Introduction to Psychology
Fields

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Cross-cultural psychology

Cross-cultural psychology studies similarities and differences in individual psychological functioning across cultural and ethnocultural groups, and links psychological variables to sociocultural, ecological and biological ones.

Interdisciplinary fieldSocial and culture

Type of entry
Interdisciplinary fieldAn area that draws on psychology together with other disciplines. Types are editorial labels, not an official classification.
Cluster
Social life and culturePeople in groups, cultures, communities and politics.
Sources opened
4 of 40 read as a full page, 4 as selected text or an abstract, 0 not verified.
Independent review
Admitted after correctionsClaude Code reviewer agent, separate from the writer, 2026-10-21. 7 claims checked against 4 sources opened by the reviewer.

What it studies

Cross-cultural psychology studies similarities and differences in individual psychological functioning across cultural and ethnocultural groups. Berry and colleagues also include ongoing change and links between psychological variables and sociocultural, ecological and biological variables. They use the name as an overarching term and assume a psychic unity of the human species.

History and people

Robert Meade and Walter Lonner, of the psychology department at Western Washington State College (now Western Washington University), took the initiative in 1968 and 1969 to set up the Center for Cross-Cultural Research. The Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology issued its first number in March 1970, and the association's history page calls it the first psychology journal devoted only to this research. The International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology was formed in March 1972 and held its first conference at the University of Hong Kong that August.

People and documented roles

  • Robert D. Meade. Director of the Center for Cross-Cultural Research at Western Washington State College
    • Set up the Center for Cross-Cultural Research with Lonner and became its director. [2]
  • Walter J. Lonner. Associate director of the Center and founding editor of the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
    • Helped set up the Center for Cross-Cultural Research. [2]
    • Served as founding editor of the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology. [2]

These two people are documented only through the association's own journal history. The sources do not document earlier traditions, women, or scholars outside the United States and Europe, so none are listed.

Dated milestones

  • 1968 to 1969Institution built. Year.Meade and Lonner took the initiative to set up the Center for Cross-Cultural Research at Western Washington State College; the page gives the span 1968 to 1969. [2]
  • March 1970Publication. Month and year.First issue of the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology; the page calls it the first psychology journal devoted exclusively to this research. [2]
  • March 1972Society or organization formed. Month and year.The International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology was formed. A society event, not the field's start. [2]
  • August 1972Event. Month and year.Inaugural IACCP conference at the University of Hong Kong. [2]
  • 1973Society or organization formed. Year.Alliance between the association and the journal took effect with Volume 4. [2]

Methods

Berry and colleagues describe the field as comparison of psychological functioning across groups, set beside sociocultural, ecological and biological variables. They say it includes both culture-comparative and cultural perspectives. The sources opened here do not detail measurement and equivalence procedures, so this guide does not describe them.

Training and applications

The association's About page states that it has over 800 members in more than 65 countries, holds international congresses every two years and is affiliated with the International Union of Psychological Science. Cross-cultural psychology is a research area. Where practice titles or licenses exist, regulators in each jurisdiction set them, not this guide.

Boundaries and limits

The journal and association histories come from the association's own pages and do not document work before 1968 or outside this network. Berry and colleagues place cultural psychology inside the field, while Shweder states that cultural psychology is not cross-cultural psychology. The Hong Kong meeting in 1972 is an association event, not the origin of the field.

Evidence behind the claims

  • Berry and colleagues define cross-cultural psychology as the study of similarities and differences in individual psychological functioning across cultural and ethnocultural groups, together with ongoing change and the links between psychological variables and sociocultural, ecological and biological variables.

    What it studiesDocumented in the sourceSource: [1]Where: Definition paragraph in the Chapter 1 excerpt

  • Berry and colleagues use cross-cultural psychology as an overarching name that incorporates both culture-comparative and cultural perspectives, and they assume a psychic unity of the human species.

    MethodsDocumented in the sourceSource: [1]Where: Paragraphs following the definition

  • The IACCP history page says Robert D. Meade and Walter J. Lonner, of the psychology department at Western Washington State College (now Western Washington University), took the initiative in 1968 and 1969 to set up the Center for Cross-Cultural Research, with Meade as director and Lonner as associate director.

    History and peopleDocumented in the sourceSource: [2]Where: Founding section at the top of the page

  • The first issue of the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology appeared in March 1970 with Lonner as founding editor, and the page describes it as the first psychology journal exclusively committed to cross-cultural research.

    History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [2]Where: Founding section on the journal

  • The page says the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology was formed in March 1972, held its inaugural conference at the University of Hong Kong in August 1972, and became affiliated with the journal, with the alliance taking effect with Volume 4 in 1973.

    History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [2]Where: Section on IACCP and its alliance with the journal

  • The IACCP states that it has over 800 members in more than 65 countries, is affiliated with the International Union of Psychological Science, and holds international congresses every two years.

    Training and applicationsThe organization's own descriptionSource: [3]Where: About us page, opening description and congress note

  • Richard Shweder states that cultural psychology is not cross-cultural psychology.

    Boundaries and limitsDocumented in the sourceSource: [4]Where: Chapter summary on the landing page

Where it appears

University examples

Examples show documented structures. They are not a ranking, a census, or a statement about admission or licensing.

In the Psy101 course

This is course relevance only. It is not evidence for the historical or practice claims on this page.See the full course map.

Sources and inspection

4 of 4 sources were opened and read at the level shown. A source marked as not verified supports no claim on this page by itself.

  1. [1]
    Definitions: What is cross-cultural psychology?Cambridge University Press (Chapter 1 excerpt, Berry, Poortinga, Breugelmans, Chasiotis and Sam, Cross-Cultural Psychology: Research and Applications, 3rd ed.), undated. Textbook. Supports the definition of the area.Selected text readRead the chapter excerpt on definitions and on cultural and indigenous psychology; no publication year shown and the rest of the book was not read.
  2. [2]
    Historical Factors and Emerging DevelopmentsInternational Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology (history of the Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology), undated. Society history. Supports the history.Selected text readRead the page's dated journal and association narrative; it shows no author or date, and one place shows inconsistent dates (1995 versus 1996, not used).
  3. [3]
    About usInternational Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology, undated. Professional association. Supports a statement about practice.Selected text readRead the founding year, membership figures, IUPsyS affiliation and congress schedule; the page text is undated and its membership numbers may have changed.
  4. [4]
    Cultural psychology - what is it?Cambridge University Press (chapter by Richard A. Shweder, 1990), 1990. Original publication. Supports the definition of the area.Abstract onlyRead the landing-page summary only; chapter text was behind access control.

Independent source review: Claude Code reviewer agent, separate from the writer, 2026-10-21. Verdict: Admitted after corrections. Of 7 claims checked, 6 were supported as written, 1 were reworded and 0 were removed.