Behaviors and meanings can differ dramatically across cultures. Many of these differences involve the degree to which a society is independent, or individualistic (characterized by fewer social relationships of a looser sort), or whether it is interdependent, or collectivistic (characterized by many relationships of a highly prescribed nature). These differences influence conceptions of the self and the nature of human relationships as well as basic cognitive and perceptual processes. Gender roles and sexual mores differ enormously across cultures.