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Definition

Cross-cultural research is used to refer to the systematic comparison of two or more cultures.

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Although culture is a widely used term, its definition is still controversial. As early as 1952, Kroeber and Kluckhohn [18] had already listed 160 definitions of culture found in anthropological literature. This is not surprising because culture is an abstract term covering various types of phenomena and preferences regarding its definitions are related to the investigator’s theoretical orientations.

Culture can be defined as a “learned and shared pattern of behaviour which is characteristics of a group living within fairly definite boundaries … interacting socially among themselves” [2, p. 9]. Culture may be explicit, as shown by observable behavior or by the use of valued objects, and implicit as manifested through values, beliefs, and attitudes. Cross-cultural psychology may generally be defined as an area of psychology which includes culture as one of the...

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Essau, C.A., Keval, H.C. (2011). Cross-Cultural Research. In: Goldstein, S., Naglieri, J.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Child Behavior and Development. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79061-9_737

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79061-9_737

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

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