A.Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish university

A.Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish university

Philology faculty

English philology department

The lectures on:

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Prepared by: a master teacher Meruert Seitova

TURKISTAN,2011

Lecture #1

Lecture #2

Culture shock

1. What Causes Culture Shock?

2. Stereotypes: An Intercultural No-No

3. Types of stereotypes

 

 

What Is It?

 

Culture shock isn't a clinical term or medical condition. It's simply a common way to describe the confusing and nervous feelings a person may have after leaving a familiar culture to live in a new and different culture. When you move to a new place, you're bound to face a lot of changes. That can be exciting and stimulating, but it can also be overwhelming. You may feel sad, anxious, frustrated, and want to go home.

It's natural to have difficulty adjusting to a new culture. People from other cultures (whom you'll be hanging out with and going to school with) may have grown up with values and beliefs that differ from yours. Because of these differences, the things they talk about, the ways they express themselves, and the importance of various ideas may be very different from what you are used to. But the good news is that culture shock is temporary.

 

1. What Causes Culture Shock?

 

To understand culture shock, it helps to understand what culture is. You may know that genes determine a big part of how you look and act. What you might not know is that your environment — your surroundings — has a big effect on your appearance and behavior as well.

Your environment isn't just the air you breathe and the food you eat, though; a big part of your environment is culture. Culture is made up of the common things that members of a community learn from family, friends, media, literature, and even strangers. These are the things that influence how theylook, act, and communicate. Often, you don't even know you're learning these things because they become second-nature to you — for instance, the way you shake hands with someone when meeting them, when you eat your meals each day, the kind of things you find funny, or how you view religion

When you go to a new place, such as a new country or even a new city, you often enter a culture that is different from the one you left. Sometimes your culture and the new culture are similar. Other times, they can be very different, and even contradictory. What might be perfectly normal in one culture — for instance, spending hours eating a meal with your family — might be unusual in a culture that values a more fast-paced lifestyle.

The differences between cultures can make it very difficult to adjust to the new surroundings. You may encounter unfamiliar clothes, weather, and food as well as different people, schools, and values. You may find yourself struggling to do things in your new surroundings that were easy back home. Dealing with the differences can be very unsettling; those feelings are part adjusting to a new culture.

 

2. Stereotypes: An Intercultural No-No

 

As more or more people from different backgrounds, countries, cultures and religions immigrate to foreign lands, those countries become an intercultural melting pot. In order for the native people and the immigrant population to blend and create a thriving and successful atmosphere both sides need to develop some sort of intercultural tolerance and understanding of the differences that may exist between them. An example of poor intercultural understanding, or one based simply on stereotypes, is offered by the town of Herouxville in Quebec, Canada.

A declaration issued by the town in January 2007, which was designed to inform immigrants, "that the way of life which they abandoned when they left their countries of origin cannot be recreated here [i.e. Herouxville]". It then went on to state that the immigrant population would therefore have to refrain from their cultural norms and activities such as to "kill women by stoning them in public, burning them alive, burning them with acid, circumcising them, etc."

The declaration paints a rather sad picture of the officials that administer the town and highlights not only their rather insular outlook but a world view of "others" based on crass and frankly incorrect stereotypes. To simply consider that anyone from another country (in this case more than likely a Middle Eastern or Asian one) regards the stoning of women and burning them alive as part of daily life derives from crude, and media led, stereotypes of other peoples.

Stereotypes are at their most basic level a set of assumed characteristics about a certain group of people whose actual beliefs, habits and realities more often than not disagree with the imposed assumptions. Stereotypes are usually based on factors such as exaggeration, distortion, ignorance, racism, cultural factors or even historical experiences. Stereotyping is therefore rightly seen as a negative way of seeing people. This is even true of what are called "positive stereotypes". A positive stereotype is where we use a blanket expression for a whole people, i.e. all the Chinese are great at maths, all Germans are well organised or all English people are well mannered. Although the intent behind the statement is positive, it still does not reflect the truth.

What we have witnessed in Herouxville should not be seen as an isolated incident. Such assumptions about foreigners exist all over the planet. However, this does not make it right or excusable. The message it does give is that there is a lot of work to be done in order to educate people to become more culturally competent.

Cultural competency is a term used to describe the ability to work, communicate and live across cultures and cultural boundaries. One achieves this through an instilled understanding of cultures on a general level as well as an informed one about specific cultures on a more detailed level. As well as knowledge it has to work in tandem with behavioural and attitudinal changes.

Cultural competency is important in this day and age for exactly the reasons cited in this article. We, as citizens of planet earth, are no longer confined to our national and cultural borders. We mix with people from different cultures, ethnicities, religions and colours on a daily basis. In order to make this intercultural experience work on all levels from education to business to government, people have to develop basic skills in intercultural communication and understanding. In order to assist the officials at Herouxville, five basic steps to cultural competence are presented below:

1. Break Assumptions

Everyone makes or has assumptions about others. Assumptions are beliefs rather than objective truth and are usually influenced by a number of subjective factors. People need to assess their assumptions and ask themselves why they hold those ideas or beliefs.

2. Empathise

In order to come to appreciate and understand people from different cultures, empathy is vital. Through putting yourself in someone else's shoes you come to see or appreciate their point of view.

3. Involve

Involving others in your world and involving yourself in other's empowers and educates. Don't build walls between people but learn from one another.

4. Avoid Herd Mentality

Herd mentality refers to a closed and one dimensional approach. Such a way of thinking curbs creativity, innovation and advancement as people are restricted in how to think, approach and engage with people or challenges. Cultural competency can only develop if people are encouraged to think as individuals, bring their cultural influences to the table and share ideas that may be outside the box.

5. Shun Insensitivity

People can and do behave in culturally insensitive ways. By attacking someone's person, you attack their culture and therefore their dignity. This can only be divisive. Cultural competency is based upon people thinking through words and actions to ensure they do not act inappropriately. When insensitive behaviour is witnessed it is the responsibility of all to shun it and ensure it remains unacceptable.

