The self- Awareness imperative

The self- Awareness imperative

1. The awareness it raises of our own cultural identity and background

2. The study of intercultural communication begins as a journey into another culture and reality and ends as a journey into one´s own culture

   • Ethnocentrism: A tendecy to think that our own culture is superior to other cultures.
     • We assume, subconsciously, that the way we do things is the only way.
   • Self-Awareness through intercultral contact for someone from a racial or minority group may mean learning to be wary and not surprised at subtle slights
     • if you are white and middle class, intercultural learning my mean an enhanced awareness of your privilege.
       • The Demografic Imperative
         • Characteristics of a population, especially as classified by race, ethnicity, age, sex, and income
           • Sometimes more heterogeneous cultures are contrasted to more homogeneous cultures.
             • Heterogeneous: Differences in a group, culture, or population
               • Homogeneous: Similarity in a group, culture, or population.

3. Diversity can expand our conceptions of what is possible, linguistically, politically, socially, as various lifestyles and ways of thinking converge.

   • Relationships between residents and immigrants, between oldtimers and newcomers, have often been filled with tension and conflict
     • Immigrants from southern, central, and eastern Europe for example Italy and Poland were expected to assimilate into the so-called mainstream culture, to jump into the “melting pot” and come out “American.”
       • Melting Pot: A metaphor that assumes that immigrants and cultural minorities will be assimilated into the U.S. majority culture, losing their original cultures.
     • Some of the conflict may be related to the economic disparity that exists among different cultures.
   • Immigration also contributes to religious diversity, bringing increasing numbers of Muslims, Buddhists, Confucians, Catholics, and others to the United States