An experimental test of the production of individualism within the United States

Includes bibliographical references (p. 34-35).The production-adoption model of cultural change posits that cultural change occurs via the production of new values and practices or adoption of new values and practices. Production occurs when a society is presented with a severe threat and individuals must produces new values or practices to survive. Adoption occurs when it is perceived that new values and practices are associated with an increase in wealth or status. Because the United States has continuously been reported as one of the most individualistic countries, its unique historical frontier is used to help illustrate these processes. Specifically, the lack of vital resources on the frontier is thought to have pressured those migrating west to engage in behaviors that focused on the individual rather than the collective. Although those who remained in the colonial regions did not face threats to survival, they adopted the values that were produced on the frontier in hopes to obtain the status and wealth that those migrating west were receiving. These speculations are supported by evidence about current regional variation in cultural values; however, no experimental evidence exists to document a causal relationship between the availability of resources and the patterns seen today. As a step toward testing the proposed causality, the present study examined the causal relation between the availability of environmental and social resources and the production of strong independent values. It was hypothesized that individuals placed in an environment that lacks vital resources, should endorse values of independence more strongly than individuals in an environment that has a surplus of those resources. As a secondary hypothesis, it was expected that the availability of resources should influence how strongly individuals endorse different aspects of independence. Consistent with previous research, individuals with an abundance of resources should endorse aspects of independence such as personal choice and uniqueness more strongly than autonomy and self-reliance. Conversely, individuals with a shortage of resources should endorse aspects of independence such as autonomy and self-reliance more strongly than personal choice and uniqueness. Finally, the third hypothesis examined whether trait-level independence moderates the effects of the environmental context. It was expected that after experiencing a lack of resources, individuals low (vs. high) in trait-level independence should show greater increase in state-level independence for adaptive purposes. These hypotheses were examined in a single-factor between subjects design. Ninety-six female participants were informed that the goal of the study is to examine various planning strategies. They expected to compete in a game that would either lack (frontier) or have a sufficient amount (colony) of environmental and social resources. Results did not lend support for the hypotheses regarding the aggregation of the four facets of independence. However, findings do shed light on the role of trait-level endorsement of autonomy. Although dispositionally autonomous individuals endorsed autonomy significantly more than non-autonomous individuals in the colony condition, when in the frontier condition, the opposite was found. Non-autonomous individuals were not affected by the availability of resources. Implications for adaptive strategies employed by individuals varying in autonomy are discussed, along with directions for future research