6. Be Wise

Wisdom is not called wisdom for nothing. People need to be aware how to interact with people with respect and knowledge. Cultural competency is essentially founded upon wisdom, i.e. showing maturity of thought and action in dealing with people. Through thinking things out and have background knowledge to intercultural differences much of the communication problems witnessed within business could be avoided.

 

Intercultural in Piermont - Liguria

 

The researcher whose purpose is to analyze interculture in Europe has to travel over a varied and articulated path, made of distinct roads crossing at different points.

To create a path also means to choose one, deciding to investigate some pathways while (necessarily) neglecting others.

While outlining this varied European map, we tried to incorporate the countless activities and practices which have an “intercultural” aim or consequence; we then divided them into into five macro-sectors, conventionally defined as: art, media and publishing trade, education, quality of life, and university research. We followed the same method with regard to a specific research we carried out in Piemonte and Liguria, two Italian regions which offer a rich intercultural outline, likely to provide useful ideas and suggestions for the practice and the concept of intercultural dialogue.

The “Africa e Mediterraneo” association, one of the European project’s partners, has analyzed the intercultural practices which are developing in these areas; it did this by employing the same instruments as those of the European research.

This site section propose the map that we built thanks to this survey. To search the map use the research in the database or the projects and case studies’ lists. Two reports offer an overall view of the research that has been carried out in each region.

This research project’s material is available in the Italian version only.

Interculture Map in Piemonte e Liguria is supported by Compagnia di San Paolo and by the European Commission (DG Justice, Freedom and Security

Etymology

 

The word stereotype is of Greek origin (στερεότυπος), literally meaning "solid-kind". It was invented by Firmin Didot in the world of printing; it was originally a duplicate impression of an original typographical element, used for printing instead of the original. American journalist Walter Lippmann coined the metaphor, calling a stereotype a "picture in our heads" saying "Whether right or wrong,...imagination is shaped by the pictures seen... Consequently, they lead to stereotypes that are hard to shake." (Public Opinion, 1922, 95-156).[1] In fact, cliché and stereotype were both originally printers' words, and in their literal printers' meanings were synonymous. Specifically, cliché was a French word for the printing surface for a stereotype.[2]

The term "stereotype" derives from Greek στερεός (stereos) "solid, firm" + τύπος (typos) "blow, impression, engraved mark" hence "solid impression". The term, in its modern psychology sense, was first used by Walter Lippmann in his 1922 work Public Opinion although in the printing sense it was first coined 1798.

Sociologists believe that mental categorizing (or labeling) is necessary and inescapable. One perspective on how to understand stereotyping process is through the categories or in groups and out groups. In groups are viewed as normal and superior, and are generally the group that one associates with or aspires to join. An out group is simply all the other groups. They are seen as lesser or inferior than the in groups.

The second perspective is that of automatic and implicit or subconscious and conscious. Automatic or subconscious stereotyping is that which everyone does without noticing. Automatic stereotyping is quickly preceded by an implicit or conscious check which permits time for any needed corrections. Automatic stereotyping is affected by implicit stereotyping because frequent conscious thoughts will quickly develop into subconscious stereotypes.

The third method to categorizing stereotypes is general types and sub-types. Stereotypes consist of hierarchical systems consisting of broad and specific groups being the general types and sub-types respectively. A general type could be defined as a broad stereotype typically known among many people and usually widely accepted, whereas the sub-group would be one of the several groups making up the general group. These would be more specific, and opinions of these groups would vary according to differing perspectives.

Certain circumstances can affect the way an individual stereotypes. For instance: Studies have shown that women stereotype more negatively than men, and that women read into appearance more than men. Some theorists argue in favor of the conceptual connection and that one’s own subjective thought about someone is sufficient information to make assumptions about that individual. Other theorists argue that at minimum there must be a casual connection between mental states and behavior to make assumptions or stereotypes. Thus results and opinions may vary according to circumstance and theory. An example of a common, incorrect assumption is that of assuming certain internal characteristics based on external appearance. The explanation for one’s actions is his or her internal state (goals, feeling, personality, traits, motives, values, and impulses), not his or her appearance.

Sociologist Charles E. Hurst of the College of Wooster states that, “One reason for stereotypes is the lack of personal, concrete familiarity that individuals have with persons in other racial or ethnic groups. Lack of familiarity encourages the lumping together of unknown individuals.[6]

Stereotypes focus upon and thereby exaggerate differences between groups. Competition between groups minimizes similarities and magnifies differences.[7] This makes it seem as if groups are very different when in fact they may be more alike than different. For example, among African Americans, identity as an American citizen is more salient than racial background; that is, African Americans are more American than African.[8] Yet within American culture, Black and White Americans are increasingly seen as completely different groups.

 

Theories

Different disciplines give different accounts of how stereotypes develop: Psychologists focus on how experience with groups, patterns of communication about the groups, and intergroup conflict. Sociologists focus on the relations among groups and position of different groups in a social structure. Psychoanalytically-oriented humanists have argued (e.g., Sander Gilman) that stereotypes, by definition, the representations are not accurate, but a projection of one to another.

Many scientific theories have derived from the sociological studies of stereotyping and prejudicial thinking. During the early studies it was believed or suggested that stereotypes were only used by rigid, repressed, and authoritarian people. Sociologists concluded that this was a result of conflict, poor parenting, and inadequate mental and emotional development. They now know differently. Scientist and theorists have concluded that stereotypes do not only exist, but are actually a never ending chain of thoughts.

One theory as to why people stereotype is that it is too difficult to take in all of the complexities of other people as individuals. Even though stereotyping is inexact, it is an efficient way to mentally organise large blocks of information. Categorization is an essential human capability because it enables us to simplify, predict, and organize our world. Once one has sorted and organized everyone into tidy categories, there is every incentive to avoid processing new or unexpected information about each individual. Assigning general group characteristics to members of that group saves time and satisfies the need to predict the social world in a general sense.

