Asian Social Psychology and Asian Epistemologies: Potentials for Global Psychology?

1. Professor James H. Liu Centre for Applied Cross Cultural Research School of Psychology Victoria University of Wellington Asian Social Psychology and Asian Epistemologies: Potentials for Global Psychology?

2. Disjuncture between Global society and Global psychology • Manufacturing in Global society is completely interconnected. There is hardly a single industry (except defense) that does not have a significant component of manufacturing output from Asia. Now even service is being outsourced. Massive amounts of sovereign wealth are held in Asia: China buys 1/3 of the current American government’s accounts deficit. • In contrast, if China, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines were to disappear from Global Psychology, PsycInfo would not notice. A bibliometric study by Adair, Coelho, & Luna (2002) found Japan contributes 1.9% of global publications in psychology, whereas the others probably total to less than 2%.

3. Global Manufacturing: Smithian Division of Labour + Global Markets • In manufacturing, the global division of labour allows Asian countries to first become cheap manufacturers, and then as they acquire technical expertise they are able to produce global brands. • Psychology, by contrast, is more like a feudal guild system, where one-on-one mentoring is necessary to acquire the expertise to become a Master oneself. Like a global cottage industry– perhaps to be expected in an industry without physical products. • The hope of American psychology is to be a spoke of the hub of cognitive neuroscience. It would be the fulfillment of a century old dream for psychology to become a physical, experimental science like Physics

4. How can Asian Social Psychology come of Age as a “Third Force”? • American social psychology is the global study of the universal individual. • European social psychology is the study of the individual in the context of society (e.g., groups, social categories, social representations). • Asian social psychology has potential to become the study of culture, the phenomenological layer of social constructions that mediate between raw experience and a person’s reactions. • Asian philosophy and epistemology is holistic, so the analytical separation of Volkerpsychologie (Folk Psychology) from Experimental Science advocated by Wundt is not accepted • To become successful, Asian social psychology must illustrate its “positive distinctiveness” facilitated by the rise of Asian economies. It must be useful to Asian societies and gain international reknown.

5. Asian Association of Social Psychology (AASP) • Established in 1995 with its first biennial meeting in Hong Kong as the brainchild of Kwok Leung, Yoshi Kashima, Susumu Yamaguchi, and Uichol Kim • Initially attended by only about 60 people, with a single stream of papers • Japanese, South Koreans, and different groups of Chinese were the main nationalities • Subsequent meetings in Kyoto, Taipei, Melbourne, Manila, Wellington (NZ), Kota Kinabalu (Malaysia), and Delhi (Dec 7-10 2009) • 2011, July 27-31 Kunming China • Recent meetings attended by 700+ people

6. About the Asian Assn of Social Psyc • The main goals of AASP are (1) to explore, address, and advance the unique contribution that could be made by Asian psychologists in investigating issues that are relevant and of interest to them; (2) to expand the boundary, substance and direction of social psychology beyond its initial Euro-American base; (3) to move away from the narrow focus on intra-individual process, and move towards an integration of various areas of psychology as well as sister disciplines; (4) to promote research on Asian traditions, philosophies, and ideas that have psychological contents and/or implications; (5) to encourage links between Asian and Western facts and principles of social psychology; and (6) to provide Asian-Pacific scholars with a scientific forum for discussion, evaluation, and publication of their research” (Kim, 1998, p. iv).

7. About the Asian Journal of Social Psychology (AJSP) • Established in 1998 • Published jointly by the Asian Association of Social Psychology, the Japanese Group Dynamics Association and Blackwell • JCI/SSCI from 2004 • Impact Factor from 0.5-1.0 (entry level journal that publishes single study papers)

8. Editorial Policy (1) • AJSP welcomes submissions from any part of the world, but positively encourages submissions from Asian countries and/or Asian authors and Asian samples • “In a nutshell, AJSP is able to promote research that addresses cultural issues, and the Journal seems to have developed a reputation as a ‘cultural’ journal… No obvious theoretical framework comes to mind when one thinks of Asian social psychology. Except for the indigenous psychologists, most Asian social psychologists work on topics that are popular in the West. For Asian indigenous psychologies, there has not been any single theoretical framework that has wide-ranging influence beyond its country of origin.” (Leung, 2007, p. 11).

