THE HIERARCHICAL NATURE OF INDIVIDUALISM-COLLECTIVISM - COMMENTS

Matsumoto, Kudoh and Takeuchi's (1996) article is challenged in this c ommentary by pointing to the discrepancy between theoretical assumptio ns of the dynamic nature of culture, and measurement of individualism- collectivism in terms of traditional psychometric scales. Data from an Estonian study of a similar kind are provided to add to the complex p icture of statements about individualism and collectivism in different countries. The counter-intuitive finding of Matsumoto et al. about co llectivism in the United States requires further analysis, which may t ake the form of considering the hierarchy of the concepts of 'collecti vism' and 'individualism' as providing for heterogeneous profiles of i ndividuals' relations with their complex social worlds. If psychometri c techniques were to be utilized to study this heterogeneity, they wou ld need to provide at least profiles of individualism and collectivism in different content domains (e.g. family, peers, society), and the a ctual meanings studied via psychometric scales should be clarified.