there is a fundamental difference in social norms between Western cultures and East Asians cultures. Norms in Western cultures are primarily oriented toward individualism, self-enhancement and independence. Children in Western cultures feel special about themselves. They enjoy getting gold stars on their projects and the best grade in the class. Adults in Western cultures are oriented toward promoting their own individual success, frequently in comparison with others. (2) Norms in the East Asian cultures, on the other hand, are more focused on other- concern. These norms indicate that people should be more fundamentally connected with others and thus are more oriented toward interdependence, or collectivism. In East Asian cultures, children are taught to focus on developing harmonious social relationships with others, and the predominant norms relate to group togetherness, connectedness, and duty and responsibility to one’s family. As one example of these cultural differences, research conducted by Shinobu Kitayama and his colleagues found that East Asians were more likely than Westerners to experience happiness as a result of their connections with other people, whereas Westerners were more likely to experience happiness as a result of their own (3) It is important to be aware of cultures and cultural differences, at least in part because people with different cultural backgrounds are increasingly coming into contact with each other as a result of increased travel and immigration and the development of the internet and other forms of communication. In the United States, for instance, there are many different ethnic groups, and the proportion of the population that comes from minority groups is increasing from year to year. Being aware of cultural differences and considering their influence on how we behave toward others in an important part of a basic understanding of social psychology. What idea does the expression ‘personal accomplishments’ repeat?
What can we understand about cultures from Paragraph (3)?