Eleanor Maguire, a neuroscientist at University College London, reportedly decided to study London cab drivers after reading research on the memory abilities of some specific birds and mammals that hide food, returning later to retrieve it. Reports were that the hippocampus—known as the brain’s search engine and believed critical for spatial navigation as well as long-term memory— was much larger in these creatures than in similar species.

London taxi drivers are required to memorize a labyrinth of 25,000 streets within a 10-kilometer radius of Charing Cross train station, as well as thousands of tourist attractions and hot spots. Reportedly, the exams are so grueling that only about 50 percent of applicants pass. Studies showed that London taxi drivers also showed more gray matter in posterior portions of the hippocampus as compared with the average non-cab- driver civilian.

Eleanor Maguire’s research was a key example of cultural neuroscience: an interdisciplinary field of study that investigates how culture shapes the brain and nervous system over time and may even impact human genes. Cultural neuroscientists study how culture—consisting of values, beliefs, and practices—impacts the behaviors of human beings within that culture, and how culture can also change some aspects of actual brain processes and behaviors.

They are motivated to find answers related to a couple of very intriguing questions:

IN WHAT WAYS DO CULTURAL TRAITS (E.G., VALUES, BELIEFS, PRACTICES) SHAPE NEUROBIOLOGY (E.G., GENETIC AND NEURAL PROCESSES) AND BEHAVIOR?

IN WHAT WAYS DO NEUROBIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS (E.G., GENETIC AND NEURAL PROCESSES) FACILITATE THE EMERGENCE AND TRANSMISSION OF CULTURAL TRAITS?

Culture remains one of the most difficult concepts to define in current times, especially as the impact of culture can be very powerful. The idea that complex behavior results from the dynamic interaction of people’s genes with their cultural environment is not new; however, cultural neuroscience studies are verifiable by observation and experience, demonstrating that as culture interacts with the brain, the brain, in turn, influences culture.

As a result, research conclusions from cultural neuroscience have practical relevance to transcultural psychiatry, business and world trade issues, and technology of almost any type.

It includes broader implications for global public policy issues including international relations, immigration, globalization, and inter-ethnic ideology. Those within a culture that espouses specific beliefs or dogma, especially in the presence of authoritarian or peer- group pressure, may find it extremely difficult to go against prevailing beliefs and dogma.

There are often consequences for bucking a “cultural party line” and those who do so may risk expulsion, persecution, imprisonment, and even death. Because of this, cultural neuroscientists are interested in the way in which culture shapes behavior and neurobiology, and how behavior and neurobiology reflect culture. Here are a few examples.

1. PICTURES, FACES AND POSTURE

3. CATEGORY ASSIGNMENT

Western and Asian children were given sheets of paper on which were printed a variety of pictures. They were asked to draw a line between the two pictures that matched until all the pictures were used.

Western children tended to draw lines between two pictures based on categories; between a monkey and a horse because both are mammals. Or between a whale and a shark because they both live in the sea.

Asian children tended to draw lines between two pictures based on relationships; between a banana and a monkey because monkeys eat bananas and between a horse and hay because horses eat hay.

Neither style is right or wrong.

In adulthood, however, even this difference might be puzzling when people who were born and raised in the Eastern portions of this planet are asked to work on a committee with people who were born and raised in the Western portions of this planet.

It can be done, however, and can enrich the outcome.

4. BLACK-WHITE PARADOX

A researcher from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, studied how African American males versus Caucasian males handled Stressful Life Events (SLEs) and their risk for a Major Depressive Event (MDEs) a quarter of a century later.

They found a stronger predictive role of SLEs and an increased risk of MDEs 25 years later for white males compared with black males and labelled this the Black-White Paradox.

Despite higher levels of exposure to SLEs, black males showed disproportionally lower rates of depression. Cultural differences appear to impact this.

Black males have a higher tendency to implement adaptive coping strategies, including positive reappraisal, and maintenance of hope and optimism. They often verbalize a belief in God or a “Higher Power.”

This can sometimes be seen when black males are receiving awards or recognition. They are more likely to thank “God” first, before thanking anyone else.

6. AMERICAN-CHINESE LANGUAGE

Researchers, looking at how the brain processed different languages, found that due to differences in language structure and representation,

Americans showed activation in the temporal lobe while Chinese people showed activation in the parietal lobe.

Although both native Chinese and native English speakers both use Arabic numerals, differing brain circuits were activated for even basic mathematical problems.

When computing simple arithmetic (5 + 3 + 4) problems or to decide which number is larger, Chinese speakers used brain circuits that process visual and spatial information and plan movements, while English speakers used language circuits.

It appeared that Western English speakers thought of numbers as words.

Eastern Chinese speakers processed the numbers as symbolic and spatial figures.

7. FACIAL EMOTIONS

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India, and at Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA, studied the distinctiveness of facial emotions including happy, angry, afraid, and sad. I

n general, they found the left side of the face appears more expressive of emotions, is more uninhibited, and displays culture- specific emotional norms. The right side of the face is less susceptible to cultural-display norms and exhibits more universal emotional signals.

North Americans showed a left- sided facial bias (controlled by the right hemisphere) for expressing all emotions The Japanese showed a right-sided facial bias (controlled by the left hemisphere) for positive emotions, but a left-sided facial bias (controlled by the right hemisphere) for negative emotions.

Overall, negative emotional expressions were least distinctly identifiable in Japanese faces, followed by Oriental Indian, and North American faces.

Quite naturally, studies have been directed toward the differences between cultures—although what actually constitutes a culture is up for debate. It’s important to remember to approach cultural neuroscience with an open mind.

The results are neither right or wrong, good or bad. Sometimes they are similar; often they differ, but cultural differences add color and interest to our lives.