Another theory is that people stereotype because of the need to feel good about oneself. Stereotypes protect one from anxiety and enhance self-esteem. By designating one’s own group as the standard or normal group and assigning others to groups considered inferior or abnormal, it provides one with a sense of worth. Some believe that childhood influences are some of the most complex and influential factors in developing stereotypes. Though they can be absorbed at any age, stereotypes are usually acquired in early childhood under the influence of parents, teachers, peers, and the media. Once a stereotype is learned, it often becomes self-perpetuating.

 

3. Types of stereotypes

Stereotypes can have a negative and positive impact on individuals. Joshua Aronson and Claude M. Steele have done research on the psychological effects of stereotyping, particularly its effect on African-Americans and women.[9] They argue that psychological research has shown that competence is highly responsive to situation and interactions with others.[10] They cite, for example, a study which found that bogus feedback to college students dramatically affected their IQ test performance, and another in which students were either praised as very smart, congratulated on their hard work, or told that they scored high. The group praised as smart performed significantly worse than the others. They believe that there is an 'innate ability bias'. These effects are not just limited to minority groups. Mathematically competent white males, mostly math and engineering students, were asked to take a difficult math test. One group was told that this was being done to determine why Asians were scoring better. This group performed significantly worse than the other group.[10]:443

Possible prejudicial effects of stereotypes are:

Justification of ill-founded prejudices or ignorance

Unwillingness to rethink one's attitudes and behavior towards stereotyped group

Preventing some people of stereotyped groups from entering or succeeding in activities or fields

 

The effects of stereotyping can fluctuate, but for the most part they are negative, and not always apparent until long periods of time have passed. Over time, some victims of negative stereotypes display self-fulfilling prophecy behavior, in which they assume that the stereotype represents norms to emulate. Negative effects may include forming inaccurate opinions of people, scapegoating, erroneously judgmentalism, preventing emotional identification, distress, and impaired performance. Stereotyping painfully reminds those being judged of how society views them.

Role in art and culture This article does not cite any references or sources.

Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.

 

Stereotypes are common in various cultural media, where they take the form of dramatic stock characters. These characters are found in the works of playwright Bertolt Brecht, Dario Fo, and Jacques Lecoq, who characterize their actors as stereotypes for theatrical effect. In commedia dell'Arte this is similarly common. The instantly recognizable nature of stereotypes mean that they are effective in advertising and situation comedy. These stereotypes change, and in modern times only a few of the stereotyped characters shown in John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress would be recognizable.

In literature and art, stereotypes are clichéd or predictable characters or situations. Throughout history, storytellers have drawn from stereotypical characters and situations, in order to connect the audience with new tales immediately. Sometimes such stereotypes can be sophisticated, such as Shakespeare's Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. Arguably a stereotype that becomes complex and sophisticated ceases to be a stereotype per se by its unique characterization. Thus while Shylock remains politically unstable in being a stereotypical Jew, the subject of prejudicial derision in Shakespeare's era, his many other detailed features raise him above a simple stereotype and into a unique character, worthy of modern performance. Simply because one feature of a character can be categorized as being typical does not make the entire character a stereotype.

Despite their proximity in etymological roots, cliché and stereotype are not used synonymously in cultural spheres. For example a cliché is a high criticism in narratology where genre and categorization automatically associates a story within its recognizable group. Labeling a situation or character in a story as typical suggests it is fitting for its genre or category. Whereas declaring that a storyteller has relied on cliché is to pejoratively observe a simplicity and lack of originality in the tale. To criticize Ian Fleming for a stereotypically unlikely escape for James Bond would be understood by the reader or listener, but it would be more appropriately criticized as a cliché in that it is overused and reproduced. Narrative genre relies heavily on typical features to remain recognizable and generate meaning in the reader/viewer.

The teen sitcom, Saved By The Bell features a typical group of high school stereotypes such as a class clown (Zack Morris), a jock (A.C. Slater), a nerd (Samuel "Screech" Powers), a cheerleader (Kelly Kapowski), a feminist (Jessie Spano), and a superficial fashion plate (Lisa Turtle). Some observed the sitcom, like many teen sitcoms of that time, in addition to stereotyping people, stereotyping an institution itself, that of high school. TV stereotypes of high schools have often promoted a "typical American school" as football games, fashion styles, skirt chasing, and not much devotion to academics or studying.

In movies and TV the halo effect is often used. This is when, for example, attractive men and women are assumed to be happier, stronger, nicer people, explained by Greenwald and Banaji from Psychological Review.

 

Racial and ethnic stereotyping

Native Americans

 

Native Americans have been stereotyped by others in both a negative and positive sense. There has long been an admiration of Native Americans as fitting the archetype of the noble savage within European thought, stemming from a cultural sympathy grounded within the post-Enlightenment theory of primitivism.[11][12] These positive portrayals of Native Americans as being noble, peaceful people, who lived in harmony with nature and each other continue within modern culture, e.g. the 1990 film Dances with Wolves.

Over time, as settlers spread west, Native Americans were seen as obstacles and their image became more negative. Native Americans were portrayed in popular media as wild, primitive, uncivilised, dangerous people who continuously attack white settlers, cowboys, and stagecoaches and ululate while holding one hand in front of their mouths. They speak invariably in a deep voice and use stop words like "How" and "Ugh".

In drawings their skin colour was depicted as deep red. In westerns and other media portrayals they are usually called "Indians". Examples of this stereotypical image of Native Americans can be found in many American westerns until the early 1960s, and in cartoons like Peter Pan. In other stereotypes, they smoked peace pipes, wore face paint, danced round totem poles (often with a hostage tied to them), sent smoke signals, lived in tepees, wore feathered head-dresses, scalped their foes, and said 'um' instead of 'the' or 'a'.

