What is cultural sensitivity in communication

In the past few months, the United States has experienced a dramatic increase in hate crimes being reported. The Southern Poverty Law Center’s monitoring group has reported a disturbing rise in the number of hate groups operating within the country, reporting a total of 917 as of this story’s publication.

To say that the Discover Corps team finds this to be an incredibly disturbing trend is an understatement. We are thoroughly disgusted by recently reported events such as the vandalism and destruction of headstones at Jewish cemeteries across the country, hateful rhetoric and violence aimed at Muslim Americans, and way too many other instances of intolerance.

In the first three months following President Trump’s election, the SPLC recorded a whopping 1,372 bias incidents. Of that total, more than 25 percent were motivated by anti-immigrant sentiments.

In short, 2017 is turning out to be a challenging year for many Americans. Even simple, rational beliefs about equality and basic human rights have become increasingly politically charged. Here at Discover Corps, we believe that makes culturally immersive travel more important than ever.

We’re proud to be facilitating experiences that open the hearts and minds of travelers to new experiences and cultures around the world. We’re especially aware of the increased importance of promoting cultural sensitivity and awareness through all aspects of our work.

These values are paramount to assuring that citizens of our increasingly globalized planet are able to understand and respect one another. And embracing them is the only way to ensure that we’ll be able to come together as people to ensure that our future holds more peace and promise than our past.

What is Cultural Sensitivity?

The idea behind cultural sensitivity is very straightforward. Cultural sensitivity refers to a set of skills that allows you to learn about and understand people whose cultural background is not the same as yours.

But what does that really mean? Essentially, it means that, as you go about your daily life, you operate with the awareness that cultural differences between yourself and the people you meet exist without assigning them a value. You see our differences as a positive thing, and don’t consider one culture better or worse, right or wrong.

Of course, this is often easier said than done. With increasingly diverse populations living together in the same communities, it’s not always possible to intimately understand the backgrounds of those we’re interacting with.

But having cultural sensitivity doesn’t mean that you must be an expert in each culture’s values. It simply means that you’re willing to ask honest questions, seek understanding, and demonstrate empathy rather than judging those around you. It also means that, when you knowingly enter a space in which there will be cultural differences at play, you do a bit of homework beforehand and avoid knee-jerk reactions or jumping to conclusions.

Why is Cultural Sensitivity Important?

Having cultural sensitivity is important when you travel, of course. You want to demonstrate respect and appreciation for the culture of the people in the place you’re visiting. This helps grow your understanding of your new surroundings, and makes your time spent there more meaningful.

But cultural sensitivity is just as important when you’re at home. It’s so important, in fact, that the concept has become increasingly relevant both in the workplace and for major business branding strategies.

Large corporations now include cultural sensitivity training in their employee on-boarding process. Many publishers hire teams to review content for various cultural interpretations prior to release. Even major retail brands such as Nike have begun to produce/promote products that are inclusive of an increasingly diverse customer base’s needs. Check out their awesome new Pro Hijab as an example.

The most important thing when it comes to acting in a culturally sensitive way is that you remember to ground each interaction you have with others in the understanding that their background, experiences, and values naturally vary from your own. This will help you to lead with understanding and empathy, rather than judgment, which is an incredibly important shift.

How Can Travel Increase Cultural Sensitivity?

To quote Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The mind, once stretched by a new idea, never returns to its original dimensions.” Traveling is an excellent way to practice cultural awareness and grow your experience with world views that are different from your own. This is particularly important in 2017, when a lack of cultural sensitivity is leading to growing displays of intolerance, both here in the U.S. and abroad.

The adventure of being in a new place, surrounded by people who in many cases have had vastly different life experiences from your own, is an undeniably special one. It opens your mind and heart to those who you may not previously have shared an understanding with. This cross-cultural exchange is among the most beautiful, complex, and exciting aspects of traveling in areas you’ve never been to.

It’s also a skill-set that is being increasingly fostered in our earlier, formative years. Gaining an insight into the cultures of others is an important step toward developing cultural sensitivity and awareness.  More and more schools are utilizing travel experiences to formally instill these values in their students.

This is exciting news, because it will lead to the next generation of global citizens being more culturally sensitive, aware, and understanding in their interactions with others. We can only hope that the distrust and skepticism currently being aimed at minority ethnic groups will be replaced with respect and acceptance.

For our part, each of Discover Corps’ Vacations with Purpose is designed to connect travelers with meaningful components of the host community’s cultural makeup. They’re led by locals who are excited to share their own stories and experiences in the name of building cross-cultural understanding.

With nearly 20 trips to choose from, we’ve got an itinerary to spark an interest in almost everyone. Because we believe that open-minded travelers of all ages, backgrounds, and belief systems will be the people who ultimately help change our world for the better.  –Sara McDaniel

BIO: Sara McDaniel is a San Diego-based educator who uses her summers to explore the world, often alongside her students! In addition to writing for The Volunteer Traveler, she has directed international programming for various travel organizations. When she’s not writing or researching, she can often be found swimming in the ocean, eating all of the delicious foods she can find, and teaching in San Diego State University’s College of Education.

What is Cultural Sensitivity?

The question “What is Cultural Sensitivity?” continues to haunt our organizations. Here’s all you ever wanted to know but were too politically correct to ask.

A Definition of Cultural Sensitivity

There are several definitions of cultural sensitivity out there, but I find this one gets the idea across the best.

Cultural sensitivity is being aware that cultural differences and similarities between people exist without assigning them a value – positive or negative, better or worse, right or wrong.