9. Editorial Policy (2) • AJSP welcomes papers from any theoretical or methodological, or epistemological tradition • “What is special about Asian social psychology is that it is free of the dualist ontology that is often implicit in Western intellectual tradition. It may take a while for Western social psychologists to extricate themselves from the dualist thinking that permeates the division between natural science and cultural science metatheories of psychology. In the meantime, the practice of Asian social psychology may be able to construct a social psychology that takes culture seriously, unencumbered by the weight of Western cultural tradition.” (Kashima, 2005, p. 36).

10. Overcoming “Methodolatry” • Idolatry is worshipping a false idol. • Methodolatry=treating methodology as an absolute value (as a God) rather than as a tool to serve the investigator’s purpose. • Science developed in Western societies beginning in the 17th century as a product of the Protestant Reformation and as a reaction to the hegemony of the Catholic Church. Rationality and the Scientific Method became New Gods of the enlightenment, and especially in the French Revolution. They were erected as replacements for the formerly all powerful God of religion.

11. Natural Science and Dualism as Western Cultural Products • Great Western philosophers like Descartes (mind-body problem) and Kant pushed the ability of rational analysis to the limits to emerge with a dualistic conception of the human condition and its theories of knowledge. • Descartes argued that the human body followed mechanistic laws of physics like any other, and that the mind (or soul) was non-material and therefore was free to follow the dictates of religion. • Kant distinguished between noumenon (thing in itself), truth only known by God, and phenomenon (unreliable evidence perceived by sensible intuition). According to Kant, human beings cannot know things-in-themselves (noumenon), and hence it is impossible for us to have knowledge on metaphysics because this would end in antinomies (contradictions). • Both theories argue for a clear dichotomy between empirical, verifiable knowledge and subjective beliefs

12. Two Psychologies? • In the Natural Science Model of the British and French empiricists, the human being is modelled as a general information processor endowed by biology with tendencies to behave in a lawful manner like other physical objects. • In the Folk Psychology Model of German idealists like Johann Herder, a volk is a community whose shared language and historical traditions shape the mental processes of its members and provide essential resources for their development. “Thus, nations change according to place, time, and their inner character; each carries within itself the measure of its perfection, incommemsurable with others.”

13. Wundt’s Volkerpsychologie • Wilhelm Wundt, who many claim as the Father of Experimental Psychology, had a bastard child known as Volkerpsychologie • In his view, two different orders of reality required two psychologies, one to explicate elementary physiological laws, and the other to investigate higher psychological functions like language and reasoning. • Wundt argued that higher psychological functioning extended beyond individual human consciousness and hence could not be studied by experimental methods. Have to be studied by descriptive methods, like ethnography, folklore, & linguistics.

14. A Higher level Synthesis • Why is Volkerpsychologie necessary according to Wundt? “Its problem relates to those mental products which are created by a community of human life and are, therefore, inexplicable in terms of merely individual consciousness, since they presuppose the reciprocal action of many…” • It is “the science of the origins of peoples.” • Mainstream psychology only accepted his experimental methods, not his Volkerpsychologie

15. Mou Tsung-san (Zongshan)’s Monist Intellectual Intuition • Mou argues that Eastern traditions such as Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism allow for the possibility of “intuitive illumination”. He proposes a transcendental dialectic where the cognitive mind, while unable to produce acceptable proof of the metaphysical ultimate, nevertheless can help to reveal its logical structure by projecting it as the exact opposite of the cognitive mind, bound in time and space. • Mou’s transcendental dialectics do not deal with empirically verifiable knowledge, so they are similar in form to Kierkegaard’s position that “Subjectivity is Truth”. However, they nonetheless describe a rational process that hence departs radically from Kierkegaard's irrational approach and hence avoids dualism.

16. Culture’s Implicit Effects • Kashima’s (2005) argues that contemporary Western social scientists have maintained an unnecessarily sharp division between natural and human phenomena as part of their particular cultural program, with some carrying on with a natural science paradigm in an enlightenment vein and others reacting against this as an affront to human agency and dignity. • As Tillich (1951) observes, value must have an ontological basis. The value of scientific observations formalizing sensible intuition compared to the phenomenology and hermaneutics of intellectual illumination cannot be reduced to any formula involving emotive responses or subjective utilities, and cannot be deduced or induced by any form of logical or empirical proof. • Value is a property of individuals and the cultures they belong to, not a universal. Seeking to prove one methodology is better than another is methodolatry.

