Functional Equivalences

Functional equivalence refers to the role or function that behavior plays in different cultures. One cannot assume that behaviors play the same role or function across cultures; therefore, assumptions made about the function of behavior in a cultural group must be verified. This concept extends to include the differences in people's perceptions about, and responses to, a particular product or activity according to their cultural features. The value that is placed on products or social …

…United States and respondents are most likely to communicate clearly and openly their viewpoints to the researcher, whereas other cultures do not encourage such verbosity and open-ended questions in such settings would not serve their initial purpose. Similarly, researchers should be cautious when designing their questions to be direct or indirect according to the manner that people of different cultures wish to be asked and their sensitivity in discussing topics that might be considered controversial