Easterners tend to process information more holistically than Westerners. Kim and Markman (2006) suggest that these differences are rooted in higher chronic levels of Fear of Isolation for those cultures that process information more holistically. The goal of this study was to determine if Italians, though typically considered Western, have a reasoning style that is more Eastern than Western. We found that Italian participants had higher chronic levels of Fear of Isolation than US American participants, and that manipulation of Fear of Isolation affected context sensitivity more for Italian than for US American participants. Our findings demonstrate that Italian participants process information more holistically and have a higher chronic level of Fear of Isolation than US American participants. Interestingly, the level of Fear of Isolation as well as the mode of processing information for Italians in this research was more similar to previous research with Eastern populations than with Western populations (Kim and Markman 2006). These findings indicate a within-Western culture difference in reasoning style and support the hypothesis that this difference is due to different levels of Fear of Isolation.
An Eastern Renaissance: Italian Reasoning Style More Eastern than Western
FEDERICI, Stefano;
2011
Abstract
Easterners tend to process information more holistically than Westerners. Kim and Markman (2006) suggest that these differences are rooted in higher chronic levels of Fear of Isolation for those cultures that process information more holistically. The goal of this study was to determine if Italians, though typically considered Western, have a reasoning style that is more Eastern than Western. We found that Italian participants had higher chronic levels of Fear of Isolation than US American participants, and that manipulation of Fear of Isolation affected context sensitivity more for Italian than for US American participants. Our findings demonstrate that Italian participants process information more holistically and have a higher chronic level of Fear of Isolation than US American participants. Interestingly, the level of Fear of Isolation as well as the mode of processing information for Italians in this research was more similar to previous research with Eastern populations than with Western populations (Kim and Markman 2006). These findings indicate a within-Western culture difference in reasoning style and support the hypothesis that this difference is due to different levels of Fear of Isolation.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