As colonisation continued in the US, groups were separated into categories like “Christians” and “heathens” and “civilised” and “savage”. Many Whites view Native Americans as devoid of self-control and unable to handle responsibility. Malcolm D. Holmes and Judith A. Antell hypothesise that such ideas about Native Americans form the ideology that is used today to justify the disparity between Whites and Native Americans.[10] Today, a 19th century stereotype of Native Americans lives on for many people. Modern Native Americans as they live today are rarely portrayed in popular culture.

Due to somewhat recent reparations made by the U.S. government to the tribes which allow unregulated construction of casinos, along with unmonitored revenue received from the gambling, it has become a modern stereotype that a Native American must either own a casino or be in the family of one who does.

 

Inuit stereotypes

 

Inuit or Eskimo people are usually dressed in parkas, carving out trinkets, living in igloos, going fishing with a harpoon, traveling by sleigh and huskies, eating cod-liver oil and the men are usually called Nanook in reference to the famous documentary Nanook of the North. Eskimo children may have a seal for a best friend. Eskimos are often believed to have an unusually large number of words for snow. This is however an urban legend.

Eskimos are sometimes shown rubbing each other noses together as some sort of greeting ritual (Eskimo kissing). They're also often depicted surrounded by polar bears, walruses and inaccurately, with penguins, which only live in the Southern hemisphere and not on the North Pole. Sometimes Eskimos themselves are depicted living on the South Pole, which is again wrong for the same reason.

 

Black stereotypes

Early stereotypes

 

Early minstrel shows lampooned the supposed stupidity of black people. Detail from cover of The Celebrated Negro Melodies, as Sung by the Virginia Minstrels, 1843

In centuries before and during the first half of the 20th century black people were often depicted as dumb, evil, lazy, poor, animalistic, smelly, uncivilised, un-Christian [6] people. The early British colonists brought these initial thoughts with them to the US. White colonists commonly believed that black people were inferior to white people. These thoughts helped to justify black slavery and the institution of many laws that continually condoned inhumane treatment and perpetuated to keep black people in a lower socioeconomic position.[6]

Black people were usually depicted as slaves or servants, working in cane fields or carrying large piles of cotton. They were often portrayed as devout Christians going to church and singing gospel music. In many vaudeville shows, minstrel acts, cartoons, comics and animated cartoons of this period they were depicted as sad, lazy, dim-witted characters with big lips who sing bluesy songs and are good dancers, but get excited when confronted with dice games, chickens or watermelons (examples: all the characters portrayed by Stepin Fetchit and black characters in cartoons like "Sunday Go to Meetin' Time" and "All This and Rabbit Stew").

A more joyful black image, yet still very stereotypical, was provided by eternally happy black characters like Uncle Tom, Uncle Remus and Louis Armstrong's equally joyous stage persona. Another popular stereotype from this era was the black who is scared of ghosts (and usually turns white out of fear). Butlers were sometimes portrayed as black (for example the butler in many Shirley Temple movies). Housemaids were usually depicted as black, heavy-set middle-aged women who dress in large skirts (examples of this type are Mammy Two-Shoes, Aunt Jemima, Beulah and more recently the title character of Big Momma's House). Children are often pickaninnies like Little Black Sambo and Golliwog. Black jive (dialect) was also often used in comedy, like for instance in the show Amos 'n Andy.

African black people were usually depicted as primitive, childlike, cannibalistic persons who live in tribes, carry spears, believe in witchcraft and worship their wizard. White colonists are depicted tricking them by selling junk in exchange for valuable things and/or scaring them with modern technology. A well-known example of this image is Tintin in Africa. When white people are caught by African tribes they are usually put in a large, black cauldron so they can be cooked and eaten. Sometimes black Africans are depicted as pygmies with childlike behavior so that they can be ridiculed as being similar to children.

Other stereotypical images are the male black African dressed in lip plates or with a bone sticking through his nasal septum. Stereotypical female black African depictions include the bare breasted woman with large breasts and notably fat buttocks (examples of this stereotype are the 19th century sideshow attraction Saartjie Baartman and Robert Crumb's comic strip character Angelfood McSpade) or the woman who wears multiple rings around her giraffe-like neck (note: this type of neck ornament is also common in Burma with women from the Kayan tribe, but is generally associated with Africa (like in the Bugs Bunny cartoon "Which Is Witch").

Secretary of State John C. Calhoun arguing for the extension of slavery in 1844 said "Here (scientific confirmation) is proof of the necessity of slavery. The African is incapable of self-care and sinks into lunacy under the burden of freedom. It is a mercy to give him the guardianship and protection from mental death."

Even after slavery ended the intellectual capacity of Black people was still frequently questioned. Lewis Terman wrote in The Measurement of Intelligence in 1916:

"(Black and other ethnic minority children) are ineducable beyond the nearest rudiments of training. No amount of school instruction will ever make them intelligent voters or capable citizens in the sense of the world…their dullness seems to be racial, or at least inherent in the family stock from which they come…Children of this group should be segregated in special classes and be given instruction which is concrete and practical. They cannot master abstractions, but they can be made efficient workers…There is no possibility at present of convincing society that they should not be allowed to reproduce, although from a eugenic point of view they constitute a grave problem because of their unusual prolific breeding.)"

 

Modern black stereotypes

 

Since the 1960s the stereotypical image of black people has changed in some media. More positive depictions appeared where black people and African-Americans are portrayed as great athletes and superb singers and dancers. In many films and television series since the 1970s black people are depicted as good natured, kind, honest and intelligent persons. Often they are the best friend of the white protagonist (examples: Miami Vice, Lethal Weapon, Magnum Force).

Some critics believed this political correctness led to another stereotypical image where black people are often depicted too positively. Spike Lee popularized the term Magical negro, deriding the archetype of the "super-duper magical negro" in 2001 while discussing films with students at Washington State University and at Yale University.

