Cross Cultural Content with Created by:

Fia Adriani
American Ina Tantia
Rizka Karima
Siti Robiatul Adawiyah
• The Term “American”
- Is it possible to describe Americans as a cultural group?

Description of Americans: Is It Possible?

There are many generalizations about American. Some people might argue that
it is impossible to generalize about Americans. Americans do not come from
a common ancestor. Except for Native Americans (i.e., Indian), all
Americans come from different immigrant and refugee groups. Americans
do have a common heritage, but it is based on cultural diversity, or
multiculturalism. Yet despite this multiculturalism, it is still possible to talk
in terms of an “American culture.”
• “Melting Pot” and “Mosaic”

“Melting Pot” ; In the early to mid-1900s, some people described

America as a “melting pot.”

“ Mosaic” : By the 1970s and 1980s a better analogy was

introduced: America’s multicultural society was described as a
“mosaic” in which all the races and ethnic groups could be
proudly displayed.
• Stereotypes and Generalization

Stereotypes are exaggerated beliefs and images about groups of people and are
often based on a lack of information or contact. It is easy to over generalize
and apply the actions and behavior of a few people from a particular group
to the entire group. It is possible to make some generalizations about
cultural groups that are true. This were not possible, it would be impossible
to talk about separate cultures. However, it must not be assumed that
everyone within a culture fits the generalization. Many (and often a
majority) do, but certainly not all.
•
• Mainstream American Values
There are still mainstream values that reflect the majority culture. Because
of intermarriage and the natural process of “Americanization,” many
people from almost every ethnic group in America do reflect aspects of
the mainstream culture. If Americans are compared to people in other
cultural groups, definite differences in values and behavior are
obvious. Many Americans, although certainly not all hold similar
values; their behaviors and actions reflect these values.
• A Foreign Anthropologist’s Observation of
Americans

It is important to understand American values if you want to understand

American behavior. Certain ways of thinking, acting, and communicating
are a direct result of cultural values.
American Values

•Personal control over the environment. Contrasting value —

Fate
•Change: Change is healthy. Contrasting value —
Preservation and emphasis on rituals, customs, and traditions
from the past
•Control over time: Time flies. Contrasting value – Time walks
•Equality and egalitarianism. Contrasting value – Hierarchy,
rank, status
•Equality and egalitarianism. Contrasting value – Group
orientation
• Self-help. Contrasting value – Birthright inheritance
• Future orientation. Contrasting value – Past or present
orientation
• Action and Work orientation. Contrasting value – “Being”
orientation
• Informality. Contrasting value – Formality
• Directness, openness, and honesty. Contrasting value –
Indirectness and “saving face”
• Materialism. Contrasting value – Spiritualism
Interpretations of “Alligator River”
•People do not always have similar interpretations of the
world around them. They perceive and interpret behavior in
different ways.
•As a result of their different values, people’s beliefs,
behavior, and reactions are not always similar.
•No two people, even from the same culture, have exactly
the same perceptions and interpretations of what they see
around them.
•Many interpretation, however, are learned within a person’s
culture. Therefore, those who share a common culture will
probably perceive the world more similarly than those who
do not share a common culture.
Any Questions?
Thank You