Title: Influences of Culture and Gender on Personality
Headings: Influences of Culture and Gender on Personality
Influences of Culture and Gender on Personality
Both culture and gender are important factors that influence the development of personality.
Learning Objective
Key Points
Terms
Full Text
Culture and Personality
Gender and Personality
Influence of gender roles on personality expression
Approaches to Studying Personality in a Cultural Context
Allport's, Cattell's, and Eysenck's Trait Theories of Personality

Content: Positive and negative traits can be determined by cultural expectations: what is considered a positive trait in one culture may be considered negative in another, thus resulting in different expressions of personality across cultures. Considering cultural influences on personality is important because Western ideas and theories are not necessarily applicable to other cultures (Benet-Martinez & Oishi, 2008). There is a great deal of evidence that the strength of personality traits varies across cultures, and this is especially true when comparing individualist cultures (such as European, North American, and Australian cultures) and collectivist cultures (such as Asian, African, and South American cultures). People who live in individualist cultures tend to believe that independence, competition, and personal achievement are important. In contrast, people who live in collectivist cultures tend to value social harmony, respectfulness, and group needs over individual needs. These values influence personality in different but substantial ways; for example, Yang (2006) found that people in individualist cultures displayed more personally-oriented personality traits, whereas people in collectivist cultures displayed more socially-oriented personality traits. Gender and Personality
In much the same manner that cultural norms can influence personality and behavior, gender norms (the behaviors that males and females are expected to conform to in a given society) can also influence personality by emphasizing different traits between different genders. Ideas of appropriate behavior for each gender (masculine and feminine) vary among cultures and tend to change over time.