What is cultural psychology?

You want to know what is cultural psychology? André Malraux said that “culture is what in death continues to be life.” Therefore, perhaps this branch of psychology gives us a broader vision, which includes the past, present and future of a society.

Because much of our behavior, beyond each individual’s way of being, is so related to culture in which we live as with our own experiences. This does not mean that experiences and genetic load have nothing to do with it, but they are not the only ones that moderate and contribute to our way of being and acting.

What is cultural psychology?

For those who want to know what cultural psychology is, let’s define it briefly. Most experts agree in referring to it as a current that emerged as an alternative to the methods and theories of more speculative psychology. Thus, she is considered an heir to Wundt’s psychology.

Cultural psychology focuses its attention on the influence that a culture has on the people who come into contact with it. An influence that is not only relevant at the behavioral level, but also seems to condition our way of thinking and feeling. On the other hand, influence exerts this behavior especially through an instrument: habits/customs.

That is, cultural psychology would try to explain the causes why a group of individuals inserted in a given context act in a specific way, and not another. This perspective allows us to observe many details or explain those we observe from other perspectives.. For example, why the Western point of view, today very globalized, leads us to observe with horror events from the past or from other societies with diametrically opposed customs. Why don’t people immersed in these cultures see them with horror or why didn’t our ancestors see them with horror?

In this sense another question arises, What will the generations be horrified by that does not happen when history tells them everything that we now have normalized?

Cultural barriers

When we look at the world panorama, We find a huge number of cultural barriers. For example, the language. Or a particular custom, a mentality, a way of thinking…

If we look closely, in each country we find common customs among the population, but also others that are not common because they belong or are located in a certain town, region, area, etc. All of this includes variations in the human mind, since each receives a unique cultural heritage depending on many factors.

To give simple examples, we can see how the Muslim community does not eat pork, in India they have cows as sacred animals or regions, such as the Basque Country, have their own language within the framework of a bilingual context. All of this creates a unique cultural heritage that is different from other towns.

What is cultural psychology for?

Well, it is evident that, depending on the territory and the inheritance received, culture varies, influencing the behavior and thinking of those who are in contact with it. Now, what is cultural psychology trying to do? Go beyond the simple fact, delve into both the origins and the consequences that produce, define and maintain the traditional in that certain framework.

To make it clearer, let’s give an example. Taking advantage of the aforementioned, we already know that In India cows are sacred. But why does this occur? How have they gotten to this point today?

Of course, cultural psychology doesn’t just dig into the heart of history to find out why a people has a particular culture. I also know studies how this culture affects its inhabitants. Why do some customs succeed and others not? How do these affect behavioral patterns? What future implications might these traditions have?

A branch closely related to anthropology and sociology

It is evident that this branch of psychology has a very intimate relationship with the social sciences, mainly with anthropology and sociology. While sociology studies societies in a broad sense, this psychological branch focuses on the proportion of quantitative data to investigate historical dynamics. This makes it easier to know how a specific culture has been formed and how it influences its individuals.

As for anthropology, responsible for studying the cultural content of a society and the collective changes that occur, it is also vital, since both seek to understand symbols, concepts, stagings, etc. So, if you were wondering what cultural psychology is, you already have a little sketch. Thanks to her ethnic behaviors can be understood or the study of intercultural conflicts, to give some interesting examples.

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