tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27543730.post279289281454538967..comments2024-03-24T03:28:00.599-04:00Comments on We're Only Human...: American restlessness, American unhappiness?Wray Herberthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02157965041515501630noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27543730.post-80362277943426720112010-05-14T23:42:33.383-04:002010-05-14T23:42:33.383-04:00...and here's another question about causality......and here's another question about causality: does high mobility <em>cause</em> individualism and an absence of group membership, or is individualism a precursor to mobility? How could we know? Anthropologist Mary Douglas contrasted 'strong group' with 'weak group' cultural biases. Is it possible that the propensity to move around might be an aspect of the weak group cultural bias rather than the cause of it? I'd also like to comment on the question of the genetic propensity of immigrants to move around more than non-immigrants. Surely in terms of evolutionary time-scales we are all immigrants. For instance, indigenous Australians only reached Australia 40-50,000 years ago, and most human populations arrived in their present location much more recently than that. Further, I'd question the lack of group membership as a genetic trait. In the US, the 'Bowling Alone' analysis claims that group affiliation has declined steeply in recent decades, not over evolutionary time-scales.<br /> <a href="http://fourcultures.com" rel="nofollow">Fourcultures</a>fourcultureshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11147213181026364773noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27543730.post-76186866431634154172010-04-08T12:15:00.783-04:002010-04-08T12:15:00.783-04:00You must have been listening in on a conversation ...You must have been listening in on a conversation I had earlier this week within which we were pondering the benefits of frequent moves in childhood. Of particular interest to me were the last few paragraphs on societies built by immigrant populations (Australia, U.S.). As a granddaughter of an immigrant from Algeria/France, I also wonder about entrepreneurial tendencies within these populations - ability to manage risk being one of them. Thank you for the fascinating piece!Beekie P.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10280415688219552799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27543730.post-12632882673706642252010-03-31T13:35:14.774-04:002010-03-31T13:35:14.774-04:00It's interesting research, but be careful abou...It's interesting research, but be careful about concluding that the moving is CAUSING the ailments -- correlation doesn't necessarily imply causation. People who moved a lot had more health ailments but you don't know if that is because they moved a lot (causation) or if there is something about people who move a lot (personality, type of job, income, whatever) that also causes more ailments...Susan Weinschenkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04039170718525418961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27543730.post-5633387392126159082010-03-31T09:25:18.056-04:002010-03-31T09:25:18.056-04:00As an Air Force family, my husband and I moved our...As an Air Force family, my husband and I moved our kids six times before they reached high school. They have always emphasized the benefits they gained: greater self-confidence, self-reliance, world knowledge, etc. And it made our small family a very bonded unit. We retired from the military to a small, provincial town and both kids got to stay put through high school. They said they felt like giants of sophistication compared with their local, un-traveled peers. Thanks for pointing to this research.Nancehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15166865250789996825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27543730.post-39001220762708501902010-03-31T09:12:11.460-04:002010-03-31T09:12:11.460-04:00Or, as I've heard somewhere, "Wherever yo...Or, as I've heard somewhere, "Wherever you, there you are." This is really interesting; I'm surprised this hasn't been studied more extensively. I moved a fair amount myself, which is why it's now important that I consider myself a Washingtonian but maintain my Texas roots!Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08938982547205925913noreply@blogger.com