cannot proceed without examining related cultural values and beliefs in the
first place. Based on our analyses, individuals’ beliefs are far from being just
individual; they are deeply informed by the basic orientations of their cul-
ture’s beliefs and values regarding learning. These cultural forces help define
what purposes learning serves, how learning takes or should take place, what
kind of achievement is worthy of pursuing, and what emotions and attitudes
are involved in all of these dimensions. Despite changes throughout history,
these basic cultural orientations tend to be persistent. The profound interest
in nature and understanding of the world among the Greeks that is well re-
flected in Bacon’s thinking continues to inspire contemporary learners in the
West. Likewise, the passion for moral and social self-perfection among Con-
fucian scholars that echoes well in Liu Xiang’s writing finds enthused learners
among the present-day Chinese. Consequently, the particular thoughts and
affects in the two cultures’ learners are configured differently, and are there-
fore bound to shape their intellectual functioning differently as well.
Thus, one might expect that because of the emphasis on the mind, inquiry,
and accompanying intrinsic motivation and pride, Western learners learn
best when the task matches their purposes and skill level on the one hand and
engages them with enjoyment and pride on the other. The concept of flow
(Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) may indeed be an optimal state of such intellectual
functioning. However, when such a balance is not achieved, learners may face
frustration, boredom, or anxiety. Due to the emphasis on moral–social pur-
poses, learning virtues, and accompanying passion and humility, Chinese
learners learn best when they have clear long-term goals, rather than being
prompted by individual learning tasks; when they can continuously exercise
their learning virtues for a length of time, rather than relying on their mental
feats at hand, and when they feel humble rather than proud. Even though
their learning beliefs may better equip them to face motivational problems,
they may still feel perplexed in orientation if they are confronted with West-
ern style learning (as the case with many Asian children in American class-
rooms).
The above thought-affect configurations in learning are meant to illustrate
cultural norms. In individual functioning, variability and overlap are likely
the case, especially considering the significant cultural exchanges and pro-
found changes that have occurred and are still underway in today’s world.
Still, taken as a whole, these cultural patterns are distinguishable, and they
are also likely to persist. These tendencies show affinity to what Bruner
(1996) discussed as cultural canonical approaches to learning.
Given the vast topic of cultural beliefs about learning and the dearth of re-
search, the research presented in this chapter was only an initial step. Much
remains to be studied. We venture to point out some directions. As hinted
earlier, Li’s study dealt with ideal learners and group consensus of beliefs at
the cultural level. Individual learners’ own thoughts and emotions need to be
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