One media survey in 1989 showed that blacks were more likely than whites to be described in demeaning intellectual terms.[15] Political activist and one-time presidential candidate Rev. Jesse Jackson said in 1985 that the news media portray blacks as less intelligent than we are.[16] Film director Spike Lee explains that these images have negative impacts. "In my neighborhood, we looked up to athletes, guys who got the ladies, and intelligent people," and the images widely portrayed black Americans as living in inner-city areas, very low-income and under-educated than whites.

Even so-called positive images of Black people can lead to stereotypes about intelligence. In Darwin's Athletes: how sport has damaged Black America and preserved the myth of race, John Hoberman writes that the prominence of African-American athletes encourages a de-emphasis on academic achievement in black communities.

In a 1997 study on racial stereotypes in sports, participants were shown a photograph of a white or a black basketball player. They then listened to a recorded radio broadcast of a basketball game. White photographs were rated as exhibiting significantly more intelligence in the way they played the game, even though the radio broadcast and target player represented by the photograph were the same throughout the trial.[18] Several other authors have said that sports coverage that highlights 'natural black athleticism' has the effect of suggesting white superiority in other areas, such as intelligence.

Patricia J. Williams, writer for The Nation, said this of Jar Jar Binks, a character from the 1999 and 2002 Star Wars films The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, respectively: "...intentionally or not, Jar Jar's pratfalls and high jinks borrow heavily from the genre of minstrelsy. Despite the amphibian get-up, his manchild-like idiocy is imported directly from the days of Amos 'n' Andy." Many aspects of Jar Jar's character are believed to be highly reminiscent of the archetypes portrayed in blackface minstrelsy.

Middle Eastern and Muslim stereotypes

Stereotypes of Arabs and Muslims and Western stereotypes of West and Central Asians

Stereotypes of Muslims often involve themes associated with violence. Such negative examples inculde Muslims being heavily associated with bomb-making and terroists plots.Also some see Muslims as poor though this is not express in the media often.

White stereotypes

A classic, negative example is Homer Simpson, the obese, lazy and dim-witted middle American from the cartoon, The Simpsons.[21] The show itself parodies many aspects of American life, culture and society.[22] Some social stereotypes of white people inculde being judgemental towrards other races and highly materialistc. Others include physical features such as white females having larger breasts than other women from other ethnic groups, males having straight hair and not aging well such as wrinkles at an early age.

Irish stereotypes

The cartoon above (New Physiognomy, New York, 1866), contrasts Florence Nightingale, the Crimean War nurse, with "Bridget McBruiser", the stereotypical Irish woman.

Scientific Racism from an American magazine, Harper’s Weekly, says that the Irish are similar to 'Negroes.'

An analysis of nineteenth-century British attitudes by Mary J. Hickman and Bronwen Walter wrote that the 'Irish Catholic' was one viewed as an "other", or a different race in the construction of the English nationalist myth. Likewise, the Irish considered the English "other" and fought hard to break away and create their own homeland, which they finally did in the 1920s.[ Benign in comparison to some of the more vulgar generalizations against other ethnicities but nonetheless incorrect are those accusing the Irish as quick-tempered brawlers and alcoholics. One 19th century British cartoonist even depicted Irish immigrants as simian and racially different from Anglo-Saxons. One American doctor in the 1850s, James Redfield, argued that "facial angle" was a sign of intelligence and character; likening the physiognomies of human ethnic groups to animals. Thus Irishmen resembled dogs, Yankees were like bears, Germans like lions, Negroes like elephants and Englishmen like bulls.[24] In the 20th century physical stereotypes survived in the comic books until the 1950s, with Irish characters like Mutt and Jeff, and Jiggs and Maggie appearing daily in hundreds of newspapers.

Irish are also stereotypically viewed as stupid and the butt of many jokes. An example of this would be the"an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman" joke, which usually ends in the Irishman doing something stupid.

Italian stereotypes

Polish stereotypes

Jewish stereotypes

 

Jewish people have been stereotyped throughout the centuries as scapegoats for a multitude of societal problems. Antisemitism continued throughout the centuries and reached a climax in the Third Reich during World War II. Jews are still stereotyped as greedy, nit-picky, stingy misers. They have been often shown counting money or collecting diamonds. Early films such as Cohen's Advertising Scheme (1904, silent) stereotyped Jews as "scheming merchants."

In caricatures and cartoons they're often depicted having curly hair, large hook-noses, thick lips, and wearing kippahs. Common objects, phrases and traditions used to emphasize or ridicule Jewishness include bagels, playing violin, klezmer, circumcision, haggling and phrases like "Mazal Tov", "Shalom" and "Oy Vey".

Other Jewish stereotypes are the rabbi, the complaining and guilt-inflicting Jewish mother stereotype, the spoiled and materialistic Jewish-American Princess and the often meek Nice Jewish Boy.

Homeless Stereotypes

Homeless individuals are stereotyped as having behavior problems, substance abuse problems, being lazy, and being dirty and/or smelly.

Working class stereotypes

Members of the working class or blue collars are stereotyped as being poorly educated or being neglectful of their education either out of laziness or because they perceive the more educated members of society as "naive" and lacking "street smarts"(See Reverse snobbery). Working class males are stereotyped as placing more value on strength and athletic ability over intellect as intellectuals are perceived as being physically weak in the eyes of working class males. This is related to the "dumb jock" stereotype as jocks are often stereotyped as only being able to work blue-collar jobs later in life.

Spousal abuse and other violent crimes are also elements related to the stereotype as well as excessive alcohol consumption.

 

 

References:

1. Bennett, M. (1991). A developmental approach to training for intercultural sensitivity. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 10. 179-196.

2. Bereiter, C. & Scardamalia, M. (1993). Surpassing ourselves: An enquiry into the nature and implications of expertise. Chicago: Open Court.

