Halawani al-Tamimi Date: 11 Sep 2019
TC ID: T00033935

Cultural bias has also been an issue of controversy in theories of personalities (Keith,2010). For

instance, researchers have suggested that the need for self-esteem is a universal trait despite the

fact that the literature supporting this notion is based on the study of North Americans. When the

study was conducted on a sample of Japanese participants, the results significantly varied from

those yielded by the original sample of North Americans (Heine et al., 1999). Moreover, the

Western interpretation of the term “self-esteem” might not be applicable to other cultures.

Furthermore, since psychology is dominated by western methodologies, the concepts and

language that are utilized by psychologists can make the production of universal research

conclusions very difficult (Keith, 2010). Since language is a product of culture, translation

cannot fully bridge the communication barriers. For instance, when Freud's model of the psyche

was translated from German to English, the intended meaning was molded to suit the American

audience that is geared towards the scientific rather than metaphoric language (Boeree, 2006).

In conclusion, as Keith (2010) noted, it remains unclear whether the theoretical constructs of

psychology are universal with varying cultural manifestations or if they are mainly rooted in

culture (Smith et al., 2006). In order to reduce the risk of ethnocentrism, psychologists need to

reflect on their work in a critical manner by acknowledging the limitations of their own

knowledge and expanding their data to include other cultures. Failure to do so can jeopardize the

validity and applicability of their findings (Four levels of ethnocentrism in psychology, n.d.).
Name: Rawd Halawani al-Tamimi Date: 11 Sep 2019
TC ID: T00033935

References

Berger, P., & Luckmann, T. (1966). The social construction of reality. Garden City, NY: Anchor.

Boeree, C. G. (2006). Personality Theories. Retrieved from

https://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/personalityintroduction.html

Christopher, J. C., & Hickinbottom, S. (2008). Positive Psychology, Ethnocentrism, and the

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from https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354308093396

Ewen, B. R. (2009). An introduction to theories of personality: 7th edition. Retrieved from

https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.tc.idm.oclc.org

Four levels of ethnocentrism in psychology. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.cambridge.org/us/files/3613/6680/7876/9780521745208_c01B.pdf

Heine, S. J., Lehman, D. R., Markus, H. R., & Kitayama, S. (1999). Is there a universal need for

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Keith, K. D. (Ed.). (2010). Cross-cultural psychology: Contemporary themes and perspectives.

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Kuhn, T.S. (1970). The structure of scientific revolutions (2nd ed.). Chicago: University of

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Name: Rawd Halawani al-Tamimi Date: 11 Sep 2019
TC ID: T00033935

Sumner, W. G. (1906). Folkways: A study of the sociological importance of usages, manners,

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Taylor, C. (1985). Philosophical papers: Vol. 2. Philosophy and the human sciences. New York:

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