Cultural Value Orientations and Accommodation among Heterosexual Relationships in Jamaica

In this study, we tested the following hypotheses concerning cultural value orientations as predictors of accommodation among heterosexual relationships in Jamaica: (a) Individuals' Group Orientation will be a significant positive predictor of Accommodation toward opposite-sex relationship partners, whereas (b) individuals' Self Orientation will not be significantly related to Accommodation toward opposite-sex relationship partners. A total of 287 individuals (44 males, 233 females, and 10 unspecified) participated in this study. Results of structural equation analyses of data for Blacks and persons of other races indicated that, contrary to our hypotheses, individuals' Self Orientation was a significant negative predictor of Accommodation, and individuals' Group Orientation was a nonsignificant positive predictor of Accommodation. Results of this study differ markedly from results previously obtained with predominantly White samples of heterosexuals and gays in the United States. Implications for the study of personal relationship processes in Jamaica and other predominantly Black nations are discussed.