Cultural Self Reflection Essay 1
Culture
Communications 40164
Joe Germaine
6-6-11
Undraye Howard
Cultural Self Reflection Essay 2
Culture is defined as learned patterns of perception, values, and behaviors, shared by a group of people, that are dynamic and heterogeneous (Martin & Nakayama, 2011).
When we are brought into this world, there are people, situations, and environments that lead to the development of who we become, and what we stand for as people. Culture is the way we look at our surroundings.
There are a few factors that need to be considered when talking about culture. They are: Culture is learned, Culture involves perceptions and values, Culture involves feelings, Culture is shared, Culture is expressed as behavior, and Culture is dynamic and heterogeneous.
Culture is learned is referring to the fact that we are all innocent when we are born. We don’t have any idea of how to act other than the instincts we are born with. We learn how to act from the other people that we are around, most likely our family members. This process usually takes some time to adapt to. This process is called socialization. We tend to take on the traits and action of those we are close to.
The Essay on Cultural Competence Culture People Assessment
... assessment. I engage in conversations, and in friendships with people of other culture (cultural encounter) and enjoy becoming culturally aware and ... conversation with a person of another culture and learn about the differences between our two cultures. I have had several patients who ... uncomfortable because they looked at me first. I need to learn to accept that they may just feel more comfortable ...
Culture involves perceptions and values in which we “share perceptions, or ways of looking at the world (Martin & Nakayama, 2011).
This is how we process all of the people and places that are a part of our culture.
Culture involves feelings describes the comfort level we experience when we are in our culture. When we are in our own cultural surroundings we feel a sense of familiarity and a certain level of comfort in the space, behavior, and actions of others (Martin & Nakayama, 2011).
This process is known as embodied ethnocentrism.
Cultural Self Reflection Essay 3
Culture is shared means that our cultural perceptions are shared with other people. Culture becomes a group experience because it is shared with people who live in and experience the same social environments (Martin & Nakayama, 2011).
Culture is expressed behavior refers to the fact that the upbringing by our parents lead to the behavior that we take on as individuals. If a person lives in a culture where it is vital to get a college education, then that person will take on a behavior that leads to going to college.
Culture is dynamic and heterogeneous means that culture changes. A person who grows up in one culture is not tied down to that culture. If that person moves to a completely different area and takes on all the cultural values therein, he/she can be viewed as a part of that new culture.
The culture that I grew up in was one of faith, family, and athletics. I am the youngest of 5 kids. All my brothers and sisters were always around the house with my mom and dad. We spent a lot of time together as a family. This was a primary focus of our parents. My siblings were also very involved in sports, as my dad was a good athlete himself in his hay day. Every Sunday, we went to church as a family. These three things were drilled into my as a youngster. I just followed the example of my parents, brothers, and sisters.
The neiborhoods that I grew up around practiced this same type of culture. I went to a school that had families with multiple kids. The conversations I had with my friends were all about sports and family. We all had the same perception of life. When my family went out of our city, we came across people that viewed our way of life as different than theirs. The main thing was the concept of a big family that did things together. There were others that had a culture of
The Essay on Culture and Cultural Norms
Culture can be referred to as a people’s way of life. It can be used to refer to the way we live and all that goes along with our life. That means that for us to have a life we have to be affiliated to a certain culture or to belong to a certain culture. To be in a certain culture, one has to comply will the cultural values, norms and expectations. Cultural values can be used or rather the term ...
Cultural Self Reflection Essay 4
small families which were much more independent than ours was. Looking back, independence from my family would have been nice sometimes! I had friends who had family cultures that were different than mine. When we talked about how our families did things, it was neat to hear the differences. That communication really opened my eyes to new ideas, even though I was firm in my upbringing.
In closing, I am very grateful for the culture that my family brought me up in. The values of faith, family, and athletics are still what I hold dear to today. Now that I have a family of my own, it’s my responsibility to take the leadership role and to bring my kids up in an environment that is positive and constructive.
Cultural Self Reflection Essay 5
Martin, J.N. & Nakayama, T.K. (2011).
Experiencing intercultural communication: an introduction. 4th edition.
