Within-Culture and Gender Differences in Self-Concept

Abstract

Open-ended self-descriptions were provided by 301 urban and 251 rural Nepalese secondary school children. The responses were coded according to whether they were "large group" collectivist, "small group" collectivist, or individualist and evaluative or nonevaluative self-references. As predicted, the rural, less modernized group gave fewer individualist responses but, contrary to prediction, did not provide either more "small group" collectivist responses or fewer evaluative responses. There was also no tendency for the males to report a more individualistic self. Both groups, particularly the rural, frequently reported future-oriented self-descriptions. The findings, therefore, questioned the generalizability of theoretical notions of culture and the self.