17. 3 Steps to Significance for Asian social psychology • Acknowledge the reality of Western imposed standards for publication and offer an attractive alternative. • Construct a social psychology that is compatible with local mentalities and institutional practices but is capable of communicating to global communities of social scientists. • Build awareness of the historical adoption of institutional structures in Asia, identify those that are functional and refine them, identify those that are dysfunctional, and target these for change. Asian social psychology as a psychology of holistic interconnectedness.

18. Indigenous Compatibility (Yang, 1999, 2000) • Empirical study has to be conducted in a manner such that the researcher’s concepts, theory, methods, tools, and results adequately represent, reflect, or reveal the natural elements, structure, mechanism, or process of the studied phenomenon embedded in its context. • Don’t uncritically or habitually apply Western psychological concepts, theories, methods, and tools to your research before thoroughly understanding and immersing yourself in the phenomenon being studied • Don’t overlook Western psychologists’ important experiences in developing their own indigenous psychologies, which may be usefully transferred to the development of non-Western indigenous psychologies • Don’t think in terms of English or any other foreign language during the various stages of the research process in order to prevent distortion or inhibition of the indigenous aspects of contemplation involved in doing research

19. Do’s of Indigenous Compatibility (Yang continued) • Do tolerate ambiguous or vague states and suspend decisions as long as possible in dealing with theoretical, methodological, and empirical problems until something indigenous emerges in your mind during the research process • Do be a typical native in the cultural sense when functioning as a researcher • Do take the studied psychological or behavioral phenomenon and its sociocultural context into careful consideration • Do give priority to culturally unique psychological and behavioral phenomena or characteristics of people in your society, especially during the early stages of the development of an indigenous psychology in a non-Western society • Do base your research on an intellectual tradition of your own culture

20. Asian Journal of Psychological and Social Issues (2011) • An alternative outlet for psychological research on social issues with both local and global implications, using the short reports model as Psychological Science for one of its sections, combined with a practice section that will be judged according to the criteria of usefulness to practice and importance of voicing the issue among end-users, including community groups and other NGOs, government, or business.

21. Summary of Major Implications of Asian Epistemologies • Seek Indigenous Compatibility • Including the purpose of research: for India Metaphysical Psychology? for China, a Psychology of ethical relations? • Demand Practical Value • What contribution to societal well-being does this research bring? • Don’t Practice Methodolatry • Do Practice Methodological Pluralism • Qualitative Research to answer the question of WHAT– what is phenomenonological layer? What are the key concepts at work? • Quantitative Research to answer the question of HOW MUCH and HOW PREVALENT

22. Two Asian Indigenous Psychology Projects • Bhawuk (India): Pure Philosophy from India to create a Meta-physically oriented Psychology • “More than materialistic-deterministic aspects of human existence, IP (Indian Psychology) takes a more inclusive spiritual-growth perspective on human existence. In this sense no clear distinction is made between psychology, philosophy and spirituality, as conjointly they constitute a comprehensive and practical knowledge or wisdom about human life.” (Psychology & Developing Societies)

23. Indian Philosophy/Psychology of Self (Atman) • Rather than beginning with Erickson or Freud, Indian scholars like Paranjpe (1998) begin with Vedic traditions like the Upanishads, among whose basic tenets is that “truth should be realized, rather than simply known intellectually” (Bhawuk, in press). • According to Bharati, 1985, as cited in Bhawuk, 2008b, “The self has been studied as "an ontological entity" in Indian philosophy for time immemorial, and "far more intensively and extensively than any of the other societies" • The basic methodology is the practice of meditation, and the goal of meditative practices is to uncover the nature of the true self (atman), unencumbered by even such a fundamental phenomenological unity as time, and basic categories like Self and Other, or Good and Evil

