Wednesday 27 November 2024 at 5 pm : Debate (in English) “Self-concept and emotions: What has culture got to do with it?” with prof. Batja Mesquita (KULeuven) and prof. Shinobu Kitayama (University of Michigan). Introduction by prof. Philippe Byosière (Professor emeritus Doshisha University Kyoto, Visiting professor Management Centre Innsbruck, member of our Club).
Causerie followed by discussion time and a reception.
Participation : 25 € pp (member Club University Foundation and partner) en 30 € pp (non-member)
Registration and payment before 21 November. Registration form.
The topic
Cultural Understandings of Self: Exploring Beyond East and West (Shinobu Kitayama)
Our understanding of the self is more diverse than we once thought. While much research has compared Western and East Asian traditions, there is much to explore beyond this "East-West" framework. This presentation ventures into how various regions—like the Arab world, Latin America, South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa—offer unique perspectives on the self. Many cultures outside the West emphasize interdependence, but this idea varies widely across different environments and histories. By exploring these cultural zones, we gain new insights into how they contrast with, and even shape, the Western concept of an independent self.
Cultural Understandings of Emotions:MINE and OURS models (Batja Mesquita)
Our Western understanding of emotions as MINE (Mentalistic, INside the person, Essences) is not universal. In the talk, I revisit both old and new data from different cultures and outline an alternative model of emotions that helps to highlight features of emotions that are not accounted for by a MINE model of emotions. OURS-emotions sometimes offer a complementary view and, at other times, an alternative model of emotions: emotions as OUTside the person, Relational, and Situated.
The lecturers
Shinobu Kitayama is Robert B. Zajonc Collegiate Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan. Best known for his work on culture and the self, he is a recipient of numerous awards including the American Psychological Association’s Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award and the Association for Psychological Science’s William James Fellow Award.
Batja Mesquita is Professor and Director of the Center of Social and Cultural Psychology at KU Leuven). Most of her research focuses on the dynamic relationship between culture and emotions. She is a member of the Royal Belgian Academy of Arts and Sciences and an International Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She was a 2019 recipient of an ERC Advanced Grant on Emotions as Gateways for Minority Inclusion.