Allocentrism

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Allocentrism is a collectivistic personality attribute whereby people center their attention and actions on other people rather than themselves.

in-group.[7] Allocentric people appear to see themselves as an extension of their in-group and allow their own goals to be subsumed by the in-group's goals.[8] Additionally, allocentrism has been defined as giving priority to the collective self over the private self, particularly if these two selves happen to come into conflict.[9]

History

Allocentrism is closely related to collectivism; it is the psychological manifestation of collectivism.

cultural syndrome."[12] It was not until much later (1985) that Triandis, Leung, Villareal, and Clack proposed that the term allocentrism be used to describe collectivistic tendencies on the individual level.[13] They proposed this because of the confusion that arises when talking about cultural level collectivism versus individual level collectivism. Allocentrism, therefore, has been used since by some scholars to describe personal collectivism, "the individual level analog of cultural collectivism,"[14] as a very broad cultural trait.[15]

Allocentrism versus Idiocentrism

Allocentrism is contrasted with idiocentrism, the psychological manifestation of individualism.[16] As stated earlier, allocentrism includes holding values and preferences of placing higher importance on in-group needs and goals over one's own, defining oneself in terms of the in-group, and seeing oneself as an extension of the in-group. Idiocentrism, however, is an orientation whereby individuals hold quite different values and preferences from those with an allocentric orientation. Idiocentric people tend to focus more on their own goals and needs rather than in-group ones. They prefer self-reliance, to make their own decisions without worrying about what others think, and enjoy competition.[17] It seems people can be both allocentric and idiocentric, but how much they are either is dependent on the situation and how the individual defines that situation. Certain situations encourage more allocentric behavior. These are found more in some cultures than others. These situations include when people are rewarded by the social context for being group orientated, when cultural norms encourage conformity which leads to success, when goals are easier achieved through group action, and when there are not many options for acting independently.[18]

Measuring Allocentrism

When researchers measure collectivism, they tend to use large scale studies that look at the cultural level. They add up many people's responses within different cultures with the unit of analysis the whole culture; the N of these studies is the number of cultures.

interdependent which can be measured by statements about the self-starting with "I am" or by using interdependence scales. If individuals answer the "I am" statements with statements about others and common fate with others, they are deemed to be more allocentric. This method was highly recommended for measuring allocentrism.[22]

Another aspect of allocentrism is the priority of in-group goals over personal goals and this can be measured using the Collectivism Scale [23] or scales that look at interdependence versus independence. Triandis et al., 1995 Allocentrism has been measured utilizing The Collectivism Scale in three cultures—Korean, Japanese, and American—and found to have good concurrent and criterion validity and acceptable reliability (Cronbach's Alpha .77-.88). It is a ten item, five point Likert scale that assesses how much an individual acts in his or her own self-interest versus his or her group's interest. The group can be defined in various ways such as one's family, peer group, or work group.[24] Allocentrism is a very broad construct and therefore cannot be measured using only a few items; therefore, it is suggested that it be measured with multi-methods due to the limitations of each method.[25][26]

Culture

Allocentrism tends to be found more in collectivistic cultures (about 60%) but can also be found in all cultures,

Asians tend to be highly allocentric.[32]
There are certain personality dimensions that all allocentrics share despite whether they are from an individualistic (American) or collectivistic (Japanese and Korean) culture. These dimensions include high affiliation with others, being sensitive to rejection from others, and less of a need for individual uniqueness.[33]

Situation

For allocentrics, the situation is of paramount importance and they tend to define themselves relative to the context. Priming people to think about

collectives.[36]

Sociability

Allocentrics tend to receive higher quality and more social support than idiocentrics;[37] they tend to be more social, interdependent with others, and pay a lot of attention to their in-group and family.[38] This could possibly be because some of the important values of allocentrics are cooperation, honesty, and equality.[39][40] Allocentrics usually perceive that they have more and better social support than idiocentrics.[41] The amount of social support allocentrics receive seems to be related to their well-being with higher support indicative of higher levels of well-being and lower support with lower well-being.[42] Allocentrics tend to be less lonely, receive more social support (and are more satisfied with it), and are more cooperative than idiocentrics.[43][44]

African Americans than on Euro-Americans. Furthermore, idiocentrism was more negatively related to SWB for Euro-Americans than it was for African Americans.[48]

Big Five

Allocentrism is related to the Big Five personality traits. It is negatively correlated to Openness to experience and positively correlated with Agreeableness and Conscientiousness (Triandis, 2001).

Ethnocentricism

Allocentrics tend to be more

ethnocentric in terms of showing more negative attitudes towards people who are not in their group and more positive attitudes to those in their own group. People who are in allocentrics’ in-group are considered much closer than out-group members who are put at a much larger social distance.[49] Allocentrics tend to minimize with-in group differences while preferring equal outcomes in social dilemmas.[50]

Consumer ethnocentrism

Allocentric people tend to be more consumer ethnocentric (the tendency to prefer the products on their own countries when shopping). Huang et al., (2008) looked at consumer ethnocentrism (CET) and allocentrism among a group of Taiwanese participants in relation to Korean products sold in Taiwan versus national products. This study found that allocentrism with parents was positively correlated with higher CET. However, allocentrism with friends was negatively correlated with CET.

