Assignment Takeaway #5
My last assignment given in Professor Muth’s Cross-Cultural Psychology course was to find a peer-reviewed journal article on a topic related to some of the following chapter’s in Matsumoto’s Culture & Psychology(6thEdition) book. We had to select a peer-review article that was based in a particular country we’d like to visit or have already visited and relate its particular culture with the specific chapter topics chosen for the assignment. The peer-reviewed journal article I chose to relate Chapter Six: Personality with was called Personality Traits Across Countries: Support for Similarities Rather Than Differencesby Petri Kajonius and Erik Mac Giolla. Although Kajonius and Giolla observed up to twenty-two countries, they focus on personality characteristics for individuals across cultures in current climate of migration and globalization. They hypothesize that differences in personality characteristics across cultures share more similarities between countries than differences. I thought this peer-review was an interesting assignment that discussed many topics in Chapter 6: Personality, such as the Five Factor Model and Personality and Sex differences. I truly enjoyed the last assignment given as a conclusion to all the Chapters in Matsumoto’s Culture & Psychology.
Five Factor Model Diagram Above.
Assignment Takeaway #4
My fourth assignment given in Professor Muth’s Cross-Cultural Psychology course was an exercise based on Gender and Advertising across cultures. We were given the opportunity to find between six and twelve separate advertisements that depict images of women and men a cross the world. We had to compare advertisements/ photographs from North American culture to how it is represented in another culture of your choosing. I chose some advertisements from the US and The United Arab Emirates. I found 3 US advertisement and 3 UAE advertisements that both represented gender differences positively and negatively. While comparing the two countries and how they depict gender differences especially through advertising, I learned that culture and values is a large influence on how gender is viewed. I highlighted mostly on the differences of Arab women and American women. Individually, their goals and values serve different purposes in their society. I truly enjoyed this assignment and learned that there are surprisingly just as much similarities as there are differences in Gender differences and equality across the world.
This is a cover art of the single called “We Are The World” written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson in 1985. The song talks about the world an all of our differences as it advertises world piece.
Assignment Takeaway #3
The third assignment given in Professor Muth’s Cross-Cultural Psychology course was based on American student’s takeaway on studying abroad. We were given a couple of options to analyze several entries from a study abroad student’s blog post from Temple University. On the Temple University site, there were a large number of students with a variety of majors and different countries they’ve visited. I chose to focus on a Visual Arts major from Rutgers University in New Jersey. Her name was Rachel Diaz and she studied in Tokyo, Japan from May 2017 to August 2017. I enjoyed reading her blogs about both familiar and unfamiliar experiences. She’s an amazing photographer and took the most beautiful pictures to represent her experiences in Japan. I chose Rachel Diaz because her takeaway of her abroad experience was very similar to mine when I studied abroad in Greece and London. She was very grateful for the opportunity to travel especially to Japan. I also was interested in her blog because Japan is one of the countries that I would like to visit soon. Overall, I truly enjoyed the couple of entries I’ve read from Rachel’s blog, I loved how passionate she was with the culture and how she shared personal ups and downs during her time in Japan.
Here’s a photograph of Rachel on the Summit of Mt. Fuji from her Final blog.
Assignment Takeaway #2
The second assignment given in Professor Muth’s Cross-Cultural Psychology course was based on American Values and how other cultures view the American Culture. We were assigned to read an article written by L. Robert Kohls called “The Values Americans Live By.” In the Article, Kohl highlights on 13 different values that are incredibly important to Americans. Some significant values that he motioned were Equality/ Egalitarianism, Individualismand Privacy, Self-Help Concept, and Materialism/ Acquisitions.While reading and perceiving all the American values mentioned, I chose one that I could admit I live by the most. I chose the Time and Its Control value. This Assignment taught me a great deal of what Americans today consider valuable to them in their everyday life. Some Values that were mentioned took me by surprise just as much as it does to foreigners. Another quality that made this assignment significant to the course is realizing how morals and values plays a big on how countries distinguish from one another. I truly enjoyed the article an assignment. 
A wordle that expresses the subtraits of Equality
Assignment Takeaway #1
I have learned a great deal of material so far in Professor Muth’s Cross-Cultural Psychology course. Her first assignments were focused around Self actualization which I feel is necessary in a course like this. The assigned work that I have had so far has allowed me to become a better critical thinker and analyzer in how culture can be an influences on individual’s experiences and behavior. The assignments have been relevant to be because it has taught me what kind of student I am and where I fell on the scale of acceptance of differences. They have also made me realize what I needed to work on as a student and believing in my ability. I believe these assignments are meant for us to learn take a look at ourselves and our culture before we can look at anyone else.
The picture above represents how the alignment of culture can represent itself through people.