How Important Is Passion? It Depends on Your Culture
“Individualist countries, including many Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic nations—known in research circles by the acronym WEIRD—see the self as independent and the source of motivation. Collectivist societies see the self as interdependent, part of a web of relations, roles, and responsibilities. The idea that passion best predicts achievement reflects a distinctly Western model of motivation, the authors write, but motivation assumes different forms in different sociocultural contexts. Indeed, they note, languages such as Mandarin and Thai have no direct translation for the word passion in the sense of intellectual interest. According to the researchers, motivation is influenced by a given culture’s philosophies of achievement, socialization patterns, and educational norms.”Danielle Dreilinger