ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we present a model of how individuals within and across cultures think and act as a combined function of their uncertainty orientation and the culture within which they reside. We then present results from two studies that support this model and offer some ideas about how cultures differ as a function of ecological differences in uncertainty orientation. All of this is derived from the theory of uncertainty orientation (Sorrentino, Smithson, Hodson, Roney, & Walker, 2003; Sorrentino & Roney, 2000). This is a formal theory of self-regulation which asserts that people differ in important ways in terms of how they handle uncertainty. At opposite ends of a continuum are those considered uncertainty-oriented (UOs) or certaintyoriented (COs). For UOs, the preferred method of handling uncertainty is to seek out information and engage in activity that will directly resolve the uncertainty. These are the “need to know” type of people who try to understand and discover aspects of the self and the environment about which they are uncertain. COs, on the other hand, develop a self-regulatory style that circumvents uncertainty. Given the choice, COs will undertake activities that maintain clarity; when confronted with uncertainty, they will rely on others and/or heuristic devices instead of on more direct methods of resolving uncertainty.
