An increasing body of research suggests that emerging adults living in Western societies are becoming more individualistic and such increases in individualism are associated with reduced well-being. The present study examined relationships between well-being and individualism and collectivism among 1906 emerging adults in the US, aged 18–25. We measured individualism and collectivism distinguishing horizontal and vertical dimensions of these constructs, and we measured well-being in terms of depression, anxiety, self-esteem, interpersonal relationships, and neuroticism. Regression analyses found that individualism was negatively related to well-being, and these relationships varied somewhat between horizontal and vertical individualism. Horizontal collectivism was positively related to all measures of well-being, and vertical collectivism was positively related to three measures. These findings increase our understanding of the roles individualism and collectivism play in the psychological well-being of emerging adults, including the importance of distinguishing horizontal and vertical dimensions of individualism and collectivism.

越来越多的研究表明，生活在西方社会的新兴成年人正变得更加个人主义，而这种个人主义的增加与幸福感的降低有关。本研究调查了美国 1906 名 18-25 岁的新兴成年人的幸福感与个人主义和集体主义之间的关系。我们衡量了个人主义和集体主义，区分了这些结构的横向和纵向维度，我们从抑郁、焦虑、自尊、人际关系和神经质方面衡量了幸福感。回归分析发现个人主义与幸福感呈负相关，这些关系在横向和纵向个人主义之间有所不同。横向集体主义与所有福祉指标呈正相关，纵向集体主义与三项措施呈正相关。这些发现增加了我们对个人主义和集体主义在新兴成年人心理健康中所起作用的理解，包括区分个人主义和集体主义的横向和纵向维度的重要性。