Introducing <em>Cultural Weight</em> as a Tool of Comparative Analysis: An Emotioncy-Based Study of Social Class

Abstract

Undergoing a remarkable international boom, comparative studies have revealed that individuals coming from various social and cultural backgrounds perceive the world in different ways. Given that senses are the gateways to these idiosyncratic views, the degree of prominence given to each sense can shape a culture. Drawing upon the newly proposed sensory concept of emotioncy (emotion + frequency of senses), this study attempts to introduce cultural weight as a new comparative tool in cultural studies. In order to provide empirical support for the proposed concept, 322 participants from three different social classes were asked to take an emotioncy scale on a number of religious concepts. The findings indicated that participants with various social backgrounds have different degrees of emotioncy toward the selected religious concepts. Moreover, the outcomes revealed that emotioncy analysis can help us measure the cultural weight of concepts among different groups of individuals. In the end, some implications were presented to show how the idea of cultural weight can be used as a comparative tool.

Keywords: Emotioncy, sense, culture, cultural weight, involvement, exvolvement