Cultural Variance and Invariance of Age Differences in Social Cognition
- Li Chu, Li ChuDepartment of Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Yang Fang, Yang FangCUHK Jockey Club Institute of Ageing, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Vivian Hiu-Ling TsangVivian Hiu-Ling TsangDepartment of Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- and Helene H. FungHelene H. FungDepartment of Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong
Summary
Cognitive processing of social and nonsocial information changes with age. These processes range from the ones that serve “mere” cognitive functions, such as recall strategies and reasoning, to those that serve functions that pertain to self-regulation and relating to others. However, aging and the development of social cognition unfold in different cultural contexts, which may assume distinct social norms and values. Thus, the resulting age-related differences in cognitive and social cognitive processes may differ across cultures. On the one hand, biological aging could render age-related differences in social cognition universal; on the other hand, culture may play a role in shaping some age-related differences. Indeed, many aspects of cognition and social cognition showed different age and culture interactions, and this makes the study of these phenomena more complex. Future aging research on social cognition should take cultural influences into consideration.
