Abstract This paper discusses the relationship between various cultures, particularly in terms of how people communicate with one anther. In this article the writer describes how humans interact and communicate with each other in a situational frame - and looks at this issue from a Martian's perspective. It is noted that human affection is not just sent and received by one gender to the other.
From the Paper "In a world of cross-cultural societies, expertise in relationship building and acceptance is essential to succeed in a world of swift and profound cultural, political and economic changes. Some experts consider North America, to be a multi-nation and polytechnic continent that has accepted immigrants from countries around the world. It includes a diverse array of cultural traditions. Cultural identity is demonstrated through festivals, symbols, and landscape design. Multiple cultures must coexist, thus cultural conflicts must be resolved. Cross-cultural differences are relative to ethnic, national and religious differences."
Abstract The paper identifies a definition of culture and examines how it is transmitted, generically speaking. The paper discusses the need to be nurtured and socially taught so that as we mature, we will meet the cultural guidelines in each developmental phase of our lives. The paper also talks about a sub-culture; a group within a society whose values and norms are different from that of the accepted dominant view. The paper utilizes the example of American society's rigid emphasis on gender roles to demonstrate how Americans transmit culture already from the time of birth.
From the Paper "Before one can understand how an aspect of our American culture came about, and how it is being translated today to nearly all members of our society, we must see how culture is transmitted. Before we can even do that, we need to understand what culture actually is; everyone has an idea of what culture is, but whether we know it or not, we associate the words "culture" with "American culture" and use the two interchangeably. We may think that "American culture" is "culture" because of the idea of ethnocentrism, the idea that one's own culture is the right culture, and all others should follow. However, more times than not, most open-minded and fair people that use "American culture" and "culture" interchangeably will do so without meaning to and will do so because their "American culture" is all they have ever known. Therefore, since that culture is the only one they have been exposed to, that is the only viewpoint on the world that they possess (Nanda and Warms 86)."
Abstract The paper discusses how the modern history of Vietnam's society and culture is a complex narrative that covers not only the Vietnamese war against the French and later the Americans, but also deep cultural divisions within Vietnam itself and, more recently, between Vietnamese in Southeast Asia and the many Vietnamese immigrants who have settled abroad. The paper examines how the complexity of this history can be seen in the challenge of answering the fundamental question of Vietnamese identity: "What does it mean to be Vietnamese?". The paper analyzes whether Vietnamese identity is limited to those occupying a geographic space at the southeast portion of the Asian continent, or whether it can be considered a broader social and cultural identity.
Abstract This four-page undergraduate paper discusses the importance of mythology and folklores in the religion, social and cultural structure of the African continent. The African society is based on a tribal system, which is considered to be of immense importance, and these tribes follow the customs and traditions of their ancestors without questioning their validity.
Abstract This paper analyzes whether the policemen, or cops, the police personality, should be judged based on unique and individual traits or through socialization and experience. It takes the stance that police personality is heavily influenced by police culture, and therefore, leads people to view and perceive police traits according to their socialization and experience with the society and the police culture. It focuses on the sociological perspective of police personality and culture in order to illustrate how personalities are shaped according to an individual's exposure to his or her own culture or niche.
From the Paper "In order to understand the influential effect of police culture to police personality, a proper definition of "culture" and "police culture" is needed. In an article on police culture by Stephen Harrison entitled, ?Police Organizational Culture: Using Ingrained Values to Build Positive Organizational Improvement,? culture is defined as "the integrated pattern of human behavior that includes thought, speech, action, and artifacts and depends on man's capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations" (1998). ?Police,? meanwhile, is defined as an "agency of a community or government that is responsible for maintaining public order and preventing and detecting crime" (Microsoft Encarta 2002)."
Abstract This paper discusses cultural identity and how people who live in multi-culturalsocieties may identify themselves as a citizen of that country, but they feel that they belong to a different cultural group. The writer describes how, as an American Pakistani, she identifies with two cultures and tries to somehow make a connection between the two cultures that she grew up in.
From the Paper "As an American Pakistani, I try to somehow make a connection between the two cultures that I grew up in. Despite the fact that I am completely open to interacting with any culture, I must admit that I find a sense of stability in being close to people that come from the same cultural group as I am. The bonding factor between me and other Pakistanis students, besides similar experiences as we grew up, is religion. Although we are not fanatics as people tend to classify us, religion is an important factor in our lives and as a college student or as a member of any collective, I tend to get close to people that share my beliefs. After September 11, the need for relating to other people that were going through the same as experience as I did increased and I grew closer to people from the same cultural group as I. It is hard to receive understanding from people that can not understand you because they have different cultural backgrounds. Of course, the fact that I relate more to Pakistanis students does not mean that I alienate myself from society. We still live in a multicultural environment that we must adapt to."
