• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.11 no.spc
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• pp.1-20
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• 2005

The present study was to investigate the basis of trust and distrust from the perspective of cultural psychology. We conducted a qualitative approach in terms of the reason to and psychological functions of trust and distrust. We also focused on the viewpoint of the relations between trust and distrust whether they are located on the continuum or independent dimensions. A total of 362 subjects participated in this study. The results revealed that the main reason to trust was interpersonal relationship, which indicated they have known each others well. On the other hand, the reason to distrust was based on the judgement of inconsistency between words and deeds, and other's selfish behavior. Therefore, the basis of trust and distrust was not only different but also located on the continuum. In addition, the principal psychological function of trust was a psychological safety, whereas that of distrust was a psychological anxiety.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.55-75
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• 2006

Most previous research on impression formation has been examined the effects of various informations exclusively within a category, either social category or individual characteristic. The present research examined and compared the priming effects of social category information (we and other) versus personality information (warm and cold) on impression formation. In Study 1, participants primed subliminally with combinations of social category and personality information (we/warm, we/cold, other/warm, and other/cold) were asked to rate faceial pictures on the good-bad and likable-dislikable dimensions. The analysis revealed only the significant main effects of social category information but not any effects of personality information on both the impression dimensions. In Study 2 in which participants were primed with either social category or personality information exclusively, priming of social category information influenced the judgments of likable-dislikable dimension and that of personality information influenced the judgments of good-bad dimension. These results suggest that personality information influences impression in general even though its impacts may be overwritten by social categorical information. The findings were discussed with its implication of everyday's impression formation and the cultural psychological perspectives.