It simply means that you are aware that people are not all the same and that you recognize that your culture is no better than any other culture. A challenge, if you ask me, for members of dominant cultures.

What is Cultural Sensitivity in the Context of a Dominant Culture?

In life and work environments we frequently face situations where there is a dominant and a secondary culture. For instance, in the U.S. the European American is the dominant culture whereas Hispanic, African American and Chinese cultures are all secondary.

Cultural sensitivity implies that both groups understand and respect each other’s characteristics. This is always a challenge, and even more so in large corporations where the dominant culture is the one employees are expected to adopt.

Can you teach cultural sensitivity to people and their organizations?

The short answer is yes. There is no lack of programs, books and trainers focused on developing cultural sensitivity skills.

The problem is that they usually come around in times of crisis when people are least receptive to this kind of training. It feels more like a punishment for something that went wrong than an honest attempt at developing real cultural sensitivity.

This is not to say that you can’t help your employees go through all the stages of what Milton Bennett, one of the most respected experts in the field, identified in his Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity.

Understanding what is cultural sensitivity with the theory of intercultural sensitivity stages

Many years ago, Milton Bennett developed a solid framework to understand the various stages of cultural sensitivity (or as he calls it “intercultural sensitivity”) that a person may experience.

He argues that as people become more and more culturally sensitive, they progress from having an ethnocentric orientation to a more ethnorelative worldview.

In Bennett’s words, “In general, the more ethnocentric orientations can be seen as ways of avoiding cultural difference, either by denying its existence, by raising defenses against it, or by minimizing its importance. The more ethnorelative worldviews are ways of seeking cultural difference, either by accepting its importance, by adapting perspective to take it into account, or by integrating the whole concept into a definition of identity.” [1]

According to this theory, people who are truly interested in embracing cultural sensitivity move from:

Definition of each stage of intercultural sensitivity

Let’s take a look at the meaning of each one of these stages.

Ethnocentric stages of intercultural sensitivity

These three stages are: Denial, Defense and Minimization.

Denial: At this stage of cultural sensitivity, people don’t recognize cultural differences and experiences.

They believe their culture is the only “real” one and they tend to interact in homogenous groups and to stereotype everyone else.

Example: People who say, “We are all the same and I don’t understand why we have to learn about the different groups in the company. Why don’t they just learn how we do things in America?”

The definition of beauty varies according to culture as featured in the iconic HSBC Cultural sensitivity campaign and responds to the question What is Cultural Sensitivity?

Defense: At the defense stage of cultural sensitivity, people recognize some differences, but see them as negative because they assume their culture is the most evolved, the best one.

Example: People who say, “In Latin America you can’t just get to the point and talk business. They want to tell you their life story. I don’t understand why they can’t just learn to be more direct and save everybody time.”

Minimization: Individuals at this stage of cultural sensitivity are unaware that they are projecting their own cultural values. They see their own values as superior. They think that the mere awareness of cultural differences is enough.

These people think we are all the same because we are more similar than different and, in the end, we all have similar physical, biological, psychological needs etc.

They think they are wonderful because they see people as people but they are actually denying the influence of culture in every person’s experience.

Example: Statements such as, “In the end, we all want to be liked,” or, “We are all people.”

Ethnorelative stages of intercultural sensitivity

The three ethnorelative stages of intercultural sensitivity are: Acceptance, Adaptation and Integration. Let’s see what they look like.

Acceptance: At this stage of cultural sensitivity people are able to shift perspectives to understand that the same “ordinary” behavior can have different meanings in different cultures. They are able to identify how experiences are influenced by one’s culture.

They may not agree or even like the differences they observe but they are interested in finding out and learning about another culture.

Example: People who approach others with genuine interest and curiosity about how they experience the same situations. They ask questions such as, “How do Dominicans do it?” or, “What would your family do in a situation like this?”

Adaptation: Individuals who are at this stage of cultural sensitivity become more competent in their ability to communicate with other cultures.

They can evaluate other people’s behavior from these people’s frame of reference and can adapt behavior to fit the norms of a different culture.

Example: People who seamlessly interact with others from different cultures by following the norms of that culture. They feel that they can respect their own values while adapting to the values of other cultures they interact with. They use empathy effectively.

For instance, people who bow at the right time when interacting with Japanese clients or naturally expect their Mexican guests forty-five minutes after the scheduled start time of a party.

Integration: People who are at this stage of cultural sensitivity are able to shift easily from one cultural frame of reference to another. They develop empathy for other cultures.

People who are equally comfortable with one culture or another.

Example: This stage is easy to see with perfectly bilingual/bicultural individuals who almost change their personality when they interact with one group (their family, for instance) or another (their Anglo co-workers, for instance) but they are equally genuine in both situations.

How far should you expect your team to go regarding their own cultural sensitivity?

Part of answering the question of what is cultural sensitivity is to realize that one of the main purposes of becoming more culturally competent is to become more effective in your relationships with colleagues, customers and suppliers.

A peanut butter and jelly sandwich is delicious to some and disgusting to others.

Don’t expect for people to change their worldviews overnight or after a workshop or even an intensive program.

It is the cohesive introduction of opportunities for interaction with different cultures, training in the practice of empathy, and practical exposure to the way different cultures experience a similar situation that will produce more sustainable results.

Team building, hands-on activities, and facilitated story telling (where members of a diverse group take turns sharing stories) are good tools to awaken interest in evolving from an ethnocentric to a more ethnorelative stage of intercultural sensitivity.