Sociocultural Variation in Models of Agency: Implications for Choice, Motivation, and Well-Being

代理模式的社会文化变异：对选择、动机和幸福感的影响

• 批准号: 0092018
• 负责人: Hazel Markus
• 金额: $ 36.56万
• 依托单位: Stanford University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2001
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2001-09-01 至 2006-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0092018&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Sociocultural; Variation; Models; Agency; Implications

This project examines cultural variation in the understandings, experience, and operation of human agency with a focus on models of agency. People everywhere regard themselves as agentic and have a sense of themselves as an "I" who is doing something, but what they experience themselves as doing can vary dramatically because they engage different models of agency. For those engaged in independent cultural contexts, agency is often experienced as individualized or disjoint, as primarily a result of one's own desires, goals, and intentions. For those in interdependent cultural contexts, agency is frequently experienced as conjoint, a consequence of the engagement of the person with others and of the awareness of reciprocal obligations and expectations. In this research, the focus is on the nature of the active "I" who is doing something. Although agency is often thought to be synonymous with autonomy and "free will", it is increasingly evident that agency assumes culture-specific forms. The project is organized around three specific hypotheses:1. In relatively independent cultural contexts, actions will be associated with normatively good outcomes when one's own interests and intentions are experienced and understood as the source of these actions. In relatively interdependent cultural contexts, however, actions will be associated with normatively good outcomes when the interests and intentions of relevant others are experienced and understood as the sources of these actions.2. Independent cultural contexts are characterized by the pervasive distribution of disjoint models of agency that promote and require a focus on one's own interests and intentions, whereas interdependent cultural contexts are characterized by the pervasive distribution of conjoint models of agency that promote and require a focus on the expectations of and obligations to others.3. In relatively independent cultural contexts well-being is associated with a sense of disjoint agency, whereas in relatively interdependent contexts well-being is associated with a sense of conjoint agency.The research addresses classic theoretical issues concerning freedom, responsibility, and the role of others in individual behavior. The results should have important implications for basic research on the mutual constitution of culture and psychological process, and for further analyzing the relationship between mental health and sociocultural context.

本项目考察了人类能动性的理解、经验和运作中的文化差异，重点关注能动性的模型。世界各地的人都认为自己是能动性的，并且认为自己是一个正在做某事的“我”，但他们所体验到的自己所做的事情可能会有很大的不同，因为他们采用了不同的能动性模型。对于那些从事独立文化背景的人来说，代理往往是个性化的或不连贯的，主要是一个人自己的欲望、目标和意图的结果。对于那些处于相互依赖的文化背景中的人来说，能动性往往是共同的，是一个人与他人交往的结果，是意识到相互的义务和期望的结果。在这项研究中，重点是正在做某事的主动“我”的性质。虽然能动性通常被认为是自主和“自由意志”的同义词，但越来越明显的是，能动性呈现出文化特有的形式。该项目围绕三个具体假设进行组织：1。在相对独立的文化背景下，当一个人的利益和意图被体验和理解为这些行为的来源时，行为将与规范的良好结果相关联。然而，在相对相互依赖的文化背景下，当相关他人的利益和意图被经验和理解为这些行为的来源时，行为将与规范的良好结果相关联。2 .独立文化背景的特点是普遍存在促进和要求关注自身利益和意图的不一致的行为模式，而相互依赖文化背景的特点是普遍存在促进和要求关注他人期望和义务的联合行为模式。在相对独立的文化背景下，幸福感与分离能动性相关，而在相对相互依赖的文化背景下，幸福感与共同能动性相关。该研究涉及自由、责任和他人在个人行为中的作用等经典理论问题。研究结果对文化与心理过程相互构成的基础研究以及进一步分析心理健康与社会文化背景的关系具有重要意义。