Collectivism differs qualitatively across cultures, not just in degree

Evidence

Overall, the above evidence supports my original claim that the kinds, not the levels, of collectivism are different between North America and East Asia. More specifically, North Americans tend to define groups in terms of shared features among group members, to have a depersonalized view of the self as a prototypical exemplar of the in-group, and to be motivated to gain higher intergroup status. On the contrary, East Asians conceptualize groups in terms of shared interpersonal networks among group members, perceive the self as a distinctive but constitutive part of the network, and are motivated to maintain harmonious and reciprocal relationships between the members (Yuki, 2003). — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1639 (#expands, via linked claim)

There is, nonetheless, another possibility that was completely overlooked: it is possible that although all humans, as a social species, create and utilize social groups, the kind of groups they identify themselves with and their motivations in these groups may vary, depending on the culture in which they reside. In other words, there can be multiple kinds of collectivism, in which group identification and behaviors differ qualitatively rather than quantitatively between cultures. — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1604 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: In-group boundaries within collectivism are permeable only by birth, not achievement — Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber (eds.), Understanding Genocide: The Social…, 1025; Cultures differ over whether the world is a living whole or a machine — Rebecca A. Martusewicz, Jeff Edmundson, and John Lupinacci, EcoJustice Education: Toward Diverse,…, 615; Western and East Asian collectivism are qualitatively different phenomena — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1639 (+12 more)

Broader Connections

• Western and East Asian collectivism are qualitatively different phenomena #expands (0.95) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1639
• Group identification varies qualitatively across cultures, not just in degree #expands (0.95) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1604
• American and East Asian collectivism differ in kind, not degree. #corroborates (0.95)
• Western collectivism derives from categories; East Asian collectivism from relationships. #exemplifies (0.92)
• Cultural difference originates situationally and may be a self-projection of the observer #complicates (0.78) — Wael Hallaq, Restating Orientalism, 280
• Acknowledging cultural difference can compound rather than resolve essentialism by implying boundedness #complicates (0.75) — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 949