Have you ever wondered if sadness, anger, or joy mean the same thing everywhere in the world?
Psychology shows us that emotions are not only biological, they are also culturally shaped.
Are emotions really universal?
Psychologist Paul Ekman discovered that certain facial expressions, like smiling or crying, are recognized worldwide. But researchers such as Hazel Markus, Shinobu Kitayama, and Catherine Lutz showed that the way we experience and express emotions is strongly influenced by culture.
In many Western societies, openly expressing feelings is seen as healthy and authentic. In Japan, however, emotional restraint is valued to preserve group harmony.
That doesn’t mean Japanese people feel less – they simply feel differently.
An everyday example
Imagine you’re in a business meeting. In Spain, it’s normal to express excitement with gestures and an enthusiastic “¡Qué bien!”. In Japan, you’d more likely see a modest smile – not because the joy is smaller, but because it’s shown differently.
Language shapes emotions
The words available in a language also influence what we feel.
Examples:
- Schadenfreude (German): Joy at another’s misfortune – a concept missing in many languages.
- Amae (Japanese): The sweet feeling of being dependent and cared for.
- Morriña (Galician/Spanish): A deep, melancholic longing for one’s homeland.
When a culture has a word for a feeling, that emotion is experienced more consciously.
Why this matters
Psychologists call this the cultural psychology of emotions: our culture shapes which feelings we emphasize, which we control – and even which ones we barely notice.
This doesn’t make us less human, but highlights the incredible diversity of emotional experience.
Final reflection
Understanding that emotions are culturally shaped can make us more open-minded and empathetic. If someone expresses emotions differently from what we expect, it doesn’t mean they feel less or more – it simply means their culture taught them another way to show it.
👉 If you’d like to dive deeper into this topic, check out the full video on our YouTube channel PsyLife, where we explore with clear examples how culture and emotions intertwine.
