Westernization

About: Westernization is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1154 publications have been published within this topic receiving 15791 citations. The topic is also known as: occidentalization.

De-Westernization and the governance of global cultural connectivity: a dialogic approach to East Asian media cultures

Abstract: In the last two decades, we have witnessed dramatic developments in the production of media cultures and their transnational circulation in non-Western regions. East Asia is one of the key regions in which these alternative cultural expressions flourish, in which cultural mixing and corporate collaboration intensify, and in which intra-regional consumption is set in motion. These developments have posed serious questions about the continuing plausibility of Euro-American cultural domination, and they necessitate the de-Westernization of the study of media and cultural globalization. Yet the degree to which the rise of East Asian media culture challenges West-centred power configurations remains a matter of debate—especially as new configurations of global governance in media culture have emerged which are subtly superseding the East–West binary, and permeating both Western and non-Western regions. This article analyses the rise of East Asian media cultures in terms of the governance of global media cultur...

Collectivistic Conflict of Chinese in Counseling Conceptualization and Therapeutic Directions

Abstract: Rapid Westernization and modernization in most Chinese societies has triggered a process of acculturation to Western value orientations, which induced conflicts between Confucian-based collectivism and Western individualism at both the societal and individual levels. A review of research instruments indicated that a cultural conflict approach is often used when assessing the personality and psychological functioning of Chinese people within and outside the United States. In spite of the receptiveness toward Western influences, family and collectivistic orientation are Confucian virtues and remain dominant values that govern the interpersonal and normative relationships in Chinese societies. Within this cultural conflict context, the concept of collectivistic conflict is proposed to conceptualize the psychological adaptation and counseling concerns of the Chinese. The development of a compromising self and the reintegration of the indigenous coping mechanism of self-cultivation (i.e., striving to be a cult...

Western historical thinking. An intercultural debate

Abstract: Preface to the Series Jorn Rusen Introduction: Historical Thinking as Intercultural Discourse Jorn Rusen PART I: THESES Chapter 1. Western Historical Thinking in a Global Perspective - 10 Theses Peter Burke PART II: COMMENTS Chapter 2. General Comments Perspectives in Historical Anthropology Klaus E. Muller Chapter 3. Searching for Common Principles: A Plea and Some Remarks on the Islamic Tradition Tarif Khalidi Chapter 4. The Coherence of the West Aziz Al-Azmeh Chapter 4. The Peculiarity of the West Toward an Archaeology of Historical Thinking Francois Hartog Chapter 5. Trauma and Suffering: A Forgotten Source of Western Historical Consciousness Frank R.Ankersmit Chapter 6. Western Deep Culture and Western Historical Thinking Johan Galtung Chapter 7. What is Uniquely Western about the Historiography of the West in Contrast to that of China? Georg G. Iggers Chapter 8. The Westernization of World History Hayden White Chapter 9. The Perspective of the Others Western Historical Thinking from an Arabian Perspective Sadik J. Al-Azm Chapter 10. Cognitive Historiography and Normative Historiography Masayuki Sato Chapter 11. Western Uniqueness? Some Counterarguments from an African Perspective Godfrey Muriuki Chapter 12. Programs for Historians: A Western Perspective Mamadou Diawara Chapter 13. The Difference of the Others Reflections on Chinese Historical Thinking Ying-shih Yu Chapter 14. Must History Follow Rational Patterns of Interpretation? Critical Questions from a Chinese Perspective Thomas H.C. Lee Chapter 15. Some Reflections on Early Indian Historical Thinking Romila Thapar PART III: AFTERWORD Peter Burke

