Culture influences our behaviors in diverse ways. Some interesting findings associated with indulgence include experiencing higher levels of positive emotions and remembering those emotions for more extended periods. _____13. By definition, were all Americans. _____20. Kelly spoke with Kim Wasserman and Juliana Pino of the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO). Still, they illustrate the importance of knowing and understanding gestures in differing cultures because we do not all interpret nonverbal behavior the same way. Sometimes its easy to figure out where our stereotypes evolved from, but sometimes these stereotypes are so ingrained in us through our own culture that its hard to really figure out their origin. In other words, collectivistic cultures focus on how the group can grow and be productive. In fact, culture becomes such an ingrained part of who we are that we often do not even recognize our own culture and how our own culture affects us daily. _____3. We raise this example because often the larger culture coopts parts of a co-culture and tries to adapt it into the mainstream. Additionally, there is a strong emphasis on saving face, which we will discuss more in the next section, fulfilling ones obligations today, and enjoying ones leisure time. Lien is both a social sanction for enforcing moral standards and an internalized sanction.41 On the other hand, mien-tzu stands for the kind of prestige that is emphasized in this country [America]: a reputation achieved through getting on in life, through success and ostentation.42 However, David Yau-fai Ho argues that face is more complicated than just lien and mien-tzu, so he provided the following definition: Face is the respectability and/or deference which a person can claim for himself from others, by virtue of the relative position he occupies in his social network and the degree to which he is judged to have functioned adequately in that position as well as acceptably in his general conduct; the face extended to a person by others is a function of the degree of congruence between judgments of his total condition in life, including his actions as well as those of people closely associated with him, and the social expectations that others have placed upon him. When it comes to power distances, these differences often manifest themselves in many ways within a singular culture: class, education, occupations, and health care. Attitude and Behaviours Influenced by Ones Culture: 1. 1. While research suggests that genetics play an important role in personality, it is also important to recognize that other factors do have an influence. Learn how culture identity impacts early childhood development, including. Here is one I found from a protestor in Alabama, We live in America. Admittedly, this episode aired in July 2001, so we were just a few short months before 9-11 and the public awakening to a whole range of issues occurring in the Middle East. Factors that influence gender differences in mortality include biological factors such as hormonal influences on physiology and behavior, and environmental factors, such as cultural influences on gender differences in health behaviors. Short-term oriented cultures, on the other hand, tend to focus on both the past and the present. A luminary is an expert who sheds light on a subject and inspires and influences others work in that area. Think about a group that you currently belong to and consider the collective self-esteem you have for that group. Cultural intelligence (CQ) is defined as an individuals capability to function effectively in situations characterized by cultural diversity.46, In their original study on the topic, Earley and Ang argued that cultural intelligence is based on four distinct factors: cognitive, motivational, metacognitive, and behavioral dimensions. Outside of Puebla, Mexico, its considered a relatively minor holiday even though children do get the day off from school. Some cultures are widespread, and have a large number of people who associate themselves with those particular values, beliefs, and origins. In HCC, on the other hand, intention or meaning can best be conveyed through implicit contexts, including gestures, social customs, silence, nuance, or tone of voice.20 Table 6.1 further explores the differences between low-context and high-context cultures. First, when it comes to engaging with people from other cultures, we need to be fully in the moment and not think about previous interactions with people from a culture or possible future interactions with people from a culture. Theres quite a bit of research on the topic of classrooms as microcultures. Henri Tajfel originally coined the term collective self as that aspect of an individuals self-concept which derives from his knowledge of his membership in a social group (or groups) together with the value and emotional significance attached to that membership.8 Jennifer Crocker and Riia Luhtanen took Tajfels ideas one step further and discussed them as an individuals collective self-esteem, or the aspect of an individuals self-worth or self-image that stems from their interaction with others and evaluation of their various social groups.9 Based on their research, Crocker and Luhtanen found four different factors related to an individuals collective self-esteem: private collective esteem, membership esteem, public collective esteem, and importance to identity. Before they knew it, Jalissa and Roy were inseparable. Even though