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Indigenous psychology is defined by Kim and Berry as "the scientific study of human behavior or mind that is native, that is not transported from other regions, and that is designed for its people."[1] There is a strong emphasis on how one's actions are influenced by the environment surrounding them as well as the aspects that make it up.[2] This would include analyzing the context, in addition to the content that combine to make the domain that one is living in. The context would consist of the family, social, cultural, and ecological pieces and the content would consist of the meaning, values, and beliefs.[3] Since the mid 1970s, there has been outcry about the traditional views from psychologists across the world, from Africa to Australia and many places in between about how the methods only reflect what would work in Europe and the Americas.
There are several ways that separate indigenous psychology from the traditional general psychology. First, there is a strong emphasis on the examining of phenomena in context in order to discover how one's culture influences their behaviors and thought patterns.[4] Secondly, instead of solely focusing on Native populations, it actually includes information based on any group of peoples that can be deemed "exotic", in one area or another. This makes indigenous psychology a necessity for groups all over the world. Third is the fact that indigenous psychology is innovative because instead of only using one method for everyone, there is time dedicated to the creation of techniques that work on an individual basis, while working to learn why they are successful in the regions that they are being used in. There is advocacy for an array of procedures, such as qualitative, experimental, comparative, philosophical analysis and a combination of them all.[4] Fourth, it debunks the idea that only members of these indigenous groups have the ability to achieve true understanding of how culture affects their life experiences. In fact, an outsider's view is extremely valuable when it comes to indigenous psychology because it can discover abnormalities not originally noticed by members of the group. Finally, there are concepts that can only be explained by indigenous psychology. This is due to researchers having a hard time conceptualizing these phenomenon.
Despite there being noticeable differences between cultures, they all share one common goal: "to address the forces that shape affective, behavioral, and cognitive human systems that in turn underlie the attitudes, behaviors, beliefs, expectations, and values of the members of each unique culture"[5]
- ^ Kim, U., & Berry, J. W. (1993). Indigenous psychologies: Experience and research in cultural context. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
- ^ "What is Indigenous Psychology?". The Open University.
- ^ Jati Anggoro, Wahyu. "Indigenous Psychology: basic concept and research methods" (PDF).
- ^ a b Kim, Ŭi-ch'ŏl; Yang, Guoshu; Hwang, Kwang-kuo (2006). Indigenous and cultural psychology : understanding people in context. New York, NY: Springer. ISBN 978-0-387-28661-7. OCLC 68904889.
- ^ Baker. Kristin M, Graham Jean E., Lawson, Robert B. (2007). A History of Psychology: Globalization, Ideas, and Applications. (pp. 391–432). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson