That Whistle Sounds Different in My Culture

Keywords: moral behavior, whistleblowing, cultural psychology, corruption, trust in authority, reporting of transgressions, individualist-collectivist cultures

On this episode we discuss how cultural factors can encourage or discourage the reporting of transgressions (that is - tattling - speaking up about someone's crime, calling out cheating in school, or bullying/harassment at work). We also touch on how certain incentive strategies like rewards and punishments designed to encourage the reporting of transgressions might work better in some cultures than others. For instance, offering individual rewards like money to someone who reports bad behavior may be more effective in individualist cultures (typical of the United States) compared a collectivist culture (typical of East Asian countries like China, and some South American cultures, like in Argentina, where our guest is from). 

The website below shows where different countries rank along these different aspects of culture (individualism, power distance, masculinity, etc.). This map is not a perfect guide for every situation, but it is an easy and fun way to compare among different countries simultaneously.

www.hofstede-insights.com/product/compare-countries/
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I hope you enjoy my conversation with Tamara!