Question

Studies show that people in countries such as Japan and Korea tend to evaluate themselves critically in surveys; they tend to consider self as not necessarily hard-working. Explain the reasons for such cultural response bias.

Answer 1

Research has shown that people from Japan, Korea and Eastern Asian cultures have cultural response bias, or a tendency to give moderate responses when asked about subjects that are highly regarded in their culture such as honor, dedication, or hard work. This has been attributed to the extremely high cultural standards the Japan and Korea have set for being purposeful, dedicated, hard-working, organized and capable of achieving great deeds. Because of the high standards that have been set, the people from these countries feel that their best efforts won’t meet up to existing standards, and so they are less inclined to agree that they hardworking, even when they are.