Influence of interethnic ideologies on responses to intrusive cultural inflows and outflows

• Main Author: Lau, Yun Mei
• Other Authors: Cheon Bobby K.
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Psychology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/77103
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The acceleration of globalisation resulted in the experience of culture mixing in everyday life. Individuals with different interethnic ideologies may respond differently when encountering culture mixing, particularly in terms of inflow of foreign cultural influences and outflow of heritage cultural influences. The present study investigated the effects of interethnic ideologies (polycultural versus multicultural) on individuals’ evaluations towards culture mixing, specifically foreign cultural inflows and heritage cultural outflows among the Singaporeans (Study 1) and Americans (Study 2). Participants were randomly assigned to polycultural, multicultural or control condition. Then, they evaluated the culturally-mixed images, comprising local cultural symbols (Singaporean cultural symbols in Study 1 and American cultural symbols in Study 2) and foreign cultural symbols (China) that illustrated foreign inflows and heritage outflows. Across the two studies, participants displayed higher level of disgust towards foreign inflows, however only the Americans participants (Study 2) showed more positive evaluations towards heritage outflows form of culture mixing. As predicted, interaction effect was observed. Singaporean participants (Study 1) primed with polyculturalism (versus multiculturalism or control) displayed elevated positive responses towards foreign inflows. Participants primed with multiculturalism exhibited elevated positive responses towards heritage outflows. The observed effect was not replicated among the American sample (Study 2). Also, highly patriotic Singaporeans (Study 1), not Americans (Study 2), who adopted polyculturalism showed elevated favourable responses for foreign inflows. The findings supported the literature that individuals perceive foreign inflows as cultural contamination while heritage outflows as intercultural learning. Interethnic ideologies also resulted in differential evaluations towards culture mixing.