Download Cultural Differences in the Perceptions of Strong

Cultural differences in the
perceptions of strong and weak
arguments
Jos Hornikx
Arbitration and argumentation
Arbitration is a human activity involving reasoning processes
Parties and juries partly rely on arguments to present their cases, weigh the
evidence, and settle disputes
Studies underline the importance of strong arguments in deliberation (e.g.,
Shestowsky & Horowitz, 2004), but what characterizes strong arguments?
Evidence: data presented as proof
More than 60 years of research in communication and social psychology
“Does evidence function the same way in various cultures?”
(McCroskey, 1969, p. 176)
Universality of reasoning (Mercier, 2011; Mercier & Sperber, 2011)
Evidence types
Anecdotal evidence: one case
Boys’ performance at school can be improved by putting boys next to girls in
class. Since Venkatesh Gupta from Manali does not sit next to Ashwin Paul
anymore, but next to Sunitha Rai, his performance at school has improved.
Statistical evidence: numerical information, more cases
Playing slow music in supermarkets raises their turnover. The results of a
study among 138 outlets of different Indian supermarkets show that 77% of
these outlets have had a rise in their turnover as a result of playing slow
music.
Evidence types
Causal evidence: explanation
Listening to classical music helps students to absorb a lot of knowledge in a
short period of time. Classical music stimulates the identification of repeating
patterns and intricate structures, through which analytical thinking is
increased and a lot of knowledge can be absorbed.
Expert evidence: expert backs up
Fear of flying decreases as a consequence of taking part in a balloon flight.
Dr. Trivedi, a specialist in the field of clinical psychology at the University of
Chennai, underscores that fear of flying decreases as a consequence of
taking part in a balloon flight.
Methodological approach
• written claims with evidence
• claims about novel topics with low involvement
• claims have been pretested (in the different countries)
• persuasiveness = (claim with evidence) – (claim without evidence)
• 5-point scales: largest difference about .4
• cross-cultural (not intercultural!)
• equivalence: back translation, selection of names, universities, etc.
Culture and evidence types
Culture and argumentation: reasoning? values?
Starting point: power distance – expert evidence
France – The Netherlands
• expert evidence used more regularly in persuasive leaflets (Hornikx,
Starren, & Hoeken, 2003)
• expert evidence is more persuasive in France relative to other types of
types (Hornikx & Hoeken, 2007, study 1)
• difference in sensitivity to normatively strong and weak statistical and
expert evidence (Hornikx & Hoeken, 2007, study 2)
Culture and evidence quality
The quality of expert evidence depends on:
• relevant expertise
• trustworthiness
• external consistency
Professor Chevalier, a specialist in the field of psychiatry at the
University of Toulouse, underscores that fear of flying decreases as a
consequence of taking part in a balloon flight.
Professor Chevalier, a specialist in the field of politics at the University
of Toulouse, underscores that fear of flying decreases as a
consequence of taking part in a balloon flight.
Netherlands: psychiatry > politics
France: psychiatry = politics
Why insensitive to field of expertise?
Explanation 1: French did not elaborate enough
Larger effects of evidence quality with central processing (cf. Petty &
Cacioppo, 1986)
More critical thinking with incongruent information (Maheswaran & Chaiken,
1991), even for people with low motivation
Incongruent information > mixed evidence
Are French people sensitive to variations in expert evidence quality when
claims are followed by evidence and counterevidence?
Material (Hornikx & Kemperman, in progress)
claim + (counter)evidence + (counter)evidence
claim
evidence
Fear of flying decreases as a consequence of taking part in a
balloon flight.
The results of a study among 264 French suffering from that fear
show that 77% of them have seen a decrease in their fear as a
consequence of taking part in a balloon flight. However,
professor Chevalier, a specialist in the field of psychiatry at the
University of Toulouse, underscores that fear of flying does not
decrease as a consequence of taking part in a balloon flight.
… decrease in their fear as a consequence of taking part in a
balloon flight. However, professor Chevalier, a specialist in the
field of politics at the University of Toulouse …
Insensitive to field of expertise
Why insensitive to field of expertise?
Explanation 2: cultural-educational explanation (Hornikx, 2011)
““The real keys to the ‘good life’ are obedience, discipline, and sticking to the
straight and narrow”
• French were more obedient
• More obedience > smaller difference between two experts
Unpacking culture – an unsuccessful example
Dutch-German comparison (Hornikx & Ter Haar, in press)
Uncertainty avoidance > more sensitive to evidence quality?
Study 1: no support for this relationship
No differences on relevant scales: Need for Structure, Need for Precision (cf.
Smith & Schwartz, 1997)
Germans are insensitive to statistical evidence quality
A study among 381 (53) Dutch students has shown that 74% (38%) of
them had absorbed a lot of knowledge in a short period of time by
listening to classical music.
Study 2:
• Germans were sensitive to rules of generalization
• However, this understanding was not applied to evaluation of claims
Conclusion
• Arguments that one may believe to be strong (weak) may be less (more)
convincing in another culture
• Juries should be aware that they evaluate arguments differently than
parties from other cultural backgrounds
• Do not overestimate cultural differences in persuasive arguments (and
persuasion in general)
• Observed differences are hard to explain empirically
Thanks
your attention!
In
theforheart
of Western Europe
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