A native American pair in regalia was compared with abstract imagery of a couple. Hispanics far preferred the nativist pair, Caucasians, and especially Caucasian females far more preferred the abstraction. Cultural cues aside from the issue of ambiguity seem to have been triggered, so that no meaningful index of tolerance for ambiguity could be developed. Masculine vs. Feminine Hofstede and others characterize masculinity vs. femininity as a cultural dimension in addition to often carrying connotations for gender-specific role behaviors within particular cultures. It was hypothesized that persons whose socialization reflected cultures classified as 'masculine' would prefer the building of angles and lines, that more feminist cultures would tend to opt for the realm of circles and open spaces.
Findings here are consistent with expectations.
While on the whole the vast majority of students preferred the more masculine imagery, women across ethnicities were far more interested than were men in the right-hand diagram. Some research suggests that Westerners are far more 'literal' and specific in their communications and styles, with Eastern perspectives taking more account of context, non-verbals, etc. Thus I was interested in seeing what students would see when presented a busy panoramic scene full of drapery, dancers, deer heads, strange shoes, light streams through ceiling beams, etc. Some fascinating results. Caucasians and males, in particular, spotted and focused on the 'observer' who didn't seem part of the scene.