3. Booth, E. (1997). Visitors and hosts in Fiji: A professional and cross-cultural experience. In B. Hill, N. Thomas & Joost Coté (Eds.) Into Asia: Australian Practicums in Asia. Carlton, Victoria: Asian Education Foundation.Ch.4.

4. Brake, T., Walker, D. M. & Walker, T. (1995). Doing business internationally: The guide to cross-cultural success. New York: Irwin.

5. Brick, J. (1991) China: A handbook of intercultural communication. Sydney: Macquarie University.

6. Brill, R. (1995). Internationalising professional practice for undergraduates. In A. Barthel (Ed.) International Interaction and Development: Convergent Perspectives Conference Proceedings

 

Lecture #3

Stereotypes

Cultural Practicum

Lecture #4

Body Language

Body language definitions

Body language and evolution

 

Body Language - technically known as kinesics (pronounced 'kineesicks') - is a significant aspect of modern communications and relationships.

Body Language is therefore very relevant to management and leadership, and to all aspects of work and business where communications can be seen and physically observed among people.

Body language is also very relevant to relationships outside of work, for example in dating and mating, and in families and parenting.

Communication includes listening. In terms of observable body language, non-verbal (non-spoken) signals are being exchanged whether these signals are accompanied by spoken words or not.

Body language goes both ways:

Your own body language reveals your feelings and meanings to others.

Other people's body language reveals their feelings and meanings to you.

The sending and receiving of body language signals happens on conscious and unconscious levels.

Body language definitions

 

As explained, the terms body language and non-verbal communications are rather vague.

So what is body language? And more usefully, what might we regard it to be, if we are to make the most of studying and using it?

The Oxford English Dictionary (revised 2005) definition is:

"body language - noun - the conscious and unconscious movements and postures by which attitudes and feelings are communicated [for example]: his intent was clearly expressed in his body language."

The Oxford Business English Dictionary offers a slightly different definition. Appropriately and interestingly the Oxford Business English Dictionary emphasizes the sense that body language can be used as a tool, rather than it being an involuntary effect with no particular purpose:

"body language - noun - the process of communicating what you are feeling or thinking by the way you place and move your body rather than by words [for example]: The course trains sales people in reading the customer's body language."

The OED dictionary definition of kinesics - the technical term for body language - depends on the interpretation of 'non-verbal communication':

"kinesics - the study of the way in which certain body movements and gestures serve as a form of non-verbal communication."

Body language is more than those brief descriptions.

Body language certainly also encompasses where the body is in relation to other bodies (often referred to as 'personal space').

Body language certainly also includes very small bodily movements such as facial expressions and eye movements.

Body language also arguably covers all that we communicate through our bodies apart from the spoken words (thereby encompassing breathing, perspiration, pulse, blood-pressure, blushing, etc.)

In this respect, standard dictionary definitions don't always describe body language fully and properly.

We could define body language more fully as:

"Body language is the unconscious and conscious transmission and interpretation of feelings, attitudes, and moods, through:

body posture, movement, physical state, position and relationship to other bodies, objects and surroundings,

facial expression and eye movement,

(and this transmission and interpretation can be quite different to the spoken words)."

Words alone - especially emotional words (or words used in emotional situations) - rarely reflect full or true meaning and motive.

We find clues to additional or true meaning in body language.

Being able to 'read' body language therefore helps us greatly:

to know how people feel and what they mean, and

to understand better how people might be perceiving our own non-verbal signals, and (often overlooked)

to understand ourselves better, deeper than the words we hear ourselves saying.

3. body language - background and history

 

Philosophers and scientists have connected human physical behaviour with meaning, mood and personality for thousands of years, but only in living memory has the study of body language become as sophisticated and detailed as it is today.

Body language studies and written works on the subject are very sparse until the mid-1900s.

The first known experts to consider aspects of body language were probably the ancient Greeks, notably Hippocrates and Aristotle, through their interest in human personality and behaviour, and the Romans, notably Cicero, relating gestures to feelings and communications. Much of this early interest was in refining ideas about oration - speech-making - given its significance to leadership and government.

Isolated studies of body language appeared in more recent times, for example Francis Bacon in Advancement of Learning, 1605, explored gestures as reflection or extension of spoken communications. John Bulwer's Natural History of the Hand published in 1644, considered hand gestures. Gilbert Austin's Chironomia in 1806 looked at using gestures to improve speech-making.

Charles Darwin in the late 1800s could be regarded as the earliest expert to have made serious scientific observation about body language, but there seems little substantial development of ideas for at least the next 150 years.

Darwin's work pioneered much ethological thinking. Ethology began as the science of animal behaviour. It became properly established during the early 1900s and increasingly extends to human behaviour and social organization. Where ethology considers animal evolution and communications, it relates strongly to human body language. Ethologists have progressively applied their findings to human behaviour, including body language, reflecting the evolutionary origins of much human non-verbal communication - and society's growing acceptance of evolutionary rather than creationist theory. Austrian zoologist and 1973 Nobel Prizewinner Konrad Lorenz (1903-89) was a founding figure in ethology. Desmond Morris, author of The Naked Ape, discussed below, is an ethologist, as is the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins (b. 1941) a leading modern thinker in the field. Ethology, like psychology, is an over-arching science which continues to clarify the understanding of body language.

The popular and accessible study of body language as we know it today is very recent.

In his popular 1971 book 'Body Language', Julius Fast (1919-2008) wrote: "...kinesics [body language] is still so new as a science that its authorities can be counted on the fingers of one hand..."

Julius Fast was an American award winning writer of fiction and non-fiction work dealing especially with human physiology and behaviour. His book Body Language was among the first to bring the subject to a mainstream audience.

Significantly the references in Julius Fast's book (Birdwhistell, Goffman, Hall, Mehrabian, Scheflen, etc - see body language references and books below) indicate the freshness of the subject in 1971. All except one of Julius Fast's cited works are from the 1950s and 1960s.

