Individualism and collectivism among university students in Mexico and the United States

Individualism and collectivism in Mexico and the United States of America were investigated. It was hypothesized that Mexican university students would be more collectivistic than university students in the United States. Specifically, this difference was expected to be found in relationships with parents, spouses, extended family members, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and classmates. University students in Mexico and in the United States completed the Individualism-Collectivism Scale (Hui, 1988), which measures the degree of individualistic or collectivistic tendencies in various interpersonal relationships. Analysis of variance revealed a country difference on the general Collectivism Index; students in Mexico were significantly more collectivistic than students in the United States. A multiple analysis of variance revealed country differences on the Parents, Spouse, and Co-Workers/Classmate subscales, with Mexican students' responses again significantly more collectivistic than those of the U.S. students.