Self-Enhancement in Latin America: Is It Linked to Interdependence?
Journal
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
ISSN
0146-1672
1552-7433
Publisher
SAGE Publications Inc.
Date Issued
2025
Author(s)
Salvador, Cristina E.
Idrovo Carlier, Sandra
Ishii, Keiko
Castillo Torres, Carolina
Nanakdewa, Kevin
Canale Segovia, Fernanda
San Martin, Alvaro
Savani, Krishna
Kitayama, Shinobu
Type
Resource Types::text::journal::journal article
Abstract
Although individuals of Latin American heritage ( Latin Americans in short) are considered interdependent, they also value traits like uniqueness and positivity, like individuals of European American cultural heritage, who are considered independent. It remains unclear whether this inclination toward positivity extends to a bias in self-perception known as self-enhancement. Moreover, if Latin Americans are indeed self-enhancing, it is uncertain how these tendencies align with their interdependent cultural orientation. In this article, we report three studies ( N = 1,246) with three operationalizations of self-enhancement. We found that Mexicans, Colombians, and Ecuadorians show self-enhancement that is mostly similar in magnitude to European Americans. Notably, Study 3 found that self-enhancement is related to interdependence in Latin America: Unlike European Americans, Latin Americans in Ecuador exhibited stronger self-enhancement when interdependence is primed rather than independence. Our findings suggest that among Latin American individuals, self-enhancement not only exists but also reinforces interdependence. ©The authors ©Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
License
Acceso Restringido
How to cite
Salvador, C. E., Idrovo Carlier, S., Ishii, K., Torres Castillo, C., Nanakdewa, K., Canale Segovia, F., San Martin, A., Savani, K., & Kitayama, S. (2025). Self-Enhancement in Latin America: Is It Linked to Interdependence? In Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. SAGE Publications. https://doi.org/10.1177/01461672241309387