24. Psychology of Self as Practice of Self-Realization • Bhawuk proposes a methodology for translating Indian scriptures into psychological models of theory and practice by Literary Exegesis and personal practice: • “In the second canto of the Bhagavad-Gita a process of how desire and anger cause one’s downfall is presented. The sixty-second verse delineates this process by stating that when a person thinks about sense objects, he or she develops an attachment to it. Attachment leads to desire, and from desire anger is manifested. The sixty-third verse further develops this causal link by stating that anger leads to confusion (sammoha) or clouding of discretion about what is right or wrong, confusion to bewilderment, to loss of memory or what one has learned in the past, to destruction of buddhi (i.e., intellect or wisdom) to the downfall of the person or his or her destruction”

26. Behavioral Decision Point Greed Thought or Cognition YES Attachment (Cognition + Affect) Goals Self Desire NO Anger Behavioral Decision Point Figure 4: Desire as the Locus of Cognition, Emotion, and Behavior

27. SELF ELEMENTS OF MATERIAL WORLD COGNITION (THOUGHT) COGNITION + AFFECT (ATTACHMENT) DESIRE ACHIEVEMENT OF DESIRE (POSITIVE AFFECT) NON-ACHIEVEMENT OF DESIRE (NEGATIVE AFFECT) INSATIABLE DESIRE CYCLE (ULTIMATELY UNHAPPINESS) UNHAPPINESS MANAN-CINTAN (SELF-REFLECTION) PRACTICE OF KARMAYOGA BEYOND COGNITION & EMOTION (STHITAPRJNA) FIGURE 5: A GENERAL MODEL OF PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES & DESIRE

28. And if you want scientific proof… • Advocates of transcendental meditation were quite happy for Western scientists to measure them during meditation and find that their oxygen consumption and heart rate decreased, skin resistance increased, and electroencephalographs showed changes in frequencies suggesting low stress (Bhawuk, 2008a; see Rao & Paranjpe, 2008 for a more detailed review). • But indigenous psychologies are both description and prescription, and as such, do not require validation by empiricist norms. Nice, but not the modus vivendi

29. Historical Affordances for Authority: China and the West (Liu & Liu, 2003) • Liberal Democratic Law • Paternalism Guanxi

30. Benevolent Paternalism as both description and ideal

31. Chinese relationalism: KK Hwang 1987

32. Western versus Chinese Authoritarianism • Western RWA (Right Wing Authoritarianism) = Conventionalism, Authoritarian Submission, & Authoritarian (Displaced) Aggression • Chinese Authoritarianism = all of the above PLUS an ethical sense of duty/obligation and respect for superiors (e.g., filial piety) • Authoritarian Efficiency, a belief and respect for the efficacy of top-down leadership • AND a backhanded avoidance of authorities to create a liveable and human rather than fascist authoritarian space

33. Benevolent Authority versus Authoritarianism? • How the Past Weighs on the Present: China is a top down society where civil society is relatively weak, and it takes centralized government to get things done. • Social psychology, with its focus on individual attitudes, is not well-equipped to capture political dynamics of top-down societies • Authoritarian Efficiency • Benevolent Authority • Backdoor Avoidance of Authority • Thanks to Liu Li, Yang Yiyin (& Linda Skitka)

34. Conclusion 2: Benevolent Authority Lives! • Chinese psychology of social identity may contribute to a global psychology of understanding how to educate and inculcate moral values to powerful leaders, and make them accountable interpersonally. • Liberal models of statecraft shy away from power, and leave too much room for Machiavellianism by idealizing individual equality. They have an insufficient theory of the power of benevolent authority.

35. Conclusion: Towards a Global future with a Chinese contribution • The Chinese and East Asian model of development combines traditional forms of hierarchical relationalism with a modern & nationalistic bureaucratic structure. • The model has proven successful in Japan, Taiwan, S. Korea, Singapore, and now China • The aforementioned four dragons have begun sometimes painful transitions from the bureaucratic authoritarian roots of their massive growth periods towards more Western styles of governance. • Seek not to reify authority, but come to terms with it at various historical moments.

36. Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Authority as part of Global Consciousness • Western democracy appears absolutely incapable of addressing carbon emissions and climate change. Its citizens resist making sacrifices, whereas Authoritarian regimes can command the kind of top-down change necessary for survival.