Making Good Decisions: The Influence of Culture, Attachment Style, Religiosity, Patriotism and Nationalism
This study explored the conflict model of decision making (Janis & Mann, 1977) in relation to culture, attachment style, religiosity, patriotism, and nationalism. Two groups of university students from Australia (n=135) and Singapore (n=159) were invited to participate through the use of a web survey. Vigilant decision making was higher and hyper-vigilant decision making was lower for Australian than for Singaporean respondents. Vigilant decision making was negatively related to avoidant attachment style and blind patriotism, while positively associated with constructive patriotism and civic content nationalism. Vigilant decision making was predicted by gender (female), low avoidant attachment style, civic nationalism and constructive patriotism. Hyper-vigilant decision making was positively related to anxious and avoidant attachment style, external religiosity, blind patriotism, traditional and civic nationalism, while negatively related to constructive patriotism. Hyper-vigilance was predicted by gender (female), anxious and avoidant attachment style, and extrinsic religiosity. Buck-passing was positively associated with anxious and avoidant attachment style, and civic nationalism. Buck-passing was predicted by anxious and avoidant attachment style and by civic nationalism.Procrastination was positively related to anxious and avoidant attachment style and was predicted by country (Singapore), and anxious and avoidant attachment style. These results are explained in terms of decisions that are made around the world that may have broad ramifications, including those relating to positions on refugees and terrorism.