Roy was White and Jalissa was African American, the two immediately felt drawn to each other. An average person would score between 12-18. The degree to which an individual views the world from their own cultures perspective while evaluating other cultures according to their cultures preconceptions often accompanied by feelings of dislike, mistrust, or hate for cultures deemed inferior? In these cultures, there tends to be high respect for the past and the various traditions that have made that culture great. Cultural orientation marked by the belief that gratification should not be instantaneous and should be regulated by cultural rules and norms. In the case of cultural stereotypes, cultural members share a belief (or set of beliefs) about another cultural group. I was recently surfing the Internet looking for uses of the word American for this chapter. Aesthetics. Environmental factors often influence traits independently of genes. As discussed in Chapter 1, Shauna Shapiro and Linda Carlson introduced us to the three-component model of mindfulness: attention, intention, and attitude.49. Listed below are the environmental factors that influence our cultural identity. This belonging can be justified with the shared set of companionship, principles or beliefs of living. Essentially, ones culture is normative,16 or we assume that our cultures rules, regulations, and norms are correct and those of other cultures are deviant, which is highly ethnocentric. We cannot escape it; however, some people are more prone to becoming fearful in situations that are ambiguous or unknown. Table 6.1 Low-Context vs. High-Context Cultures, You may be wondering, by this point, how low-context and high-context cultures differ across different countries. Two major interests have been apparent in sociology's focus on identity: (1) the process (es) through which adult identity is formed and (2) the process (es) by which that identity is maintained once it is formed. Regional, economic, social, religious, ethnic, or other cultural groups that exerts influence in society. Motivation is the key to effective intercultural interactions. This could include whether we smoke, exercise, or eat a balanced diet. It does not attempt to be comprehensivea task that would be daunting given the diverse and rich literatures that quickly come into focus. _____18. The Cultural Intelligence Center has created a widely used 20-item measure for cultural intelligence. Its opposite pole, restraint, reflects a conviction that such gratification needs to be curbed and regulated by strict social norms.34 The top five on the Indulgence end are Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, and Nigeria, whereas those on the restraint end are Pakistan, Egypt, Latvia, Ukraine, and Albania. Thursday, December 4th, 2014 Marianne WaasDecember 4th, 2014 Bookmarks: 113 Comments: 2. However, the value of culture cannot be defined by its size. Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices. Many U.S. citizens think that Cinco de Mayo is a Mexican holiday. Collectivistic cultures tend to think about actions that might affect the entire group rather than specific members of the group. Noting that eco-efficient countries like Kuwait and Austria have the highest levels of fluctuation between cultural factors, it is apparent that not all cultural variables affect countries uniformly. Many factors go into influencing personality, including genetics, environment, parenting, and societal variables. How the "outside" affects the "inside" is at the heart of many of the deepest psychological questions. Interpersonally, stereotypes become problematic because we often filter how we approach and communicate with people from different cultures because of the stereotypes we possess. The United States is number one on individualism, according to Hofstedes data.27 Americans are considered individualistic. During this process, the meaning associated with the co-culture is often twisted or forgotten. That doesnt make you a bad person, but we must learn from these encounters and broaden our world views. You may be wondering how this ultimately impacts interpersonal communication. Geerts taxonomy was originally based on data collected by IBM, and he found that cultures could be differentiated by power distance, individualism/collectivism, masculinity vs. femininity, uncertainty avoidance, long-term vs. short-term orientation, and indulgence vs. restraint. Today's advanced technology and ease of travel has led to a level of globalization that makes it possible for cultural components to travel around the world. Anthropology, Sociology, Religion, Social Studies, National Geographic Headquarters 1145 17th Street NW Washington, DC 20036. For example, if you compare your cultural groups as being better than other cultural groups, then you will experience more positive emotions and self-evaluations.10 However, the opposite is also true. In fact, within the latest edition of the book examining these characteristics, Hofstede and his colleagues title the chapter on uncertainty avoidance as What is Different is Dangerous, calling out the threat factor people in high uncertainty avoidance cultures feel.31 Cultures at the high end of uncertainty avoidance include Greece, Portugal, Guatemala, Uruguay, and Belgium Flemish; whereas, cultures at the low end of uncertainty avoidance include Singapore, Jamaica, Denmark, Sweden, and Hong Kong. Cultures focused on items like earnings, recognition, advancement, and