Introduction
Culture comprises of both tangible objects and non-tangible attributes like values, norms and knowledge systems which can vary from one culture to another. In practice, the terms society and culture are often used synonymously. However, while society is a composite of interpersonal interactions, culture is an abstract notion that comprises of beliefs, value systems and norms, in addition to symbolic components like, signs and languages. All contemporary modern societies are evolving towards multiculturalism a term referring to a sense of equality among all subcultures in the society. For instance, U.S. culture ascribes to the dominant values of democracy, equality and freedom reflecting the overarching principles of cultural integration. However, within a society, cultural integration is seldom complete, often leading to inter-cultural friction.
The ascribed notion of United States as a ‘melting pot’ is reinforced by its national motto (‘Out of many, One). It explicitly values the merger of diverse subcultures into one people. Although acceptance of multiculturalism has grown manifold, the same American values of equality and freedom have ended up paradoxically hindering minority groups on the road towards multiculturalism. (Kalat 2002) Immigrants to the United States or any other country undergo a period of acculturation, implying a transition from feeling part of a culture of their original country to the culture of the country they adopt. It’s a gradual process, sometimes taking more than a generation in the process. Fortunately, many people can adapt and function successfully as part of more than one culture at the same time. However, humans have a universal tendency to have negative attitudes toward people of other races and ethnic groups. These attitudes are part of the social identity mechanisms that motivate evolutionary adaptations or are the result of social conditioning. (Thio, 1997)
Theoretical perspectives
Social psychology seeks to unravel the dynamics of intercultural interactions. As social situations affect our behaviors in myriad of ways, one of the themes of psychological enquiry is to understand how cultural influences shape a person’s attitude towards others. In a multi cultural society these influences play out more starkly and end up governing one’s attitudes and behaviors in all spheres of social life. From a conflict perspective, culture is seen as protecting the status quo (of minorities) from the alienating effects of social and economic oppression. (Thio, 1997)
Attribution theory
It refers to the thinking processes that people employ to rationalize behaviors of people including their own. (Kalat, 2002) On observing anything abnormal, there is a tendency to attribute causes that seem appropriate in that situation. Generally we make internal attribution when someone’s actions contravene the norms. In other words, individuals tend to downplay the possibility that an unusual behavior by others could be the result of the other person’s peculiar circumstances.
Fundamental attribution error (also called ‘correspondence bias’) refers to situations wherein people tend to bias towards overestimating the influence of internal reasons (internal attribution) on a person’s behavior or action. (Kalat, 2002) In other words, it implies a tendency to assume a strong similarity between someone’s current actions and his or her personality and characteristics.
Culture has a significant bearing on the tendency to commit internal attribution error. This tendency often breeds misunderstandings, for example, in an intercultural work place, where a person may not approve of the other person’s action or behavior. Such thoughts invariably end up creating distorted attributions about other individual’s personality. While in reality, the other person’s behavior may have been dictated by his cultural beliefs or religious practices. Research has shown that cultural influences can shift a person from more internal or external attributions. (Hong, Morris, Chiu, & Benet-Martínez, 2000) (Kalat, 2002)
Stereotyping
Social perception or cognition refers to the processes that people use to collect and remember information about others, and, draw inferences based on that information. (Kalat, 2002) Throughout our life we draw inferences from everyday situations or behaviors. Furthermore, attitude once formed affects our inferential tendency while processing new information. Individuals and groups have varied attitudes towards other people and groups. This attitude could be good, bad, or indifferent, largely depending upon our previous observations, memory and thinking processes. This phenomenon contributes to the genesis of human prejudices and stereotypical behavior. By definition stereotype is a belief about a group of people. (Kalat, 2002) The tendency to figure out the cause of other‘s behavior is more so in case of behaviors that seem unusual or out of the ordinary.
Spreading activation and cross cultural concepts
Different cultural viewpoints can also be explained by the concept of spreading activation. Psychological research has shown that merely thinking of one concept primes us to think of related concepts. (Kalat 2002) Since culture is comprised of both normative and symbolic components, various symbols, beliefs and value systems ultimately get embedded in the cultural fabric. Eventually, these ingrained values shape that culture’s collective world view and retaining these symbols, then, becomes a survival tactic.
Inter cultural conflict resolution and cultural competence
Reconciling with cultural dilemmas involves a multipronged approach. Moreover, cultural competence is rapidly emerging as an important strategy to respond to the increasingly multicultural, multiracial, and multilingual demographic transition. Besides, sensitivity, non-judgemental attitude and the desire to resolve the conflict are essential pre requisites for any conflict resolution. Other success factors include, being aware of one’s own cultural prejudices and biases, recognition of the potential barriers, and willingness to appreciate and respect the intercultural differences. Culture differences end up becoming the foundation of the conflict since culture, to a large extent, determines a person’s notion of ‘self’.
Cultural conflict is usually notable for its complexity and often results from expectations about our own and other’s behavior. Further, such conflicts are prone to recur and evoke strong emotional response even if the issue is seemingly trivial. (Kagawa-Singer, Kassim-Lakha, 2003) My preferred approach to resolve such conflicts in any intercultural setting is briefly outlined below.
Exploring the cultural determinants of the controversy: Acknowledgement of the cultural dimension and willingness to acknowledge and deal with it is an effective first step.
Systematic and phased approach: Understanding of others cultural perceptions and their preferred approaches to conflict resolution. (Tervalon & Murray-García, 1998) Resolution efforts may fail if the root of the conflict is diverging values. Thus learning about other cultures is an effective way to foster cooperation and understanding in the workplace. Some changes in the organisation’s work culture and standard practice is usually required to accommodate diverging viewpoints. Some structural changes may also be in order so that the workplace doesn’t just reflect the norms of one culture.
References
Heider, F. (1958). The psychology of interpersonal relations. New York, NY: Wiley. (322 p)
Hong, Y., Morris, M. W., Chiu, C., & Benet-Martínez, V. (2000). Multicultural minds: A dynamic constructivist approach to culture and cognition. American Psychologist, 55(7), 709-720. doi:10.1037//0003-066X.55.7.709
Kalat, J. W. (2002). In Introduction to psychology (6th Ed.) Pacific Grove, CA: Wadsworth-Thomson Learning.
Kagawa-Singer M, Kassim-Lakha S. (2003). A strategy to reduce cross-cultural miscommunication and increase the likelihood of improving health outcomes. Acad Med. 2003;78(6):577–587.
Tervalon M, Murray-García J. (1998) Cultural humility versus cultural competence: a critical distinction in defining physician training outcomes in multicultural education. J Health Care Poor Underserved. 1998 May;9(2):117-25.
Thio, A. (1997). In Sociology: A brief introduction (3rd ed., pp. 4-24). New York, NY: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc.
