Cross-cultural comparison of need importance and need satisfaction during adolescence: Turkey and the United States.
Turkish and U.S. adolescents' views concerning the importance of different needs and instrumentality of relationships with mothers, fathers, siblings, and same-sex friends for need satisfaction were examined and compared. Questionnaires covered needs related to crucial issues of adolescence, namely, relatedness and autonomy/individuation. Participants were 12- to 17-year-old boys and girls from intact families. Cross-cultural differences in ascribed importance of needs related to some aspects of relatedness and autonomy/individuation emerged. Cross-cultural similarities in ascribed importance of needs related to feelings of basic acceptance and need for self-understanding/development also emerged. Turkish adolescents perceived mothers as more instrumental for need satisfaction than did U.S. adolescents. Gender differences in importance ascribed to different needs also emerged. Cross-cultural differences were consistent with differences in predominant values and model family dynamics of the respective countries.
Hortaçsu
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Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey.
D000293:Adolescent; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D010553:Personality Development; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D014421:Turkey; D014481:United States