Term Paper on "Cultural Difference"

Term Paper 4 pages (1388 words) Sources: 3

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Cultural Difference

This proposed study will explore the phenomenon of "arranged marriages in India" to possibly unearth the reasons why this practice has withstood the test of time and force of other cultures. This enduring practice is very common in many Asian countries but we will specifically focus on India where the system exists despite a large portion of its urban population adopting western values and lifestyle.

Cultural differences are interesting and definitely worth exploring to see how those differences emerged and how they have been withstanding the test of time. It is important to understand that over the years, a sort of cultural fusion has taken place resulting in cultural enmeshment whereby many new ideas have entered our cultures and vice versa. However there are still some differences that persist and one of them is the difference in the way marriages take place in east and west. In this paper, we shall be focusing strictly on the tradition of arrange vs. chosen marriages in India which is a country with a strong and very old cultural fabric.

In India, the practice of arranged marriages is still very much present even though over time, young people have begun to choose their own partners and such unions are called "love marriages." But arranged marriages are not only prevalent; they are also well accepted by the society. Society generally tends to prefer the practice and offers greater support to marriages that take place in this manner. "Love marriages" [Nanda, 2000] even though in vogue in urban centers are still frowned upon.

That however is not the case here in the United States where we have become accustom

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ed to choosing our own partners. The practice of arranged marriages is long gone, if it was ever present and we would now find it rather impossible to allow our parents to choose someone for us. Even though our friends and others would often play cupid, still the whole process requires approval of the girl and the guy. Things are very different in countries like India where arranged marriage is one custom that has withstood the test of time and it is truly an enduring practice. Nanda (2000) writes:

"In India, almost all marriages are arranged. Even among the educated middle classes in modern, urban India, marriage is as much a concern of the families as it is of the individuals. So customary is the practice of arranged marriage that there is a special name for a marriage which is not arranged: It is called a "love match." (p. 196)

Method:

The method would include interviews with Indians residing in the United States including some secondary research. For this research, primary data would be far more beneficial than secondary data but we would still need the latter to connect our primary data with a psychology theory or concept.

Hypothesis:

Lack of true self-awareness is the primary reason for the youth in India still relying on their parents' choice in matters of marriage.

Design:

Self-awareness means a person knows his strengths and weaknesses and can hence make decisions for himself. Lack of this self-awareness may lead to lack of self-reliance which affects decision-making abilities.

If X is self-awareness, Y is self-reliance, Z is decision-making:

We can hypothesize that lack of X causes lack of Y which eventually leads to lack of Z.

In other words,

If X is present, then Y also comes in and this leads to great Z.

Discussion

I feel it would be very enlightening to conduct a study on this cultural difference not only to further explore it but to precisely find out why it survives even in these modern times. We know that India and the entire East is rapidly transforming. They have a large population settled in the West and these countries are well familiar with the customs, traditions of the west. So to say that the custom has survived because people are oblivious to what is happening in other parts of the world would be entirely wrong. Interestingly many Indians settled abroad for years would go back to their country to find a girl, get married and bring her back with them. Parents also… READ MORE

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Quoted Instructions for "Cultural Difference" Assignment:

“

This is an exercise to get you to apply what you*****re learning in this class by proposing an experiment to study a cultural difference.

You will need to think about a cultural difference or potential cultural difference you are curious about. Consider this difference. Explain to the reader what this difference is. Explain to the reader why this difference is important or theoretically interesting (This is an extremely important step). And then tell the reader about a study that would examine this difference in a compelling and interesting way. The study should be an experiment in which some variable is manipulated. You do not need to actually conduct the study. You only need to outline it in enough detail so that you can show the reader that the study will convincingly demonstrate what you want to show. Note: you should have at least 3 scholarly references other than the textbook (in addition to these 3 scholarly references you can include other kinds of references as well). But this paper is not a report of other people*****s research (you will read enough of that for class). Rather this is a paper describing a phenomenon you want to examine, describing why this phenomenon is theoretically interesting, and then describing a compelling way that your idea can be tested.

The more thought that goes into your paper (both your theorizing about the cultural difference, and in your design of a study to test it), the better your grade will be. This will be evident in the kinds of ideas that you generate. On average, the more novel are your ideas, the better you will do. Novelty would be evident in terms of how much your proposed study differs from other kinds of studies that have been conducted. Also, the stronger the case that you make for why you anticipate that cultures will differ in your study, the better will be your grade.

Total 4 pages, double spaced, 12 pt. , Times New Roman, margins no less than 1***** ***** this list does not include a title page or reference page. You should include at least 3 scholarly references.

Should be APA style in the sense that you should include an Abstract, an Intro, a Method, and a Discussion section (there aren*****t any results to include in a Results section).

Anything past the 4th page won*****t be graded.

Turn-it-in deductions or a failing grade will apply if your work has been deemed *****plagiarized.*****

Bonus marks for coming up with an experimental design, as opposed to a non-experimental design.

Please kindly do not disclose any of the details of the paper under any circumstances.

Appreciated if you could send the paper directly to my email and do not upload to the server for safety.

Thanks.

*****

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