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Pacific Asia Psychology: Ideas for Development?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 May 2015

S.C. Carr ,
M. MacLachlan  and
R.F. Schultz
S.C. Carr
Affiliation:
University of Newcastle, Australia
M. MacLachlan
Affiliation:
University of Malawi, Malawi
R.F. Schultz
Affiliation:
University of the South Pacific, Fiji
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Abstract

Focussing on health and management needs, an applied “psychology for development” is emerging in the African literature, and we aimed to explore its wider application to the development of countries in Pacific Asia. “Psychology for development” has made use of some distinctive pathways, from (a) realizing that development policy may contain mistaken assumptions about the psychology of the people involved, to (b) reconstituting, (c) restating, (d) refuting, or (e) rechannelling psychological concepts devised for western conditions. Applied psychological phenomena so far identified include (a) a “pay me!” reaction to aid (recipients demanding money for their participation); (b) “double demotivation” (salary differentials between local and expatriates demotivating both groups); (c) the “pull down” motive (the perception that others will sabotage high self-achievement); (d) “cognitive tolerance” (the ability to value at the same time both modern medical and traditional beliefs about health); and (e) the revitalised importance to health care of concepts such as “source credibility”. Anecdotal evidence suggests that these pathways and applied concepts may have a future in Pacific Asia, and we recommend empirical research to develop awareness of their viability in this region.

Type
Articles
Information
South Pacific Journal of Psychology , Volume 8 , 1995 , pp. 2 - 18
Copyright
Copyright © University of Papua New Guinea & the University of Newcastle, Australia 1995

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