Assignment: Applications of Indigenous Psychology: Educational Achievement

One research area of indigenous psychology is the study of educational achievement in different countries. The research questions why students in some countries perform much better than students in other countries. Their findings have emphasized four major factors that impact educational achievement. The first factor, interdependence and proxy control, refers to a child's dependence on parents. The second factor, self-regulation, refers to the effort a student puts into academic pursuits. The third factor, collective control, refers to cooperation between family members and educators. Organizational cultural, the fourth factor, refers to the underlying cultural value system that emphasizes human-relatedness. Your text provides further details about each of these factors. The article provided in this week's resources illustrates the four factors and their effect on educational achievement in Korea. (Note that the authors of the article use the terms educational achievement and academic achievement interchangeably).

Studies show that East Asian students are high academic achievers, particularly in math and science. In contrast, studies indicate that students in the United States perform poorly in science, math, and often other academic areas as well. Psychologists are interested in understanding whether factors that influence high achievement in East Asia might somehow be "imported" into the United States to improve educational achievement.

To prepare for this Assignment:

• Review Chapter 5 in your course text, paying particular attention to the section on understanding achievement in East Asia.

• Review the article "Indigenous psychological analysis of academic achievement in Korea: The influence of self-efficacy, parents, and culture." Focus on the following sections: "Traditional approaches; cultural values," "Family and self-cultivation in Korea," and "Discussion."

• Think about how the factors of interdependence and proxy control, self-regulation, collective control, and organizational culture contribute to high educational achievement in East Asian countries such as Korea.

• Consider how the absence of interdependence and proxy control, self-regulation, collective control, and organizational culture may correspond with low educational achievement in the United States.

• Think about whether you believe the East Asian approach to interdependence and proxy control, self-regulation, collective control, and organizational culture might somehow be "imported" into American culture in order to improve educational achievement.

The Assignment (3-4 pages):

• Explain how the East Asian approach to interdependence and proxy control, self-regulation, collective control and organizational culture contributes to high educational achievement in East Asian countries.

• Explain how the absence of interdependence and proxy control, self-regulation, collective control, and organizational culture may correspond to low educational achievement in the United States.

• Explain whether you believe the East Asian approach to interdependence and proxy control, self-regulation, collective control, and organizational culture might be "imported" into American culture in order to improve educational achievement. Explain your answer.

Note: Support the responses within your Assignment with evidence from the assigned Learning Resources. Provide a reference list for resources you used for this Assignment.

Required Readings: Please read and view (where applicable) the following Learning Resources before you complete this week's assignments.

Course Text: Stevens, M. J., &Gielen, U. P. (2007). Toward a glob al psychology: Theory, research, intervention, and pedagogy. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

• Chapter 5, "Development of Indigenous Psychologies: Understanding People in a Global Context"

Article: Allwood, C. M., & Berry, J. W. (2006). Origins and development of indigenous psychologies: An international analysis. International Journal of Psychology, 41(4), 243-268.

Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

This seminal article examines the development of indigenous psychology in different parts of the world.

Article: Kim, U., & Park, Y. (2006). Indigenous psychological analysis of academic achievement in Korea: The influence of self-efficacy, parents, and culture. International Journal of Psychology, 41(4), 287-292.

Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

This article explains how indigenous psychology has contributed to academic achievement in Korea.