DO ASIANS AND EUROPEANS DIFFER IN SHARING MEMORIES FOR CLOSENESS: EXPLORING THE ROLE OF CULTURE IN SOCIAL INTERACTION

Abstract

Memory is crucial for self-identification and social bonding. According to cultural psychology, memory-recalling is culturally shaped. Asians are more context-sensitive when retelling their memories, recall less autobiographical memory and prefer general over specific memory events than Europeans. On the other hand, social psychologists argue that self-disclosure is necessary for closeness. Do Asians equally disclose themselves as Europeans when sharing memories for intimacy? Would Europeans recall more specific and autobiographical memory than Asians in the context of memory-sharing for relationship closeness? Employing an online sample including Asian and European American respondents, this study tries to fill these gaps between the two theoretical traditions. Results show that Asian and European American sharers and listeners both disclosed themselves in order to get closer to others. Both preferred specificity over general events when they shared memories to achieve social closeness. However, Asians felt higher emotional intensity after memory sharing. The difference may be caused by the Asian interdependent culture that encourages social intimacy. The difference might also lie in European Americans’ higher capacity to regulate their emotions during memory-sharing.