T III : LOC A L A N D G LO B A L

UNI
C O M MU N IC A T IO N IN
M U LT IC U LT U R A L S ET T IN G
SESSION 6
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
• 1. EXPLAIN THE CONNECTION OF CULTURE AND COMMUNICATION;
• 2. DIFFERENTIATE CROSS- CULTURAL AND INTERCULTURAL
COMMUNICATION;

• 3. CONTRAST THE DIMENSIONS OF CULTURE AND

• 4. IDENTIFY THE BARRIERS OF INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION.
“CULTURAL PROFICIENCY DOESN’T MEAN
MEMORIZING EVERY CULTURAL NUANCES
OF EVERY MARKET. IT’S KNOWING WHEN
TO CONCENTRATE, WHEN TO INVITE
HELP, AND WHEN- FINALLY- TO TALK.”

-GENEVIEVE HILTON-
A WORLD OF DIVERSITY
• OUR WORLD IS A WORLD OF DIVERSITY ACCORDING TO PARAPAK (1995).
FOR MANY CENTURIES, THE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD WERE SEPARATED BY
MOUNTAINS AND SEAS. THEY RARELY SAW EACH OTHER; THEIR LIVES
WERE PRACTICALLY UNRELATED, THEY DEVELOPED AND LIVED THEIR
OWN UNIQUE CULTURES. PEOPLE IN A VERY PARTICULAR LOCALITY
DEVELOPED THEIR OWN PARTICULAR WAY OF LIFE, THEIR OWN
LANGUAGE, THEIR RELIGION AND THUS BECAME REFERRED TO AS A
TRIBE, AN ETHNIC GROUP OR A PARTICULAR GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS WHO
ESTABLISHED A NATION OF THEIR OWN.
GLOBAL COMMUNITY
• REFERS TO THE PEOPLE OF THE GLOBE, CONSIDERED AS BEING
CLOSELY CONNECTED BY MODERN TELECOMMUNICATIONS.
EXAMPLES:
✘ MAJOR OFFICES AND A FEW HOMES LINKED WITH FIBER SYSTEMS
✘ GLOBAL MULTIMEDIA SERVICE
✘ SATELLITE TRANSMISSIONS
CULTURAL AWARENESS AND SENSITIVITY
• WHAT IS CULTURAL AWARENESS?
IS KNOWING THAT THERE ARE MULTIPLE DIFFERENT CULTURES
– SUPPORTED RELIGION, ETHNICITY, NATIONALITY, AND OTHER
FACTORS- THAT HAVE DIFFERENT ATTITUDES AND OUTLOOKS.

• WHAT IS CULTURAL SENSITIVITY?

INVOLVES ACCEPTING THOSE DIFFERENCES WITHOUT INSISTING
YOUR OWN CULTURE IS BEST, OR THAT EVERYBODY SHOULD DO IT
YOUR WAY (SHERMAN, 2018).
 CULTURAL AWARENESS & SENSITIVITY GUIDELINES:
• 1. HAVE A TRANSPARENT SENSE OF YOUR OWN ETHNIC, CULTURAL, AND RACIAL
IDENTITY.

• 2. BEAR IN MIND THAT IN ORDER TO LEARN ABOUT OTHERS, YOU NEED TO KNOW
AND BE PREPARED TO SHARE YOUR OWN CULTURE.

• 3. BE AWARE OF YOUR OWN DISCOMFORT ONCE YOU ENCOUNTER DIFFERENCES

IN RACE, COLOR, RELIGION, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, LANGUAGE, AND ETHNICITY.

• 4. BE AWARE OF THE ASSUMPTIONS THAT YOU HOLD ABOUT PEOPLE OF

CULTURES DIFFERENT FROM YOUR OWN.

• 5. REMEMBER OF YOUR STEREOTYPES AS THEY ARISE AND DEVELOP PERSONAL

STRATEGIES FOR REDUCING THE HARM THAT THEY CAUSE.
 CULTURAL AWARENESS & SENSITIVITY GUIDELINES:
• 6. REMEMBER OF HOW YOUR CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE INFLUENCES YOUR
JUDGMENTS ABOUT WHAT APPROPRIATE NORMAL OR SUPERIOR BEHAVIORS AND
VALUES ARE.