challenge. The degree to which an individual sees themself as a good member of a group. Disney cast members do not wear uniforms; everyone is in costume. Theres also a massive difference in the approach to marriage. During an interpersonal interaction, individuals strive to create a positive version of their face for the other person. Culture factors are shared understandings that emerge within groups. CHCECE001 Develop cultural competence and CHCDIV002 Promote Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander cultural safety. As far as Ting-Toomeys theory goes, she takes this idea one step further to understanding how face and communication ultimately enable successful intercultural conflict management. For this reason, understanding how we view our cultural identities becomes very important because it can predict the types of intercultural interactions we will ultimately have. Face-negotiation theory ultimately concerned with three different types of face: self-face (concern for our face), other-face (concern for another persons face), and mutual-face (concern for both interactants and the relationship).39 As you can see from Ting-Toomeys last assumption in her theory above, individuals who are competent in facework can recognize when facework is necessary and then handle those situations appropriately, effectively, and adaptively. Next, within the definition of culture are the concepts of norms and rules. In his 1959 book, The Silent Language, Hall states, culture is communication and communication is culture.19 In the previous chapter, we talked about the importance of nonverbal communication. President George H. Bush once held up his hand in a V for Victory salute to an Australian audience only to find out later that this was the equivalent of the middle finger in the United States. Some cultures are widespread, and have a large number of people who associate themselves with those particular values, beliefs, and origins. For our purposes, we are going to talk about culture as a group of people who through a process of learning are able to share perceptions of the world which influences their beliefs, values, norms, and rules, which eventually affect behavior.4 Lets break down this definition. 1. Maybe you live in a dorm that values competition against other dorms on campus, or one that doesnt care about the competition at all. Our brain both is shaped by the external world and shapes our perception of the external world. An increasing regression line is evidence of a favorable cultural effect on a countrys eco-efficiency levels, while a decreasing regression line is evidence of the opposite. What influences gender identity? The degree to which an individual desires to engage in intercultural interactions and can easily adapt to differing cultural environments. Lastly, its time to realize that your stereotype may not be that factual. In addition to a dominant culture, most societies have various co-culturesregional, economic, social, religious, ethnic, and other cultural groups that exert influence in society. From a social and cultural context, how an individual expresses his or her sexual orientation is associated with the type of environment he or she was raised in, which would not only take into account social and cultural features but also religious and political elements as well (Campo-Arias, 2010). As such, there is a focus on both persistence and thrift. With rules, we have clearly concrete and explicitly communicated ways of behaving, whereas norms are generally not concrete, nor are they explicitly communicated. However, that may not be the only intention we have when interacting with someone from another culture. When looking at this definition, its important first to highlight that different cultures have different perceptions related to both courses of action or outcomes. The final factor of collective self-esteem is importance to identity, or the degree to which group membership is important to an individual. The last major term we need to explain with regards to culture is what is known as a microculture. Within that dominant culture will exist numerous co-cultures and microcultures. And the Aboriginal tribes in Australia believe that humans are just the decedents of gods. The term ethnocentrism can be defined as the degree to which an individual views the world from their own cultures perspective while evaluating other cultures according their own cultures preconceptions, often accompanied by feelings of dislike, mistrust, or hate for cultures deemed inferior. How does each of these different co-cultural groups influence who you are as a person? Table of Contents show. In an individualistic culture, if someone asked what you do for a living, they would answer by saying their profession or occupation. Scores for each of the four factors (intercultural understanding, intercultural knowledge, intercultural motivation, and intercultural behavior) can be added together to get a composite score. Furthermore, people who are not brave are often banished from the tribe. Norms are informal guidelines about what is acceptable or proper social behavior within a specific culture. When I interact with someone from a culture I know nothing about, I have no problem adjusting my perspective of their culture while we talk. The two of them considered themselves as highly culturally intelligent people. These set of norms puts pressure of the human being to act in a certain way. Where we are heavily