Western Psychology Gets Eastern Correction

by Nancy Park

The Japanese language does not have a word for "self-esteem."

That difference between English and Japanese expresses a key cultural difference.

About 30 faculty and students gathered in the Van Pelt Library Oct. 28 for a lecture, "The Search for Self-Esteem in Japan: The Cultural Construction of Self-Improvement," by Steven Heine, a professor in the psychology department.

Heine, who spent time in Japan as a visiting researcher, has memories of how that cultural difference touched his experiences there.

He recalled a graduation speech he gave to a group of Japanese ninth graders. He delivered the usual North American pep talk-to believe in themselves. They stared at him blankly. Fortunately, his translator, their teacher, saw that Heine's words had no meaning to them and modified the speech in translation, urging the students to work harder and rise to the challenges ahead. The students sat up straight and responded to the revised version with "hai," which means "yes."

Traditionally, Western people believed that psychology was universal. But this notion breaks down when considering the issue of self-esteem, Heine said. Cultural psychology now acknowledges the role of culture in influencing viewpoints.

A number of social-psychological studies of Euro-Canadians and Asian Canadians show clear differences in self-esteem. People who had lived in North America longer valued self-esteem; for them individuality was more important than for people who had recently come to North America and placed more importance on interdependence and belonging.

Because self-esteem constitutes an individual rising above others, it contradicts the Asians values.

In another study Japanese subjects say they value effort more than self-confidence; the opposite view prevails here. Heine noted that this difference is reflected even in the language. Besides the absence of "self-esteem" in Japanese, words meaning "self-respect" and "confidence" have a negative connotation.

People who have lived in North America longest have a "self-serving bias," which means that they view themselves in unrealistically positive terms, Heine said. For example, 25 percent of students think they are in the top 1 percent. They also seem to believe their own groups are superior to other groups. In addition, the long-term residents of North America have trouble facing up to criticism. They tend to rationalize much more than the Japanese do when confronted with negative information.

That's because North Americans define faults as innate qualities that can not be fixed. On the other hand, the Japanese believe that effort can conquer faults. Thus, the Americans are concerned with emphasizing their positive characteristics, while the Japanese self-reflect critically, motivated to improve and correct their shortcomings.

Heine speculated that Japanese either do not have a pronounced need for self-esteem or that our "current understanding of self-esteem does not incorporate the kinds of positive self-feelings that characterize the Japanese."

Heine listed on a slide some kinds of self-esteem that might be meaningful in Japanese culture. For example, Japanese believe persistence is important, and without it, they think less of themselves. They also measure their own self-image by how others esteem them.

Heine concluded that, although Japanese do not seek self-esteem, they do have ways to motivate themselves.

The lecture was sponsored by the East Asian Studies Colloquium.