• 7. ACCEPT THAT IN CROSS-CULTURAL SITUATIONS, THERE ARE OFTEN

UNCERTAINTY, WHICH UNCERTAINTY CAN CAUSE YOU TO ANXIOUS. IT CAN ALSO
MEAN THAT YOU DO NOT RESPOND QUICKLY AND TAKE THE TIME NEEDED TO
GET MORE INFORMATION.

• 8. TAKE ANY OPPORTUNITY TO PUT YOURSELF IN PLACES WHERE YOU'LL BE

ABLE TO STUDY DIFFERENCES AND BUILD RELATIONSHIPS; AND

• 9. UNDERSTAND THAT YOU WILL LIKELY BE PERCEIVED AS A PERSON WITH

POWER AND RACIAL PRIVILEGE (OR THE OPPOSITE), AND THAT YOU MAY NOT BE
SEEN AS UNBIASED OR AS AN ALLY.
GENDER SENSITIVITY
• WHAT IS GENDER SENSITIVITY?
REFERS TO THE AIM OF TAKING ACCOUNT AND/OR UNDERSTANDING THE
SOCIETAL AND CULTURAL FACTORS INVOLVED IN GENDER-BASED EXCLUSION
AND DISCRIMINATION.

• WHAT IS GENDER-SENSITIVE LANGUAGE?

IT IS THE REALIZATION OF GENDER EQUALITY IN WRITTEN AND SPOKEN
LANGUAGE. IT IS ATTAINED WHEN WOMEN AND MEN AND PEOPLE WHO DON'T
CONFORM TO THE BINARY GENDER SYSTEM ARE MADE VISIBLE AND
ADDRESSED IN LANGUAGE AS PERSONS OF EQUAL VALUE, DIGNITY, INTEGRITY,
AND RESPECT.
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS
• WHAT IS POLITICAL CORRECTNESS?

IT IS USED TO DESCRIBE LANGUAGE, POLICIES, OR

MEASURES THAT ARE INTENDED TO AVOID OR
DISBENEFIT TO MEMBERS OF PARTICULAR GROUPS IN
SOCIETY.
SOME WORDS THAT MAY BE USED FOR
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
• 1. ACADEMIC DISHONESTY (INSTEAD OF CHEATING)
• 2. AESTHETICALLY CHALLENGED (INSTEAD OF UGLY)
• 3. BLACK (INSTEAD OF NEGRA)
• 4. COMB-FREE (INSTEAD OF BALD)
• 5. DIFFERENTLY ABLED (INSTEAD OF DISABLED)
• 6. DRUG DEPENDENT (INSTEAD OF DRUG ADDICT)
• 7. DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY (INSTEAD OF BROKEN HOME)
SOME WORDS THAT MAY BE USED FOR
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

• 8. ECONOMICALLY MARGINALIZED (INSTEAD OF POOR)

• 9. ELDERLY, SENIOR (INSTEAD OF OLD)
• 10. ETHNICALLY DISORIENTED (INSTEAD OF DISHONEST)
• 11. HEARING IMPAIRED (INSTEAD OF DEAF)
• 12. INFORMAL SETTLERS (INSTEAD OF SQUATTERS)
• 13. INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY, INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT DISORDER
(INSTEAD OF MENTAL RETARDATION)
SOME WORDS THAT MAY BE USED FOR
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

• 14. INTELLECTUALLY IMPAIRED (INSTEAD OF STUPID)

• 15. LITTLE PEOPLE (INSTEAD OF MIDGET)
• 16. MORALLY CHALLENGED (INSTEAD OF A CROOK)
• 17. NONDISCRETIONARY FRAGRANCE (INSTEAD OF BODY ODOR)
• 18. OUTDOOR URBAN (INSTEAD OF HOMELESS)
• 19. PEOPLE OF MASS (INSTEAD OF FAT)
SOME WORDS THAT MAY BE USED FOR
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

• 20. RAPE SURVIVOR (INSTEAD OF RAPE VICTIM)

• 21. SEXUALLY DYSFUNCTIONAL (INSTEAD OF PERVERTED)
• 22. SOCIALLY MISALIGNED (INSTEAD OF PSYCHOPATH)
• 23. TECHNOLOGICALLY CHALLENGED (INSTEAD OF COMPUTER ILLITERATE)
• 24. VERTICALLY CHALLENGED (INSTEAD OF SHORT)
• 25. VISUALLY CHALLENGED (INSTEAD OF BLIND)