influences who we can be. Power distance and individualism exert the strongest forces. A co-culture is a regional, economic, social, religious, ethnic, or other cultural groups that exerts influence in society. This definition is a bit complex, so lets break it down. There are various factors that can affect self-concept, these include: age, sexual orientation, gender and religion. The Mind in the World: Culture and the Brain. Furthermore, individuals from more indulgent cultures tend to be more optimistic, while their restrained counterparts tend to be more cynical. Obviously, not; however, the majority of flight attendants are female. If your goal is to learn more about that persons culture, thats a great intention. Chapter 1: Introduction to Human Communication, Chapter 2: Overview of Interpersonal Communication, Chapter 4: Verbal Elements of Communication, Chapter 6: Cultural and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication, Chapter 8: Building and Maintaining Relationships, Chapter 11: Family & Marriage Relationships, Chapter 12: Interpersonal Communication in Mediated Contexts, Chapter 13: Interpersonal Relationships at Work, Chapter 14: The Dark Side of Interpersonal Communication. Culture can be defined as a shared set of beliefs, values, experiences, and more. When Im interacting with someone from a differing culture, I know when I use my knowledge of that persons culture during my interactions. Many metrics exist to measure and regulate behavior that negatively impacts the environment, but perhaps the most important factors of human behavior are our own cultural attitudes. _____14. Roy and Jalissa still would get together regularly and go shopping, go to the movies, have dinner, etc. A group of people who, through a process of learning, can share perceptions of the world, which influence their beliefs, values, norms, and rules, which eventually affect behavior. When a country opens its doors to international trade, goods designed for a "global . This group determines who gets hired and fired, the company culture, the financial position of the organization, and everything in between. Ultimately, research examining these differences have shown that people from indulgent countries are more open to other cultures, more satisfied with their lives, and are more likely to communicate with friends and family members via the Internet while interacting with more people from other cultures via the Internet as well. Households in the highest quintile had incomes of $104,097 or more. Sure, American football still is the king of sports in the U.S., but media trends for watching football (soccer) are growing, and more and more Americans are becoming fans. Figure 2.4. What culture we pick up is ultimately a matter of the group(s) we are born into and raised. If you need a refresher on building the right attitude during your interactions, go back and look at Daniel Siegels COAL Jon Kabat-Zinns Seven Attitudes for Mindfulness discussed in Chapter 1. Juans culture is marked by expensive houses, fast cars, rich food, and all the luxuries one could desire. Countries efficiency scores are compared to ten other countries randomly selected from those with equal or greater emissions output. But lets say all you know about the people from the Republic of Kiribati is that they like European-style football. This factor is difficult to quantify rigorously, but the authors have shown how cultural attitudes may be directly related to a countrys overall ecological efficiency. For example, one popular co-cultural holiday celebrated in the United States is Cinco de Mayo. His book Beyond Culture is still considered one of the most influential books for the field of intercultural communication.17,18 According to Hall, all cultures incorporate both verbal and nonverbal elements into communication. Cultures that interpret meaning by relying more on nonverbal context or behavior than on verbal symbols in communication. Chances are, youve probably never heard of the Republic of Kiribati, but its a real country in Oceania. The way we respond to particular situations can also be partially determined by our genetic makeup. Previous research has indicated the importance of cultural practices and services in sustaining cultural identity for Indigenous peoples, which is a major . First, we have a dominant culture, or the established language, religion, behavior, values, rituals, and social customs of a specific society. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. _____17. Other people think of traditional dress like that seen from Kashmir in Figure 6.1. For example, imagine youre talking to someone from the Republic of Kiribati. _____8. The 11 types of internal environmental factors are: 1. Identity formation and evolution are impacted by a variety of internal and external factors like society, family, loved ones, ethnicity, race, culture, location, opportunities, media, interests, appearance, self-expression and life experiences. Some groups we hold tightly to, while we only see ourselves as peripherally associated with others. For example, if youre someone who has always lived in Charleston, South Carolina, then being a member of the Southerner cultural group may be a very important part of your identity. Our identities make up an important part of our self-concept and can be broken down into three main categories: personal, social, and cultural identities (see Table 8.1 "Personal, Social, and Cultural Identities" ). For this