Impact Of Cultural Beliefs And Practices On Perception And Adaptation

Influence of Culture on Perception of the World

Question:

Write a Personal Cultural Reflection.

Cultural beliefs and practices greatly determine how people perceive the world around them. Sometimes when people of different cultures meet, adapting to the dominant group’s belief becomes inevitable. At times due to culture clash, it becomes hard to accept or be comfortable with cultural elements from other groups. Having Chinese roots, I have felt what it means to be influenced by two cultures, that is, both the Eastern and Western ways of life. Culture has impacted not just my perception of things around me but also prepared me for global management. There is still more to learn however about others both from day to day interaction while being directed by cultural ideals.

My personality has greatly been influenced by my Chinese roots in as much as I was born here in Australia. This is mainly because of the time I spend with relatives. I am a great believer in Confucianism which advocates for the treatment of those around with respect no matter how much one may think they do not deserve. Handling others the way you would like to be treated is one thing that is also advocated for by a good number of people both in the religious and political realms and also at work( Hayibor, 2017). Interaction with others has only reinforced this traditional ideal. Contrary to what many believe, it is not always a must for one to renounce his or her cultural beliefs when in a country in which he or she falls in the minority (Trueba et al.,2014). In my interaction with others, I try as much as possible to live according to what is deemed respectful, just and appropriate by my cultural beliefs.

I meet a lot of people as in my daily endeavors. These people sometimes have a completely different beliefs and values compared to mine whereas in other cases we tend to have nearly similar beliefs. A majority of those I interact with belong to the Christian majority and practice what can be simply termed as the Western lifestyle. Occasionally, I also meet with those who trace their roots to Hinduism and those whose culture bear significant religious elements. Most of these people always have something new to offer hence I find myself being keen to learn anything that I can from them. Their beliefs and practices are sometimes very appealing especially the religious celebrations such as Easter and non-religious celebrations or feasts. I have come to appreciate that sometimes these practices that have been passed through generations also define aspects of people’s behavior, especially how they behave towards others. I always try to learn some of the aspects of my own culture that people may find conflicting with their own as I try to integrate what I learn into my own lifestyle.

Personal Cultural Experience: Chinese Roots in Australian Context

Theories have been advanced about what happens when different cultures interact. As per the dominant ideology thesis, it is believed that those whose culture is widespread mostly shape others beliefs through their numbers and influence on entities such as the media (Abercrombie et al,2015). I believe there is a lot that I have come to learn and still appreciate from what I watch. Likewise, I believe that I am influenced those around me especially those whom I communicate with virtually through social media. Sharing cultural information may change the behavior and perceptions of those whose curiosity outweigh their adherence to certain customs (Ferreira and Francisca, 2014). Not only have I understood what is others consider appropriate but have also come to know how to effectively communicate with others and what should and can be said at specific occasions.

Learning other people’s cultural values and principles has not been entirely easy. I experienced culture shock at several instances. Sometimes I have found myself on a collision course with other people especially the very religious individuals. I believe in the supernatural, only that my beliefs do not resonate with the majority. When it comes to dressing, I still hold the opinion that it is important to try as much as possible to be decent since it is one way that can encourage upholding morals. My definition of what is decent has been quite what is held by a majority of those I interact with. I, however, tolerate what I do not find appealing for which the majority are comfortable with. Things such as bowing down slightly as a sign of respect during greeting is not common in Australia, whereas it is the norm in China hence adapting has not been entirely smooth.

As globalization becomes a reality, people are taking different positions, some aligning their cultural beliefs with those of the majority (Cleveland et al.,2016). Others are however diverging. I believe diverging may not be the best opinion especially for those who live in progressive societies. There might be dire consequences of isolating oneself from the way of life of the majority (Cleveland et al.,2016). Importantly, those who do so may miss on important developments especially when it comes to innovations. Divergence may limit people in terms of accessing new products that may result from the interaction of different people or globalization in general (Chan, 2016). It is true that convergence may lead to the erosion of some cultures. However, this should not be feared since it is the only way that people can learn if some aspects of their beliefs are backward (Diehl et al,2016). A believer that convergence is safe, I am open to trying aspects of other people’s cultures whenever I have the intuition that they are reasonable. The world is generally moving towards uniformity hence embracing others will make several aspects of life easier (Chakraborty, 2017). Business is one area that I believe benefits greatly as a result of convergence since aspects such as communication become very easy. Moreover, people develop similar commodity taste and also find commodities that they did not initially like quite appealing (Peykani, and Rad,2016). This way movement to other countries becomes easy and adapting is also made quicker.

