Arabs are passionate about their culture as demonstrated by the strong nationlism. Arab societies can be characterized as authoritan and collective. The Arab family is the focal point as Arab society is a collective society. Individuals in Arab society do not have the same freedom as you and I have in this country. In the United States, we are taught to become all that we can be as individuals. We have an internal locus of control; that we are in control of our own destinies. We can control how our future can turn out.

In Arab society, Arabs have an external locus of control; that they are bound by external forces beyond their control. They claim that what happens to them is the will of God. Individuals in Arab families are restricted from developing an individuated self. They cannot branch out from the family to do their own thing. If they do, they risk being viewed as deviant and will face condemnation by the father or older sibling.

References

Dwairy, M., Van Sickle, T. (1996). Western psychotherapy in traditional Arabic societies, Clinical Psychology Review, Volume 16, Issue 3, Pages 231-249,.

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