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Comparative Cultural Salience: Measures Using Free-List Data

Zhang Juan

National University of Singapore

In this article, we discuss procedures for comparing the cultural salience of semantic domains and their constitutive signifiers between groups of respondents based on free list data. These methods allow us to assess the relative similarity and difference of the cognitive salience of elements within a domain across groups of respondents. We argue that cultural salience is an important but often overlooked variable in the structure of semantic domains. Comparing cultural salience provides one grounds for claims of cultural difference (or lack thereof) between different socially defined groups (e.g., national, ethnic, gender, academic). We use data collected on the cultural salience of countries in a project on perceptions of Southeast Asia as an example of the methods described.

Key Words: free list • free recall • cultural salience • cognitive anthropology • semantic domains • Southeast Asia

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This Article Abstract Free Full Text (Free PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (1) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Thompson, E. C. Articles by Juan, Z. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                   What's this?