Learning from Other Cultures and Adapting to Different Beliefs and Values

Everyone has shortcomings when it comes to dealing with those who are different, in terms of beliefs or ways of life. I do not think I am left out. Sometimes I become greatly upset by those who try to force their customs, culture, and beliefs on others just because they feel that what they uphold is right while other people are wrong. I sometimes avoid this lot while at other times keenly listen to them while withholding my opinion as I try to decipher their point of view. We cannot always be right all the time. I especially get repealed by those who are too much into politics and religion to the point that they base all their reasoning from religious and political figures and books. On the contrary, I find those who are equally curious about other cultures quite appealing. This enthusiasm to know more about those around them, especially those whose cultures have traces of practices from outside the country or continent is one thing I believe greatly promotes positive convergence. Learning from others is never a bad thing.

I believe that my position as an Australian born citizen with Chinese roots is and will continue to prepare me for global management. Specifically, I am of the opinion that I can comfortably work as a management analyst. This position requires a person who is adept at communicating effectively with those from different backgrounds (Bls.gov, 2017). A person who is interested in this role should be accommodative of people from diverse backgrounds since they may be forced to work in faraway geographical regions due to circumstances such as transfers (Houmanfar and Mattaini, 2016).For one to have these characteristics he or she has to start early when it comes to understanding other people’s cultures. It is because of this that I do not shy away from learning all that I can from others.

An analysis of Australia using Hofstede’s principles makes it easy to see why the Australian culture is the way it is relative to others. On the masculinity index, it ranks at about 61 percent meaning that it is a masculine society, and as such it has a culture of competitiveness hence I have found it a bit difficult to fit in. When it comes to the uncertainty avoidance index, Australia ranks at 51%( Hofstede and Bond, 1984). This means that most people here do not feel much threatened by situations that they are not sure about, as is the case of people from other backgrounds or cultures. On the long-term orientation index, they can be best described as normative. With a rank of 21%, it means that most Australians greatly value and respect their traditions (Hofstede and Bond, 1984). On the indulgence index, the country ranks at about 71% meaning that the propensity of people from this country to have fun and engage in leisure activities is quite high. It is for this reason that I feel that most people I engage with are always lively. When it comes to the power distance index the country ranks at around 36% meaning that it is not very hierarchical. As such those who work here need to understand that there are ranks in organizations hence they need to respect those who rank high. On the individuality index, the country ranks at around 90% meaning that there is little interdependence between people. As such, people are expected to display a high degree of self-reliance. I always try to do this as a result.

I believe that deep down there is not much that separates us as human beings. Most of these cultural practices passed down to us should not hold us back whenever a change is inevitable. Importantly, we should not be quick to judge those from backgrounds that are not our own. The world is transforming into a global village, with great opportunities that can only be realized once we do not isolate ourselves. I hope to learn a lot not just from books but also practically, about other people and how best to interact with them.

References

Abercrombie, N., Hill, S. and Turner, B.S., 2015. The dominant ideology thesis. Routledge.

Bls.gov. (2017). Management Analysts : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. [online] Available at: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/management-analysts.htm [Accessed 7 Aug. 2017].

Chakraborty, S., 2017. Environment, Globalization and Culture. Philosophy and Progress, 57(1-2), pp.105-118.

Chan, S., 2016. Cultural and Political Convergence and Divergence: Survey Data across the Taiwan Strait with US and Korean Comparisons. Democratization in Taiwan: Challenges in Transformation.

Diehl, C., Gijsberts, M., Güveli, A., Koenig, M., Kristen, C., Lubbers, M., McGinnity, F., Mühlau, P., Platt, L. and Van Tubergen, F., 2016. Causes and Consequences of Socio-Cultural Integration Processes among New Immigrants in Europe (SCIP). GESIS Data Archive, Cologne. ZA5956 Data file Version, 1(0).

Ferreira Peralta, C. and Francisca Saldanha, M., 2014. Knowledge-centered culture and knowledge sharing: the moderator role of trust propensity. Journal of Knowledge Management, 18(3), pp.538-550.

Hayibor, S., 2017. Is fair treatment enough? Augmenting the fairness-based perspective on stakeholder behaviour. Journal of Business Ethics, 140(1), pp.43-64.

Hofstede, G. and Bond, M.H., 1984. Hofstede’s culture dimensions: An independent validation using Rokeach’s value survey. Journal of cross-cultural psychology, 15(4), pp.417-433.

Houmanfar, R.A. and Mattaini, M.A., 2016. Leadership and Cultural Change: Implications for Behavior Analysis.

Peykani, M.H. and Rad, H.T., 2016. Literacy Globalization and the Demand for Cultural Change Policy. International Education Studies, 9(11), p.82.

Trueba, H.T., Jacobs, L. and Kirton, E., 2014. Cultural Conflict & Adaptation. Routledge.