Abstract This paper addresses the controversial issue of culture in Canada. The paper shows how some say Canada has no culture and that it is too concerned with other cultures to bother with one national identity. Others say that the mix of different ethnicity is Canadian culture, that the nation is the sum of its parts. There is as much debate over multicultural policies, and the paper breaks these down into three areas: There are those who say policies don?t do enough to include minorities, who believe they are working fine, and those who think they do far too much.
From the Paper "The article gives a brief history of Canada's multicultural laws and how they came into existence. The most recent amendment to these laws came under Brian Mulroney and his Canadian Multiculturalism Act of 1988. The Act obligated "all federal departments and agencies to implement multiculturalism as it applies to their mandates" . This was a big step in recognizing the pluralistic society that is Canada. The author of the article, Andrew Cardozo, then begins to investigate the reactions of people to these laws. He writes of those who think Canada does not do enough to incorporate different cultures into the predominantly English society. Of these people, Cardozo seems to have a negative opinion. A self-proclaimed advocate of the multiculturalism laws, he writes about minority activists who constantly dwell on the negative instead of recognizing the achievements in the area. Cardozo belongs to what he would call the middle group, those who believe the laws to be working fine as they are. His article goes so far as to outline the number of advances made in the field of multiculturalism. These include a fairer portrayal of minorities in the media, better inclusion of minorities in advertising, and more involvement of minorities in politics. These may be points for Cardozo's argument, but they are also facts that support the belief of the third group. The third grouping of people one can study are those who believe multiculturalism has gone too far and that we have ?lost the meaning of being "Canadian"?. So much talk about the subject has created a social backlash, and to many talking about multiculturalism is now perceived as the "politically correct" thing to do. This is, of course, now a derogatory term."
Abstract An examination of the multicultural web of American society with focus on the Italian-Americans. A look at the history of Italian-American immigrants, how they adjusted to life in the United States and the contributions they have made to our larger culture.
From the Paper "The United States is going through a period of debate about what it means to be "American." Some people want to emphasize their American status and don't speak of their immigrant roots in any specific ways. Others choose to specifically emphasize their ancestry as well as their country of choice. African-Americans have chosen that name (or Black-American) at least partly to give their heritage a dignified name after centuries of ethnic slurs. This may also be true of other groups. Hispanic-Americans were once called "Spics,' not in an affectionate way. Italian-Americans were once called "Wops" in a derogatory way."
Abstract This paper analyzes how cultural norms affects society, government and science in the books "Bad Blood" and "Cigarette Wars". It also explores government experimentation on African Americans. The author discusses the moral issues involved.
From the Paper "Cultural norms have always played a predominant role in the workings of human societies. In today's empirical world where rationality is prized and the scientific method rules supreme the role that cultural norms can play in shaping both science and society can sometimes be overlooked. As Oliver Wendell Holmes once noted medicine professedly founded on observation is as sensitive to outside influence political, religious, philosophical, imaginative as is the barometer to the atmospheric density. ..."
Abstract Cultural competence is the integration and transformation of knowledge about individuals and groups of people into specific standards, policies, practices, and attitudes used in appropriate cultural settings to increase the quality of services, thereby producing better outcomes. The author of this research proposal contends that cultural competence is becoming a necessary function and skill for all those dealing with social and health services and proposes to analyze the current perception of cultural competence on the part of screeners and emergency response social workers in the Santa Clara County system. The author also reviews current literature on the subject.
From the Paper "The evolving concept of Cultural Competence is an area of reformation that is changing the delivery of many aspects of health and social work services. The delivery of social work services, especially in periods of client and family duress can and usually do place a screener or an emergency response social worker in a position that requires rapid response and decision making, regarding the best interest of the clients and the state. It is for this reason and, many others that those who specifically deal with situations that require rapid and appropriate response must enlist cultural competence not as a thought process or a set of ideas but almost as a second hand and integrated pattern of behavior in the system and the individual. Cultural competence is essential to the development of social workers and social work systems that are responsive and capable of dealing with the results of social and cultural discrimination, poverty, inadequate housing and even more blatant discrimination."
Abstract The paper explores the true meaning and distinct definitions of culture and society. It defines culture as the set of beliefs, values, behavior and material objects constituting a people's way of life, and society as a set of cultural rules. The paper examines the paradoxical relationship between who forms who: the individual on society, or vice versa, the society is molded by individuals. The author uses the example of this process by looking at tobacco use in our society, from cultural ban to outlawed societal ban. The author writes that people bring about change by influencing others first in small groups and then in society at large by enlisting the assistance of groups, the government, and the media.