Tourism and travel

The term allocentrism has also been used in the travel field to have a different meaning from the way it is used in the psychological research. Here the term allocentric traveler refers to a traveler who is an

tourists, with the majority of travelers being midcentrics (halfway between psychocentric and allocentric).[51] Female allocentric travelers were found to be more neurotic and less extroverted than psychocentric travelers.[52] American and Japanese college students who reported being more horizontally individualistic tended to prefer more allocentric destinations.[53] A gap was shown between the vacations that individuals ideally would like to go on and the ones they actually go on. It was predicted that about 17% of individuals would go to allocentric destinations, however it was found that only 3% did, quite rare. Indeed, it seems people tend to compromise ideal for practicality, however some people will choose allocentric locations at some point in their lives.[54]

Notes

  1. ^ m-w.com, http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0072400773/student_view0/glossary.html
  2. ^ "Allocentric -- Medical Definition". Archived from the original on 2012-04-07. Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  3. ^ Harry et al., 1985
  4. ^ Triandis, 1999 5, p. 5
  5. ^ Hulbert et al, 2001
  6. ^ Triandis & Suh, 2002
  7. ^ Triandis, 1983
  8. ^ Harry et al., 1985
  9. ^ Yamaguchi et al, 1995
  10. ^ Bettencourt & Dorr, 1997
  11. ^ Muller, 1935
  12. ^ Triandis et al., 1995, p. 475
  13. ^ Triandis, Leung, Villareal, and Clack, 1985
  14. ^ Yamaguchi et al, 1995, p. 659
  15. ^ Triandis, 1995
  16. ^ Bettencourt & Dorr, 1997
  17. ^ Triandis et al, 2002
  18. ^ Triandis et al., 1995
  19. ^ Triandis et al., 1995
  20. ^ Triandis et al., 1985
  21. ^ Yamaguchi et al., 1995
  22. ^ Triandis et al., 1995
  23. ^ Yamaguchi et al., 1995
  24. ^ Yamaguchi et al., 1995
  25. ^ Triandis et al., 1995
  26. ^ Triandis, 1995
  27. ^ Triandis et al. 2001
  28. ^ Triandis, 1995, p. 5
  29. ^ Triandis & Suh, 2002
  30. ^ Triandis & Suh, 2002
  31. ^ Harry et al., 1985
  32. ^ Triandis, 1983
  33. ^ Yamaguchi, 1995
  34. ^ Trafimow et al., 1991
  35. ^ Triandis, 2001
  36. ^ Triandis, 2001
  37. ^ Triandis et al., 1985
  38. ^ Triandis & Suh, 2002
  39. ^ Triandis et al., 1985
  40. ^ Hulbert et al., 2001
  41. ^ Triandis et al., 1988
  42. ^ Sinha & Verma, 1994
  43. ^ Triandis et al., 1988
  44. ^ Harry et al., 1985
  45. ^ Seligman, 2002
  46. ^ Sinha & Verma, 1994
  47. ^ Bettencourt & Dorr, 1997
  48. ^ Kernahan, Bettencourt, & Dorr, 2000
  49. ^ Lee & Ward, 1998
  50. ^ Hulbert et al., 2001
  51. ^ McKercher, 2005
  52. ^ Hoxter & Lester, 1987
  53. ^ Sakakida, Cole & Card, 2008
  54. ^ Litvin, 2006

References

Bettencourt, B. A., & Dorr, N. (1997). Collective self-esteem as a mediator of the relationship between allocentrism and subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23(9), 955-955-964.

doi:10.1177/0146167297239005

Hoxter, A. L., & Lester, D. (1988). Tourist behavior and personality. Personality and Individual Differences, 9(1), 177–178.

doi:10.1016/0191-8869(88)90045-1

Huang, Y. (2008). Allocentrism and consumer ethnocentrism: The effects of social identity on purchase intention. Social Behavior and Personality, 36(8), 1097-1097.

Hulbert, L. G., Corrêa, d. S., & Adegboyega, G. (2001). Cooperation in social dilemmas and allocentrism: A social values approach. European Journal of Social Psychology, 31(6), 641-641-657.

doi:10.1002/ejsp.53

Kernahan, C., Bettencourt, B. A., & Dorr, N. (2000). Benefits of allocentrism for the subjective well-being of African Americans. Journal of Black Psychology, 26(2), 181–193.

doi:10.1177/0095798400026002004

Litvin, S. W. (2006). Revisiting plog's model of allocentricity and psychocentricity . . . one more time. United States, Ithaca: Sage Publications, Inc.

McKercher, B. (2005). Are psychographics predictors of destination life cycles? Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 19(1), 49.

Muller, H. M. (1935). Democratic collectivism. New York: Wilson.

Sakakida, Y. (2004). A cross-cultural study of college students' travel preferences. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 16(1), 35–41.

Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment. New York: The Free Press.

Sinha, J. B. P., & Verma, J. (1994). Social support as a moderator of the relationship between allocentrism and psychological well-being. In U. Kim, H. C. Triandis, Ç. Kâğitçibaşi, S. Choi & G. Yoon (Eds.), (pp. 267–267-292). Thousand Oaks, CA, US: Sage Publications, Inc.

Trafimow, D., Triandis, H. C., & Goto, S. G. (1991). Some tests of the distinction between the private self and the collective self. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60(5), 649–655.

doi:10.1037/10516-037

Triandis, H. C., Leung, K., Villareal, M. J., & Clack, F. I. (1985). Allocentric versus idiocentric tendencies: Convergent and discriminant validation. Journal of Research in Personality, 19(4), 395–415.

doi:10.1016/0092-6566(85)90008-X

Triandis, H. C. (1995). Individualism & collectivism. Boulder: Westview Press.

Triandis, H. C., & University Publications of America (Firm). (1983). Allocentric vs. idiocentric social behavior : A major cultural difference between Hispanics and the mainstream. [Urbana-Champaign, IL]: University of Illinois.

Triandis, H. (1995). Multimethod probes of allocentrism and idiocentrism. International Journal of Psychology, 30(4), 461–480.

Look up allocentrism or allocentric in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Allocentrism&oldid=1106314501"