Women and the Shii Ulama in Iran

Abstract: existed at all times and Iran from ancient times to the present day is no exception to this reality. The degree of inequality, however, has varied according to time, type of society and its reigning ideology. Zoroastrianism, the religion of ancient Iranians, accorded women an honorable position both in its mythology and in practice. The Arab conquest of Iran in the seventh century A.D. and the importation of Islam into the country had the effect of eliminating some of the existing rights and customs. After the declaration of Shiism by the Safavids in the sixteenth century, as the official religion of Iran, the position of women changed noticeably. Parallel with the growing orthodoxy of the Safavids a greater seclusion of women took place. This seclusion continued under the Qajars until in the nineteenth century, under the influence of the West, lonely voices began to be heard in defense of women's rights. These voices included both women and men. The first serious steps towards the emancipation of women in Iran were taken by the two Pahlavi rulers. In his attempts to modernize the country Reza Shah established public schools for girls and officially banned the veil in 1936. His son, the late Shah, as part of his wide-ranging reforms, called the White Revolution, introduced more changes such as the right to vote and to be elected to Parliament. Women's organizations under the leadership of Princess Ashraf Pahlavi became progressively more active. In 1967, the Family Protection Law was passed giving amongst other things, the right to women to initiate divorce proceedings. This law was further amended in 1975 to deal with questions of custody of children and alimony. The interesting phenomena about these reforms was that they started encompassing a large segment of the population and were not limited to only one class. The effect of the reigning ideology was such that even those whom it did not encompass aspired for their daughters to enter the fold. There were girls' schools even in remote rural areas. The reforms of the Pahlavis concerning women were much publicized and written about. The emancipated and educated women of Iran were the symbols of Iran's Westernization and modernization. In the context of this paper it is sufficient to say that on the eve of the Islamic Revolution there were women ministers, deputy ministers, senators, Members of Parliament, mayors, provincial office-holders, members of the armed forces and the police, diplomats, judges, lawyers, directors-general and professors throughout the country. The present situation of women in Iran is linked to the government's ideology. This ideology claims to stem from the Koran and various

Fast food and intergenerational commensality in japan: new styles and old patterns

Abstract: The introduction of McDonald's and indigenous fast-food restaurants reflects changes in the Japanese diet, eating behaviors, and social patterns. But these changes are not the expression of urban anomie and social fragmentation often attributed to postmodern society and symbolically represented by the ubiquity of these restaurants. Indeed, eating and social patterns within such establishments suggest that they provide opportunities for intergenerational commensality, conviviality, and intimacy that are less evident in some of the traditional Japanese fast-food establishments, where snacks and meals likewise are quickly served and quickly consumed. The proliferation in Japan today of these fast-food establishments reflects changes in Japan as part of global processes, rather than Westernization per se; such eating venues are used in ways that are consistent with patterns long established in Japanese culture. (Japan, family, globalization, fast food, McDonald's) ********** Fast foods have a long history in Japan, and continue today with new and old forms, each having its own meaning and place in this fast-paced, hard-working society. The introduction of McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and domestic restaurants like MOS Burger have clearly effected, and reflect, changes in the Japanese diet and eating behaviors (Watson 1997:6). (2) One might expect that such changes associated with globalization would be the expression of urban anomie, impersonal and mechanical social relations, alienation and social fragmentation, symptoms often attributed to postmodern society, symbolically represented in the ubiquity of these gustatory venues (cf. Clammer 2001). McDonald's frequently is portrayed as the central icon of the evils of globalization. Ritzer (2000:6), for example, sees the company and its golden arches as a "global icon"; indeed, as "the ultimate icon of Americana," with its emphasis on efficiency, uniformity, and mass production. This article presents an entirely different perspective, and argues that McDonald's and some other new styles of fast food in Japan express long-standing Japanese cultural patterns, and facilitate human intimacy and warmth not possible with some other, more traditional styles of inexpensive and rapidly served food in Japan. Ethnographic observation of eating patterns within recently introduced fast-food restaurants suggests that these establishments provide opportunities for intergenerational commensality, conviviality, and intimacy that are less evident in more traditional establishments where people go for food that likewise is quickly served and quickly consumed. The opportunities for these intimate occasions of sharing indeed may well be a major factor in their rapid growth in the past several decades. (3) Ethnographic observation also underscores the importance of avoiding simplistic conclusions that things global necessarily lead to common interpretations and uses and that a particular mode of production is inherently endowed with normative values that transcend cultural boundaries. What qualifies in the minds of the Japanese as fast food? Under what circumstances do people eat it? How are eating patterns and attitudes toward fast food different from or similar to those directed toward more traditional forms of Japanese cuisine? This article provides an ethnographic description of eating patterns within fast-food restaurants and explores the culturally circumscribed meanings people attach to fast food in Japan. The basic points the essay makes are that: 1) styles of usage of McDonald's and other new fast-food establishments in Japan express, facilitate, and strengthen traditional patterns of intergenerational commensality; 2) the proliferation of these fast-food establishments in Japan today reflects changes in Japan as part of global and modernizing processes (e.g., the great convenience of private automobiles in societies where large numbers of people can afford them) rather than Westernization per se; 3) whether these establishments are of foreign or Japanese origin, the menus and other matters of operation have adjusted to Japanese cultural patterns; 4) many Japanese, and especially younger Japanese, are unaware that McDonald's is not a Japanese company; and therefore, 5) McDonald's and other fastfood establishments, rather than providing a symbol of the exotic foreign or non-Japanese other, have become ubiquitous establishments that serve important needs and tastes of the Japanese within their own culture. …