ETIC AND EMIC TO

CULTURAL
ETIC AND EMIC
ETIC EMIC

 Etic- t=the rest of the world /  Emic – m=my cultural /

two or more mono=one
 EMIC APPROACH
 The emic approach to studying human culture is one in which the member of the culture
being studied are the main source of information used to understand the culture.

 Accounts description and explanations used to understand a culture in its cultural context.

 It is an attempt to learn the concepts of a culture and see the world the way they do.
 LIMITATION OF EMIC
 It is problem focused and comes up with solution that can be applied to directly to the being
studied .

 The results are confirmed by the participants, so we can know that the interpretations of the
research do reflect the realities the of the culture.

 Has the potential to be more objective.

 Emic approach take a long time and can be very expensive.

 Instruments may not be highly reliable, or information may not yet be available
about the reliability of the instrument within that culture.
ETIC APPROACHES
 They decided what to study and how to analyze it before arriving in the field.

 They applied and compared their research findings globally with the assumption that there
was some commonality of behaviour among all cultures.

 They analyesd behaviour using established theories and data collection methods from their
culture or from mainstream psychology.

 Professionals” carried out the research upon arrival.

 Typically employed in cross – cultural psychology where behaviours are compared across
cultures.
LIMITATION OF ETIC
 The research is often replicable – allowing researchers to establish the reliability of the findings.

 The research process is less time consuming and less expensive.

 Findings may actually have global applications which could improve the situation for many people.

 The imposed etic – that is, a sense of ethnocentrism that biases the researcher toward what is “correct or
normal behaviour. It makes the researcher blind to important differences and why they exist.

 The researchers adopt instruments for assessment rather than adapting or developing new ones that have
meaning for the participants.
Instruments include tests, questionnaires diagnostic tools and treatments for disorders.