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What Is Life About?” and “What Is the Point of My Existence?” Discussions of These and the Closely Related Concerns

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What Is Life About?” and “What Is the Point of My Existence?” Discussions of These and the Closely Related Concerns The Structure of Cultural Orientations to the Good Life and their Expression in Personal Narratives By Gregory B. Bonn A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Psychology University of Toronto © Copyright by Gregory Bonn 2012 The Structure of Cultural Orientations to the Good Life and their Expression in Personal Narratives Gregory B. Bonn Doctor of Philosophy Department of Psychology University of Toronto 2012 Abstract Understanding the rational and ethical sense that people make of their actions and experiences requires understanding the lives they are trying to live. The narrative visions of a good life that are dominant in a society thus represent an important aspect of cultural orientation. To gain insight into the form and function of these visions, two studies were conducted. In Study 1, the various criteria by which people judge their lives as good or worthy were examined using multidimensional scaling of responses from four different cultural groups of students: Chinese, East Asian Canadian, South Asian Canadian, and Western European Canadian. The results revealed two underlying structural dimensions on which both criteria and cultural groups could ii be differentiated. One reflected the locus of criterial goods and the other their morality. The clearest cultural contrast was between Chinese participants, who tended toward the prudential, materialistic, and hedonistic pole of the morality dimension, and South Asians, who tended more toward the spirituality and beneficence pole. In Study 2, the content of personal narratives produced by Chinese and South Asian students was analyzed to examine whether their contrasting orientations to the good life would be reflected in the kinds of life experiences they recounted. Some evidence of correspondence in this regard was found. iii Acknowledgements First, I should thank my wife Mairi who encouraged me and made it possible for me to attend graduate school, but has since been called away from this world. Mairi, you will always have my undying gratitude. Equally important has been my current wife Marygrace, who reappeared in my life at the perfect time. Marygrace, your presence has been an enormous source of strength and inspiration for me. You have improved my life more than you can ever know. Romin Tafarodi, my academic supervisor, has been an enormous help in completing this project. I truly appreciate all the time, help, and honest advice that you have given me over the years. This has been a truly educational experience on many levels and I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with you. Thanks also to my other committee members, Charles Helwig and Geoff MacDonald, for your insights on previous drafts, and for being the fine human beings that you are. Finally, thank you to my parents, John and Ruth. You gave me my life and I have always felt secure knowing that you are there for me. I am blessed to have such capable, kind, and supportive people in my life. I hope that I will continue to be able to live up to your example. iv Table of Contents LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................ IX LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... X INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 Beliefs in Context: The Historical Basis for Understanding .............................................. 2 The Evolution of Cultural Forms ........................................................................................ 4 Cultural Orientations ........................................................................................................... 5 Meaning and Culture......................................................................................................... 11 Folk Conceptions of a Good life in Psychology ............................................................... 13 Society and Narrative: Examining the Cultural Lens ....................................................... 15 The Psychology of Life Stories......................................................................................... 18 Values ............................................................................................................................... 22 Values and Beliefs ............................................................................................................ 23 The Underlying Structure of Values ................................................................................. 25 Historical Trends and Value Change ................................................................................ 27 Summary: What Do We Know About Cultural Conceptions of the Good Life? ............. 29 Defining a Good Life in Four Nations: An Exploratory Study ........................................ 31 v Dissertation Research........................................................................................................ 36 STUDY 1: EXAMINING THE STRUCTURE OF A GOOD LIFE ............................................ 37 Rationale ........................................................................................................................... 37 Unfolding Preferences: Visualizing the Structure of Goods ............................................. 38 The Technique of Multidimensional Scaling .................................................................... 39 Method .............................................................................................................................. 43 Results ............................................................................................................................... 44 Multidimensional Scaling Analysis: Unfolding Preference Data ..................................... 51 DISCUSSION: STUDY 1............................................................................................................. 57 Structuring the Good Life: Relationships and the Locus and Morality of Goods ............ 58 Beliefs about the Good Life and Personal Experience ..................................................... 61 STUDY 2: THE CONTENT OF LIFE NARRATIVES AND THE GOOD LIFE. ..................... 61 Rationale ........................................................................................................................... 61 How Important are Beliefs About the Good Life?............................................................ 62 Open-Ended Narratives as an Expression of Beliefs ........................................................ 63 Life Stories of International Students ............................................................................... 63 Hypotheses and Planned Analysis .................................................................................... 64 Method .............................................................................................................................. 65 vi Results ............................................................................................................................... 68 Comparing Groups on Topical Content Categories .......................................................... 72 DISCUSSION: STUDY 2............................................................................................................. 76 Specific Predictions .......................................................................................................... 76 More Speculative Expectations......................................................................................... 77 Cultural Themes ................................................................................................................ 82 GENERAL DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................... 84 Dimensions of a Good Life: Locus and Morality ............................................................. 84 Cultural Orientations to the Good Life ............................................................................. 85 Humanity is Diversity ....................................................................................................... 86 Cultural Characteristics ..................................................................................................... 87 Chinese: Effort and Connections ...................................................................................... 88 South Asia: Diversity and Spirituality .............................................................................. 90 North America: Prosperity, Self-Expression, and Choice ................................................ 92 Evolving Cultural Narratives ............................................................................................ 93 The Centrality of Interpersonal Relations ......................................................................... 94 Imagining a Good Life ...................................................................................................... 95 vii CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................. 95 Limitations ........................................................................................................................ 95 Related
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