16 - On Hand-Holding, Spit, and the “Big Tickets”: A Commentary on Research from a Cultural Perspective

Summary

To begin with, I would like to commend the editors of this volume for bringing culture to bear on the topic of child and adolescent development. From a personal perspective, culture did not become part-and-parcel of my research life until I was fortunate enough to have been invited by Harold Stevenson to attend an International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development (ISSBD) Workshop in Beijing in 1987. Participating in that workshop were senior scholars from the People's Republic of China and a group of senior scholars from Western countries. The two groups exchanged reports of their research and views about developmental processes. In separate sessions, the senior Western social scientists offered lectures to a group of younger Chinese Developmental Scientists.

Among the many wonderful memories I have of this workshop, two stand out. First, whilst interacting with the younger scholars, I asked members of the group to tell me about their research. Much of the ongoing research appeared to be attempts to replicate the work of Western scientists. But when I asked the young scientists what they were finding, an almost uniform response was: “We must be doing something wrong. We are not replicating the published findings!”

Second, the visiting scientists were taken on a tour of a new children's hospital in Beijing. As we passed through the hospital's library, I was impressed by the many contemporary books and journals on psychology that lined the shelves.