The exception among Fast's contemporary influences was Charles Darwin, and specifically his book The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, written in 1872, which is commonly regarded as the beginnings of the body language science, albeit not recognised as such then.

Sigmund Freud and others in the field of psychoanalysis - in the late 1800s and early 1900s - would have had good awareness of many aspects of body language, including personal space, but they did not focus on non-verbal communications concepts or develop body language theories in their own right. Freud and similar psychoanalysts and psychologists of that time were focused on behaviour and therapeutic analysis rather than the study of non-verbal communications per se.

A different view of human behaviour related to and overlapping body language, surfaced strongly in Desmond Morris's 1967 book The Naked Ape, and in follow-up books such as Intimate Behaviour, 1971. Morris, a British zoologist and ethologist, linked human behaviour - much of it concerned with communications - to human 'animalistic' evolution. His work remains a popular and controversial perspective for understanding people's behaviours, and while his theories did not focus strongly on body language, Morris's popularity in the late 1960s and 1970s contributed significantly to the increasing interest among people beyond the scientific community - for a better understanding of how and why we feel and act and communicate.

An important aspect of body language is facial expression, which is arguably one part of body language for which quite early 'scientific' thinking can be traced:

Physiognomy is an obscure and related concept to body language. Physiognomy refers to facial features and expressions which were/are said indicate the person's character or nature, or ethnic origin.

The word physiognomy is derived from medieval Latin, and earlier Greek (phusiognominia), which originally meant (the art or capability of) judging a person's nature from his/her facial features and expressions. The ancient roots of this concept demonstrate that while body language itself is a recently defined system of analysis, the notion of inferring human nature or character from facial expression is extremely old.

Kinesics (pronounced 'kineesicks' with stress on the 'ee') is the modern scientific or technical word for body language.

The word kinesics was first used in English in this sense in the 1950s, deriving from the Greek word kinesis, meaning motion, and seems to have first been used by Dr Ray Birdwhistell, an American 1950s researcher and writer on body language. (See references).

The introduction of a new technical word - (in this case, kinesics) - generally comes after the establishment of the subject it describes, which supports the assertion that the modern concept of body language - encompassing facial expressions and personal space - did not exist until the 1950s.

Proxemics is the technical term for the personal space aspect of body language. The word was devised in the late 1950s or early 1960s by Edward Twitchell Hall, an American anthropologist. The word is Hall's adaptation of the word proximity, meaning closeness or nearness. (See personal space.)

From the word kinesics, Ray Birdwhistell coined the term kine to refer to a single body language signal. This is not to be confused with the ancient and same word kine, meaning a group of cows. Neither word seems to have caught on in a big way, which in one way is a pity, but in another way probably makes matters simpler for anyone interested in the body language of cows.

The Greek word kinesis is also a root word of kinaesthetics, which is the 'K' in the VAK ('see hear feel') learning styles model.

Kinaesthetics (also known as kinesthetics) in the study of learning styles, is related to some of the principles of body language, in terms of conveying meaning and information via physical movement and experience.

Body language is among many branches of science and education which seek to interpret and exploit messages and meaning from the 'touchy-feely' side of life.

For example, the concepts of experiential learning, games and exercises, and love and spirituality at work - are all different perspectives and attempts to unlock and develop people's potential using ideas centred around kinaesthetics, as distinct from the more tangible and easily measurable areas of facts, figures words and logic.

These and similar methodologies do not necessarily reference body language directly, but there are very strong inter-connections.

Bloom's Taxonomy, and Kolb's Learning Styles are also helpful perspectives in appreciating the significance of kinaesthetics, and therefore body language, in life and work today.

The communications concepts of NLP (Neuro-linguistic Programming) and Transactional Analysis are closely dependent on understanding body language, NLP especially.

body language - nature or nurture?

Body language is part of human evolution, but as with many other aspects of human behaviour, the precise mixture of genetic (inherited) and environmental (learned or conditioned) influences is not known, and opinions vary.

Julius Fast noted this, especially regarding facial expressions. To emphasise the shifting debate he cited for example:

Darwin's belief that human facial expressions were similar among humans of all cultures, due to evolutionary theory.

Bruner and Taguiri's (see references) opposing views - in the early 1950s, after thirty years of research, they largely rejected the notion that facial expressions were inborn.

and Ekman, Friesan and Sorensen's findings (see references) - in 1969, having discovered consistent emotional-facial recognition across widely diverse cultural groups, which supported Darwin's evolutionary-centred ideas.

The discussion has continued in a similar vein to the modern day - studies 'proving' genetic or environmental cause - 'nature' or 'nurture' - for one aspect of body language or another.

The situation is made more complex when one considers the genetic (inherited) capability or inclination to learn body language. Is this nature or nurture?

It's both.

Body language is partly genetic (inborn - 'nature') - hugely so in certain aspects of body language - and partly environmental (conditioned/learned - 'nurture').

Some body language is certainly genetically inherited and consistent among all humans. Other body language is certainly not.

The use and recognition of certain fundamental facial expressions are now generally accepted to be consistent and genetically determined among all humans regardless of culture.

However the use and recognition of less fundamental physical gestures (hand movements for example, or the winking of an eye), and aspects of personal space distances, are now generally accepted to be environmentally determined(learned, rather than inherited), which is significantly dependent on local society groups and cultures.

Certain vocal intonation speech variations (if body language is extended to cover everything but the spoken words) also fall within this environmentally determined category. (See the 'other audible signals' section.)

In summary, we can be certain that body language (namely the conscious and unconscious sending and receiving of non-verbal signals) is partly inborn, and partly learned or conditioned.

Body language is part 'nature' and part 'nurture'.

Body language and evolution

The evolutionary perspectives of body language are fascinating, in terms of its purpose and how it is exploited, which in turn feeds back into the purpose of body language at conscious and unconscious levels.

Human beings tend to lie, deceive, manipulate, and pretend. It's in our nature to do this, if only to a small degree in some folk.