study, the researchers studied 606 participants in four different countries: Denmark, Iceland, Poland, and the United States. It affects everyone, no matter who you are or where you live. It is constantly evolving. Please use the scale below to rate the degree to which each statement applies to you. Characteristics of a culture that values cooperation and harmony and considers the needs of the group to be more important than the needs of the individual. Although throwing rocks at another person should be viewed as universally inappropriate, Ellens ethnocentric behavior and complete lack of understanding of Muslim countries were also inappropriate. In this case, was Roy culturally intelligent? However, many also hold the stereotype that flight attendants are all young. When you face judgments, recognize them, and ask yourself where they have come from. First, recognize that you attempted to use a stereotype that you had and call it out for what it was. The two often had pet names for each other that people outside of their relationship could view as racist or homophobic, but they knew the spirit behind their pet names was meant in jest and not ignorance, ethnocentrism, or fear. A set of beliefs about the personal attributes of a social group. _____5. Another function of culture is that it helps us establish norms. The following are common examples of culture factors. You also need to be aware of your stereotypes and prejudices that you may have of people from a different culture. Explain the meaning of each factor. People tend to make decisions in a manner that conforms with culturally mediated beliefs about morality. In fact, in the 1980s only 19% of flight attendants were male, and today 26% of flight attendants are male.15 Are all flight attendants female? Second, we learn about our culture. While it was hypothesized that feminine societies would display high eco-efficiency scores due to a strong community identity and attentiveness, masculinity and femininity actually were of least consequence in performance metrics. It is formed by the union of sperm and ovum. 16-38). Like most aspects of development, influencing factors are multifaceted. Cultural orientation where individuals focus on the future and not the present or past. Differentiate between Edward T. Halls low-context and high-context cultures. Collectivist societies value group interests over individual interests and allow for the state to play a large role in the economic system, while individualist societies expect their members to look after themselves. His interests ultimately culminated in his 1980 publication Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values where he explained some basic cultural differences.22 Over the years, Geert has fine-tuned his theory of culture, and the most recent update to his theory occurred in 2010.23 In Geerts research examining thousands of workers from around the globe, he has noticed a series of six cultural differences: low vs. high power distance, individualism vs. collectivism, masculinity vs. femininity, low vs. high uncertainty avoidance, long-term vs. short-term orientation, and indulgence vs. restraint. Perhaps you live in a dorm that is allegedly haunted. Each of the four factors exists on a continuum from 5 (not culturally intelligent) to 25 (highly culturally intelligent). Patriotism is a more mild form of ethnocentrism. Sign up to receive our newly revamped biweekly newsletter! The fact is that most aspects of human development are initially determined by the persons genetic makeup, whether that is indirectly or directly. Define the term culture as it is used within this book. Explain the importance of cultural intelligence. Wexler points . ), whereas face losing refers to those behaviors someone engages in that can harm their reputation or feelings of prestige (e.g., getting caught in a lie, failing, etc.). Lastly, go into all intercultural interactions with the right attitude. All cultures have stories that are taught to children that impact how they view the world. Some stereotypes exist because they are accurate.14 Often groups have real differences, and these differences are not bad or wrong; they just are. Finally, the researchers examined affection given and received with regards to Hofstedes work. In an area that relies on coal mining such as West Virginia, individuals may be much more opposed to green energy initiatives and stubbornly defend their way of life despite an outside narrative that discourages the continuing use of fossil fuels. In the study, a masculine society is defined as one that dominantly values material success and progress, while a feminine society prioritizes modesty and caring for others. This book is an attempt to give an overview of how language interacts with its environment, or better, how actual linguistic structure is formed, changed and influenced by different . The other countries did not differ from each other with regard to trait affection given. It is because the culture is the people's way of life. Compare and contrast two countries and their levels of context. And owning the culture means that the person embraces all the traditions that . Instead, culturally intelligent people realize that its best to adapt our behaviors (verbally and nonverbally) to bridge the gap between people culturally. Why would you want to do this at all? Make a list of five co-cultural groups that you currently belong to. Key points. Children often struggle with being 'between cultures .