Culture's Influence on Behaviour; National Differences in Personality; Concepts of Trust

Cross-cultural research topics used to interest me when I worked in different parts of the world.

They still do when it comes to trying to explain differences of attitude and behaviour between people in the countries I know best.

I have been looking through a 1976 paperback, "Culture's Influence on Behaviour" by Robert Serpell, which deals briefly with such topics as cross-cultural psychology; values, motives and personality; child-rearing practices; cognitive development; perceptual skills; the role of language; entrepreneurial behaviour; theories of disease.

More controversially, Eysenck studied national differences of personality.

Social anthropologists have also explored related fields of research and enquiry (see for instance, Cultural Patterns and Technical Change, ed. Margaret Mead, 1955).

Do these disciplines (cross-cultural psychology, social anthropology) offer anything useful nowadays?

If they do, one hopes that diplomats and peace negotiators from all cultural and faith backgrounds have been given some relevant, up-to-date training. Clearly Margaret Mead and Eysenck are now out of date, whatever the value of their original insights.

I haven't been following the literature in these fields. I'd be interested to receive some recommendations about more recent work.

There has been some work on National Cultures, Trust and Ethical Behaviour 

see also, this discussion:

Fukuyama, Trust

Trust Pays (pdf report)

Russia, Identity and Values