title: Cross-cultural similarities and differences in the experience of awe.
abstract: Current research on awe is limited to Western cultures. Thus, whether the measurement, frequency, and consequences of awe will replicate across non-Western cultures remains unanswered. To address this gap, we validated the dispositional awe scale (Shiota, Keltner, & John, 2006) in 4 countries (United States, Iran, Malaysia, and Poland; N = 1,173) with extensive variations in cultural values (i.e., power distance) and personality profiles (i.e., extraversion and openness). Multigroup factor analyses demonstrated that, across all cultures, a 3-factor model that treats awe, amusement, and pride as 3 unique emotions is superior to a single-factor model that clusters all 3 emotions together. Structurally, the scales of awe, amusement and pride were invariant across all countries. Furthermore, we found significant country-level differences in dispositional awe, with the largest discrepancy between the United States and Iran (d = 0.79); these differences are not likely due to cultural response biases. Results are discussed in terms of possible explanations for country-level differences and suggestions for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, San Francisco State University.
authors.forename: Pooya
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Razavi
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of California-Berkeley.
authors.forename: Jia Wei
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hekiert
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, San Francisco State University.
authors.forename: Seung Hee
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Yoo
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, San Francisco State University.
authors.forename: Ryan T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Howell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D008296:Malaysia; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D010551:Personality; D011044:Poland; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult