East and West have different mood swings

New York, Mar 18 (UNI) Apart from varied culture and traditions, Eastern and Western societies also differ in feelings, new research has claimed.

According to the study, while westerners read a person's expressions to know his feeling, Easterners not only evaluate the face but also gauge the mood of others who might be around.

The findings reveal that the differences speak about deeply ingrained cultural traits as Westerners might see emotions as individual feelings, while eastern societies and Japanese men see them as inseparable from the feelings of the group.

The study published in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology stated that the world might look different to people from different cultures. ''It fits squarely in a longstanding body of research into differences between Eastern and Western perceptions of the world around us,'' lead author Takahiko Masuda said.

Early studies on paintings between the 16th and 20th centuries, found that in Western portraits, the subject took up a larger portion of the picture and was painted in a way to make the subject stand out. In Eastern portraits, the subjects tended to be smaller and to blend into the background.

Even now, the differences often remain, Dr Masuda said, adding the subjects filled more space in the frame of the photographs taken by the Americans.

The current study observed that Western societies tend to promote individuality while Eastern ones emphasise the needs of the group. So when a Japanese sees a happy person amid sad ones, it may be a bit unsettling. ''He may adjust his view of how happy that person is because of his real desire to fit in with the group and to not be different,'' the researchers said.

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