From the Paper "Consider the idea of culture more fully. "Culture" is a label for an abstraction encompassing the total way of life for a group of human beings. Culture can also refer to the shared patterns of belief, feeling, and adaptation which people carry in their minds as guides for conduct and the definition of reality. Culture helps define such things as values, symbols, language, and norms and how they will be viewed and utilized in society. A value is a belief upon which an individual acts by preference, and the clarification of values is a cognitive act leading to specific and related behavior. Behavior is determined for the individual by what he or she values. Decision-making is governed by values. This is an ongoing process whereby individuals are continually evaluating alternatives and making decisions based on the values they hold and the degree to which the various alternatives open to them fulfill and serve those values. Culture helps define how people view these issues and how they make these decisions. All societies place a high value on the inculcation of values in the young, for this is the means for perpetuating certain cultural norms and thus values from generation to generation. Clearly, values may differ from one society to another, from one culture to another, even from one region within a society to another. Every society has a set of core values are to be transmitted from generation to generation. Other values may be associated with common practice, religious beliefs, or a basic world-view that is prevalent in the given society and culture, and these are also elements of culture itself. "
Abstract The paper discusses how one of the most important issues surrounding cultural anthropology is the effect of culture on the individual and the collective social cognition. This paper presents three positions. The first case demonstrates culture as a contributor to different cognitive processes among individuals within the same society/culture. The second case looks into the role that culture plays in affecting collective decisions on what ideology to choose, maintain and dominate in a particular society/culture. Lastly, the paper examines how an excessive influence of culture over the individual's thought processes lead to the development of more than just a different worldview, but a change in the individual's physical health.
From the Paper "The hypothesis that culture shapes the individual's way of thinking or thought processes is reflected more explicitly with the use of language, language being the most manifest form of culture through a specific code system specifically unique to the culture. However, apart from language, there are also other precursors that develop an individual's cognitive processes. Ultimately, cognitive outcomes include differences in thought processes among individuals, create a solid or collective thought process that becomes the dominant ideology in that specific culture, or it can also translate into more concrete terms by influencing the individual's worldview and physical well-being."
Abstract This paper discusses how, although tradition has often held that homosexuality was an aberration, something to be feared and shunned, times are changing. It looks at how gay culture has become increasingly more visible and considered more valid due to high profile individuals, movements, and trends made accessible through various types of media. It shows how the ever-visible presence of homosexuality is challenging traditional views, changing what society considers an acceptable lifestyle and how these societal alterations are observed in the media, the church, government, and economics in a time when gay culture has become an integral part of pop culture and mass society, in general.
From the Paper "There seems to be a need for token homosexual character on all sit-coms currently on the air. This incessant need for a gay presence may be to prove that the show is, in a sense, current and cool. Greenman (1998) outlines the chronology of gay appearance in television. The first major gay character on television appeared in the seventies, when Billy Crystal played the character Jodie Dallas on the program ?Soap.? However, the presence of his character on the show was only due to the fact that his homosexuality was seen as a problem. The eighties saw attempts of legitimacy for gay characters on television, which often did not succeed. AIDS became a prominent health threat for the gay populace, and homosexually then took a turn towards drama on television."
Abstract This paper examines how America has always been a multi-culturalsociety composed of different cultures from numerous parts of the world and how its peoples have always been joined as one country with diverse cultures living together in the belief in the universality of the American principles of freedom, equality and self-government. It analyzes the potential problems that can occur as technology moves the United States toward a more global society and the misunderstandings and prejudices that do exist have the potential to be exacerbated in the future. It looks at such issues as multi-culturalism in the workplace and the problems of cultural diversity in education.
From the Paper "Consequently, the classroom should operate as a forum that permits students of all ethnic and cultural groups to fully develop their talents while teaching them how to respect and appreciate the talents and culture of other students (Ralph, 1995, p. 290). Educators must help students understand their own cultures and help free them from any cultural boundaries that may prevent them from appreciating other students' cultures. Consequently, educators must rely on instructional texts that reflect the perspectives, experiences and values of all ethnic and cultural groups (Ralph, 1995, p. 290). However, multicultural education should not merely address literacy, but should also contribute to interethnic understanding, thereby making it easier for students to see and cross cultural borders (Ralph, 1995, p. 290)."
Abstract This paper discusses how each individual begins to create self-perceptions from a very early age. According to this paper, these perceptions can be transmitted through parents, school, or society in general. However, as concepts are developed in conjunction with a child's culture, these ideals are also formulating a life-long view of the individual child as he or she relates to society, and that will allow the individual to ultimately create an identity that shapes their decisions, life style, and personal world within the larger social structure.
From the Paper "Many researchers contend that immigrants who are transported to another country have a greater chance of survival in the new land if they can quickly identify with a culture that is representative of the home of origin. This is evident because of language barriers, cultures norms, and the individual having a sense of belonging that supports who he, or she believes him/herself to be. This belief demonstrates the findings in the text that indicate that culture has a significant affect on the identity of the individual - to include methods of non-verbal communication, and personal space that is required when communicating. The text further stipulates that culture affects identity through the manner in which people view themselves."
