Wisdom Across Cultures
Wisdom Across Cultures
- Igor GrossmannIgor GrossmannUniversity of Waterloo, Department of Psychology
- and Franki KungFranki KungPurdue University, Department of Psychological Sciences
Summary
The concept of wisdom is ancient and deeply embedded in the cultural history of humanity. However, only since 1980s have psychologists begun to study it scientifically. Taking a culturally and philosophically informed perspective, this article integrates insights from the quantitative science of wisdom. Analysis of epistemological traditions and research on folk theories of wisdom suggest cultural similarities in the domain of cognition (e.g., wisdom as reasoning ability and knowledge). These similarities can be contrasted with cultural differences concerning folk-theoretical affective and prosocial themes of wisdom, as well as expression of various wisdom-related themes, rooted in distinct sociocultural and ecological environments. Empirical evidence indicates that wisdom is an individually and culturally malleable construct, consistent with an emerging constructionist account of wisdom and its development. Future research can benefit from integration of ecological and cultural-historical factors for the meaning of wisdom and its expression.
Keywords
Subjects
- Affective Science
- Cognitive Psychology/Neuroscience
- Health Psychology
- Individual Differences
- Psychology and Other Disciplines
- Social Psychology