Communalism as a Fundamental Dimension of Culture

This essay does not dispute the authenticity of individualism and collectivism as dimensions of culture. However, existing literature has missed a fundamental dimension, communalism, and has mistakenly attributed the characteristics of communalism to collectivism. Here, I affirm the fundamental nature of communalism as a cultural dimension and discuss how its characteristics markedly differ form those of collectivism and individualism. I then examine how communication works in communalistic communities. I throw some light on the concept of cultural dualism and introduce personalism as an emerging social order in both individualistic societies and urban centers of communalistic societies.