Cross-cultural research and meta-analysis

The cross-cultural method

Cross-cultural research compares behaviour in different cultures using the same procedure. If a behaviour appears in the same way everywhere, it may be universal and innate (nature); if it differs, culture and upbringing (nurture) may explain it. In attachment research, the Strange Situation has been used in many countries.

Issues:

• Imposed etic: using a tool developed in one culture (the USA) as if it has the same meaning everywhere. Emic research studies a culture from within, using its own concepts.
• Translation and procedures may differ between research teams.
• Samples within a country may not represent its culture (urban versus rural; middle-class samples).
• Natural cultural differences are not manipulated, so causes are hard to pin down (it is a form of natural or quasi-experiment).

Meta-analysis

A meta-analysis combines the results of many studies on the same question into one overall analysis, usually after a systematic search with inclusion criteria.

• Strengths: a very large combined sample increases generalisability and statistical power; patterns across studies (such as within- and between-country variation) can be seen that no single study could show; no new participants are needed, so no new ethical issues.
• Weaknesses: 'garbage in, garbage out': it is only as good as the studies included; studies may differ in procedure, coders and samples; publication bias (non-significant studies are less often published), which Cassibba et al. reduced by including unpublished work; inclusion decisions are made by the researcher and can be subjective.

Examples: van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988) and Cassibba et al. (2013).

Are attachment types universal?

• For universality: secure attachment was the most common type in every country in van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988) and in Italy (Cassibba et al., 2013), which supports an innate basis (Bowlby).
• Against: proportions of A and C vary (more A in Germany, more C in Japan and Israel), and variation within countries was larger than between them, suggesting caregiving and subculture matter.
• Measurement problem: the Strange Situation may not measure the same thing in every culture, so apparent differences may be artefacts of an imposed etic.

Worked example

A student says 'Meta-analysis proves attachment types are universal.' Give one point for and one against.

1. For: secure attachment was the most common type in all 8 countries across 1,990 Strange Situations.
2. Against: the meta-analysis can only be as valid as the Strange Situation studies it combines, which may be culturally biased.

Answer: Supports a universal secure majority, but depends on a possibly biased measure.

Check yourself

1. An imposed etic means
   • researchers study a culture from inside using its own concepts
   • a research tool from one culture is used as if it means the same in all cultures
   • results are combined from many studies
   • a culture is studied over a long time
   Show answer

   a research tool from one culture is used as if it means the same in all cultures. Imposing an outside tool.

2. Studying a culture from within, using its own concepts, is called
   • an imposed etic
   • a meta-analysis
   • a cross-sectional design
   • an emic approach
   Show answer

   an emic approach. Emic is insider.

3. A meta-analysis is
   • a long-term study of one person
   • a combined analysis of the results of many studies on the same question
   • a type of interview
   • an experiment with two groups
   Show answer

   a combined analysis of the results of many studies on the same question. It pools existing findings.

4. Publication bias means
   • researchers favour their own culture
   • participants lie in interviews
   • studies with significant results are more likely to be published than those without
   • data are collected in public
   Show answer

   studies with significant results are more likely to be published than those without. Missing non-significant studies distort meta-analyses.

5. Which is a strength of meta-analysis?
   • It provides a very large combined sample, increasing generalisability
   • It removes all bias in the original studies
   • It gathers new, highly detailed qualitative data
   • It always uses the same procedure in every study
   Show answer

   It provides a very large combined sample, increasing generalisability. Pooling increases sample size.

6. Explain how cross-cultural research can be used to study the nature-nurture debate.
   Show answer

   If a behaviour is found in the same form across many cultures it is likely to be innate (nature), but if it differs between cultures it is likely to be shaped by upbringing and culture (nurture).. Similarity means nature; difference means nurture.

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Sources

• Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Subsidiary/Advanced Level in Psychology specification, Issue 6 (November 2024, first assessment January 2026)
• Pearson IAL Psychology summary of studies: WPS03

Last updated 8 November 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.