Populism, Economic Distress, Cultural Backlash, and Identity Threat: Integrating Patterns and Testing Cross-National Validity.

Populism is on the rise across liberal democracies. The sociopsychological underpinnings of this increasing endorsement of populist ideology should be uncovered. In an online cross-sectional survey study among adult samples from five countries (Chile, France, Italy, Romania, and the United Kingdom; = 9,105), we aimed to replicate an pattern in which relative deprivation and identity threat are associated with populism.

The effects of sociocultural changes on epistemic thinking across three generations in Romania.

When people experience abrupt social change, from less education to more, from less technology use to more, from a homogeneous to a heterogeneous social environment, can their epistemic thinking adapt? When divergent opinions suddenly come to be valued, does epistemic thinking shift from absolute to more relativistic? We investigate whether and how these sociocultural shifts have produced changes in epistemic thinking in Romania, a country that fell from communism and started democracy in 1989. Our 147 participants were from Timisoara and fell into three groups, each experiencing the shift at a different point in their development: (i) born in 1989 or later, experiencing capitalism and democracy throughout life (N = 51); (ii) 15- to 25-years-old in 1989 when communism fell (N = 52); (iii) 45 or older in 1989 when communism fell (N = 44). As hypothesized, absolutist thinking was less frequent and evaluativist thinking, a relativistic epistemological mode, was more frequent the earlier in life a cohort was exposed to the post-communist environment in Romania.

Need for approval from others and face concerns as predictors of interpersonal conflict outcome in 29 cultural groups.

The extent to which culture moderates the effects of need for approval from others on a person's handling of interpersonal conflict was investigated. Students from 24 nations rated how they handled a recent interpersonal conflict, using measures derived from face-negotiation theory. Samples varied in the extent to which they were perceived as characterised by the cultural logics of dignity, honour, or face.

To Steal or Not to Steal: Self-Discrepancies as a Way to Promote Pro-social Behavior: The Moderating Role of Self-Interest.

Previous research showed that acting immorally on one occasion can determine a greater availability for pro-social behavior on a subsequent occasion. Nevertheless, moderating factors for this effect, such as financial interest remained largely unexplored. The present field experiment ( = 587) was organized in an urban setting, in a post-communist society (Romania), in a context of public anonymity and examined passersby's pro-social behavior on two consecutive occasions.

Structural, Psychological and Contextual Predictors of Car Use.

Besides its undeniable advantages, personal car use generates a wide array of problems, among which its contribution to global warming is probably the most severe. To implement sound policies that are effective in reducing private car use, it is essential to first understand its important antecedents. Structural, psychological and contextual predictors were extensively studied independently, yet integrative approaches that investigate all these factors in a single theoretical model are lacking.

Beyond the façade of generosity-Regional stereotypes within the same national culture influence prosocial behaviors.

We analyzed prosocial behaviors in a field experiment (N = 307) conducted in an urban context (Timisoara, Banat region, Romania), starting from a classical Cross-Cultural Psychology research organized in UK and Iran by Collet & O'Shea in 1976. If the evoked study is focused on comparing prosocial behaviors in two very different national cultures (UK vs. Iran), we compared helping strangers strategies within the same national culture in relation to the regional identities of the help-seeking subjects.

Not All Forms of Independence Are Created Equal: Only Being Independent the "Right Way" Is Associated With Self-Esteem and Life Satisfaction.

Past research has found a strong and positive association between the independent self-construal and life satisfaction, mediated through self-esteem, in both individualistic and collectivistic cultures. In Study 1, we collected data from four countries (the United States, Japan, Romania, and Hungary; = 736) and replicated these findings in cultures which have received little attention in past research. In Study 2, we treated independence as a multifaceted construct and further examined its relationship with self-esteem and life satisfaction using samples from the United States and Romania ( = 370).

Honor Scale in Romania: Psychometric Parameters and Associations to Human Values.

Honor is an important psychological construct that refers to one's worth in one's own eyes and in the eyes of others. A person's honor is dependent on implicit personal meaning, which leads the individual to behave in a way worthy of being valued and socially appreciated. In the present research, we aimed to provide psychometric evidence for the short version of the Honor Scale in the Romanian context.

Cultural Variability in the Association Between Age and Well-Being: The Role of Uncertainty Avoidance.

Past research has found a mixed relationship between age and subjective well-being. The current research advances the understanding of these findings by incorporating a cultural perspective. We tested whether the relationship between age and well-being is moderated by , a cultural dimension dealing with society's tolerance for ambiguity.

Within-culture variation in the content of stereotypes: Application and development of the stereotype content model in an Eastern European culture.

There is little and unsystematic evidence about whether the content of stereotypes can vary within a culture. Using the Stereotype Content Model (SCM) as a theoretical framework, in two studies we examined the content of stereotypes in an Eastern European culture, namely Romania. Data were collected from four regions prototypical in terms of economic and social development in Romania, and we examined whether the content of stereotypes varies across these regions.

Individual and culture-level components of survey response styles: A multi-level analysis using cultural models of selfhood.

Variations in acquiescence and extremity pose substantial threats to the validity of cross-cultural research that relies on survey methods. Individual and cultural correlates of response styles when using 2 contrasting types of response mode were investigated, drawing on data from 55 cultural groups across 33 nations. Using 7 dimensions of self-other relatedness that have often been confounded within the broader distinction between independence and interdependence, our analysis yields more specific understandings of both individual- and culture-level variations in response style.

Cultural bases for self-evaluation: seeing oneself positively in different cultural contexts.

Several theories propose that self-esteem, or positive self-regard, results from fulfilling the value priorities of one's surrounding culture. Yet, surprisingly little evidence exists for this assertion, and theories differ about whether individuals must personally endorse the value priorities involved. We compared the influence of four bases for self-evaluation (controlling one's life, doing one's duty, benefitting others, achieving social status) among 4,852 adolescents across 20 cultural samples, using an implicit, within-person measurement technique to avoid cultural response biases.

Culture and the distinctiveness motive: constructing identity in individualistic and collectivistic contexts.

The motive to attain a distinctive identity is sometimes thought to be stronger in, or even specific to, those socialized into individualistic cultures. Using data from 4,751 participants in 21 cultural groups (18 nations and 3 regions), we tested this prediction against our alternative view that culture would moderate the ways in which people achieve feelings of distinctiveness, rather than influence the strength of their motivation to do so. We measured the distinctiveness motive using an indirect technique to avoid cultural response biases.