| Individualist and Collectivist Cultures | |
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| Oct 5, 2011 09:40 | #51   |
| GUEST56110 | I have nothing against collectivist cultures. I am from a individualistic culture. It is said that people from individualistic are selfish but I dont think this is necessarily true because we are all selfish in our own way. People from individualistic cultures want to get what they want and they do. People from collectivist do things for their group but not anymore. Take marriage for example. individualistic people do love marriage collectivist do arranged [[ not being sad just so you know ]] but not anymore because people from collectivist cultures are starting to do love marriage and why because they are also getting selfish. We are all selfish in our own way [[ including me!! ]] |
| Nov 30, 2011 13:11 | #52 |
| GUESTLUKA | I see your point, but i think you are making a big mistake by finding the individual who goes against what the norm for his society/ culture is, and then trying to use that as a basis to prove there is no difference between 'individualistic' and 'collectivist' cultures. Obviously within a collectivist culture there are some people who act and think based on 'individualism' and within individualistic societies there are some groups, or families who have 'collectivist' lifestyles. The point should be clear. That humanity is collectivist by nature and individualism, was only made possible in the very modern world. But even here it is a facade. Imagine a modern business man, living completely on his own, right? Actually he relies on a huge army of people, from the electric company, to his restaurant waitress. But the collectivist mechanism is not family or tribe, in this scenario, its 'industry'. Its linking mechanism is financial, currency. He is collective in his actions because he must protect and serve the interests of his business associates, he must strengthen personal ties with his banker or accountant, and he must conduct himself in a way pleasing to them. Therefore the discussion has been made inappropriately comparing 'collectivism and individualism' when one of the two is never really possible. A more realistic way of looking at things would be to compare the collectivist mechanisms of western 'industrial' societies and eastern 'theological, family, and tribal' societies. For instance money is the collectivist mechanism for New York city, while family and tribal ties still play a big role in Tripoli, and Benghazi, linking people together in a way not well understood in the west. |
| Dec 17, 2011 06:26 | #53 |
| GUESTANAS | how is collective culture possible given that we are all individual beings ? please i need the answer in an essay form for university presentation , thank you |
| Jul 2, 2012 01:31 | #54 |
| GUEST11244 | The bottom line is simple, their is nothing like putting one's self at the service of the collective associations of men, I do not see human nature gravitating towards pure collectivism, because it is innate in man that the individual will put his interest at the forefront, and of course with exceptions. Allow me to state that this can only be ascertained where individuals are to be choices, the the individual nature of each person usually takes precedence in self preservation. When we talk of soldiers fighting a war in defense of their nation, the first benefit they enjoy is the salary, and hence gives them a contractual duty to defend their land, not for heroism or gallant show of patriotism. Take another example of sex, and please note it has nothing to do with perversion, can some allow others to have sex with them on the basis of collective sexual gratification? My point is simple, there is residual nature, at the bottom line of their instinct in survival, where collectivism is superseded with individualism |
| Jul 2, 2012 01:41 | #55 |
| GUEST11244 | The mantra that Asian cultures are collective oriented is a figment of theoretic The mere fact that communism is a big failure in modern economies lends that fact a huge credit. Even the CHinese industrial machine is not oriented on the basis of collective wealth, in all practical terms the notion of collectivity and deriving the gains collectively is utopia. From 1948 how many states that believe in human collectivism have shifted their ideologies towards the more pragmatic approach to individualism? I would like to ascertain here that the debate about collectivism and individualism is just about the right hand and the left, where in the long end the hand that one is oriented as the backbone of his functioning is the denominator called individualism |
| Jul 5, 2012 23:45 | #56 |
 | All good points, personally i learned that the Chinese culture is both (in some extend collective surpasses) First and foremost comes the family, then outside of the family many tend to don't care about others. That they must earn lots of money (for the family) if they destroy another persons life (or business) it often doesnt matter. So i do think that its more about the family, about the own collective circle than about the state or the government. |
| Aug 6, 2012 04:11 | #57 |
| GUESTHAZE | I think you don't have to debating about being collectivist or individualist because it depends on the situation. |
| Aug 6, 2012 22:15 | #58 |
| there are so many collectors in China ,you can communicate with them easily |
| Aug 11, 2012 23:22 | #59 |
| @GUESTLUKA I can understand why you would write this, but an individualist is not a person that only lives by himself or doesn't need others. It's a livestyle that everything he is doing, is because he needs it, or will benefit himself in first place. Sure he needs electricity, but the people that work there do it for the money, (mostly) or because they like their job. In a collective culture, everything is made or done for the community or government. You do it not because you like your job, but because the community needs somone to do it. So yes, the basic human "Lifestyle" is a collective, but since we are in a modern society many westerners think why should they work until their back breaks for people who are sitting around and get everything. |
| Oct 11, 2012 19:36 | #60 |
| GUEST23111 | Leonardo, I agree with your summing up: 'Never do unto others what you would not expect them to do unto you.' Only just needed to get a hook on this subject and found this discussion very helpful - thank you for having it 'way back then'. Lynnek |
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