Blackwell Reference Online

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Collectivism is defined as a social model in which members are more invested in the interests of the group to which they belong than to their own individual interests. Cooperation is valued more heavily than competition in collectivist cultures, and group needs and preferences take precedence over those of the individual. Core values of these types of cultures include social embeddedness, collective identity group solidarity and group decision-making. This type of culture is often discussed in contrast to individualist cultures in which the interests of the individual are valued more strongly than those of the group. Today, researchers believe that although these two social models are orthogonal, they are not two ends of a continuum but rather two distinct patterns. Harry C. Triandis, a noted researcher in this area, offers the related term allocentric , which is used to describe an individual who adopts collectivist beliefs. In every culture there are individuals who define themselves as allocentric, or group-oriented; however certain cultures around the world are more collectivistic as a whole. Asian (e.g., Japanese or Indian) and Latin American cultures (e.g., Mexican or South American), tend to be more collectivistic in their beliefs. Individuals of Asian American, Latino American, African American, and American Indian descent may also follow the collectivist social pattern ... log in or subscribe to read full text