For various reasons people intentionally and frequently mask their true feelings. (Transactional Analysis theory is very useful in understanding more about this.)

In expectation of these 'masking' tendencies in others, humans try to imagine what another person has in their mind. The need to understand what lies behind the mask obviously increases according to the importance of the relationship.

Body language helps us to manage and guard against these tendencies, and also - significantly especially in flirting/dating/mating rituals - body language often helps people to communicate and resolve relationship issues when conscious behaviour and speech fails to do so.

Body language has evolved in spite of human awareness and conscious intelligence: rather like a guardian angel, body language can help take care of us, connecting us to kindred souls, and protecting us from threats.

While the importance of body language in communications and management, etc., has become a popular interest and science in the last few decades, human beings have relied on body language instinctively in many ways for many thousands of years.

Early natural exponents of interpreting body language were for example the poker players of the American Wild West. The winners had not only to be handy with a six-shooter, but also skilled in reading other people's non-verbal signals, and controlling their own signals.

Before these times, explorers and tribal leaders had to be able to read the body language of potential foes - to know whether to trust or defend or attack.

Earlier than this, our cavemen ancestors certainly needed to read body language, if only because no other language existed.

Humans have also learned to read the body language of animals (and vice-versa), although humans almost certainly had greater skills in this area a long time ago. Shepherds, horse-riders and animal trainers throughout time and still today have good capabilities in reading animal body language, which for many extends to the human variety. Monty Roberts, the real life 'Horse Whisperer' is a good example.

Body language, and the reading of non-verbal communications and feelings, are in our genes. Were these factors not in our genes, we would not be here today.

On which point:

Women tend to have better perception and interpretation of body language than men. This is perhaps a feature of evolutionary survival, since females needed good body language skills to reduce their physical vulnerability to males and the consequential threat to life, limb and offspring. Females might not be so physically vulnerable in modern times, but their body language capabilities generally continue typically to be stronger than the male of the species. Thus, women tend to be able to employ body language (for sending and interpreting signals) more effectively than men.

Katherine Benziger's theories of brain types and thinking styles provides useful additional perspective. Women tend to have more empathic sensitivity than men, which naturally aids body language awareness and capabilities. Aside from gender differences, men and women with strong empathic sensitivity (typically right-basal or rear brain bias) tend to be better at picking up body language signals.

the six universal facial expressions - recognized around the world

It is now generally accepted that certain basic facial expressions of human emotion are recognized around the world - and that the use and recognition of these expressions is genetically inherited rather than socially conditioned or learned.

While there have been found to be minor variations and differences among obscurely isolated tribes-people, the following basic human emotions are generally used, recognized, and part of humankind's genetic character:

These emotional face expressions are:

Happiness

Sadness

Fear

Disgust

Surprise

Anger

 

Charles Darwin was first to make these claims in his book The Expressions of the Emotions in Man and Animals, published in 1872. This book incidentally initially far outsold The Origin of Species, such was its wide (and controversial) appeal at the time.

Darwin's assertions about genetically inherited facial expressions remained the subject of much debate for many years.

In the 1960s a Californian psychiatrist and expert in facial expressions, Paul Ekman, (with Sorenson and Friesen - see references) conducted and published extensive studies with people of various cultures to explore the validity of Darwin's theory - that certain facial expressions and man's ability to recognize them are inborn and universal among people. Ekman's work notably included isolated tribes-people who could not have been influenced by Western media and images, and essentially proved that Darwin was right - i.e., that the use and recognition of facial expressions to convey certain basic human emotions is part of human evolved nature, genetically inherited, and not dependent on social learning or conditioning.

body language analysis

 

Body language is instinctively interpreted by us all to a limited degree, but the subject is potentially immensely complex. Perhaps infinitely so, given that the human body is said to be capable of producing 700,000 different movements (Hartland and Tosh, 2001 - see references).

As with other behavioural sciences, the study of body language benefited from the development of brain-imaging technology in the last part of the 20th century. This dramatically accelerated the research and understanding into connections between the brain, feelings and thoughts, and body movement. We should expect to see this effect continuing and providing more solid science for body language theory, much of which remains empirical, i.e., based on experience and observation, rather than scientific test.

Given the potential for confusion, here are some considerations when analysing body language:

context

Body language also depends on context: body language in a certain situation might not mean the same in another.

Some 'body language' isn't what it seems at all, for example:

Someone rubbing their eye might have an irritation, rather than being tired - or disbelieving, or upset.

Someone with crossed arms might be keeping warm, rather than being defensive.

Someone scratching their nose might actually have an itch, rather than concealing a lie.

sufficient samples/evidence

A single body language signal isn't as reliable as several signals:

As with any system of evidence, 'clusters' of body language signals provide much more reliable indication of meaning than one or two signals in isolation.

Avoid interpreting only single signals. Look for combinations of signals which support an overall conclusion, especially for signals which can mean two or more quite different things.

culture/ethnicity

Certain body language is the same in all people, for example smiling and frowning (and see the six universally recognizable facial expressions above), but some body language is specific to a culture or ethnic group.

See examples of cultural body language differences below.

Awareness of possible cultural body language differences is especially important in today's increasingly mixed societies.

Management and customer service staff are particularly prone to misreading or reacting inappropriately to body language signals from people of different ethnic backgrounds, a situation made worse because this sort of misunderstanding tends to peak when emotions are high.

Personal space preferences (distances inside which a person is uncomfortable when someone encroaches) can vary between people of different ethnicity.

In general this article offers interpretations applicable for Western culture.

If you can suggest any different ethnic interpretations of body language please send them and I'll broaden the guide accordingly.

body language is relative to age and gender

Many body language signals are relative.

A gesture by one person in a certain situation can carry far more, or very little meaning, compared to the same gesture used by a different person in a different situation.

Young men for example often display a lot of pronounced gestures because they are naturally energetic, uninhibited and supple. Older women, relatively, are less energetic