An Examination of Collectivist Cultural Orientation Among Middle Eastern College Students of Different Gender, Generation Status, and Academic Class Standing

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the levels of collectivist cultural orientation among Middle Eastern college students of differing academic class levels, generation status, and gender. In Spring 2003 and 2004 semesters, Middle Eastern students from the University of Maryland (N = 92; 43 men, 49 women; average age of 20.7 years) completed the Middle Eastern Values Scale (MVS), a modified version of the Asian Values Scale (AVS), developed by the author. The overall results showed no significant differences (p >.05) for all three hypotheses, indicating that collectivist cultural orientation among Middle Eastern students does not differ by academic class level, generation status, and gender. This lack of findings may infer that a collectivist cultural orientation among the Middle Eastern students in this study is somewhat consistent, and is not shaped by gender roles, immigration status, and maturity during college.