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33 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Assimilable
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The degree to which one gives up their cultural identity to adapt to to the one they live in.
My Chinese friend used to have a Chinese accent, but when she was little, she was embarrassed by it, so she trained herself to have an American accent. Now, she prefers the Chinese accent, but she can't remember how to make it unless she's around Chinese people with the same accent. |
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Class structure
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The structure that defines upper, middle, lower, and other social classes.
My family is a middle class family. |
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Cross-cultural trainers
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Those who train people to become familiar with other cultural norms and to improve their interactions with cultures to which these norms belong.
Because I wish to be a missionary, I can look forward to learning from many cross-cultural trainers. |
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Demographics
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The characteristics of a population.
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Diversity
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Made up of elements that are not alike.
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Enclaves
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Regions that are surrounded by another country's territory.
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Ethics
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A system of moral rules that govern a particular group.
My personal ethics often conflict with those of most of the cultures I find myself in including various Christian sub-cultures which often assume ethical rules that aren't supported by scripture. |
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Global village
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A term coined by Marshall McLuhan in the 1960s that refers to a world in which communication technology links people from remote parts of the world.
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Globalization
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The increasing tendency toward international connections in media, business, and culture.
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Heterogeneity
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Consisting of different or dissimilar elements.
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Maquiladoras
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Foreign-owned plants that use domestic labor.
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Immigration
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Movement from one region to another.
My great grandfathers - one from my mom's side and one from my dad's side - immigrated to America through Wales at around the same time. It has not yet been confirmed whether or not they took the same ship. |
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Melting pot metaphor
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The concept that all immigrants will completely blend into American society.
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Self-awareness
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Awareness of one's own cultural identity.
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Universalist position
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Stress similarities across cultures.
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Relativist position
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The view that a behavior can only be judged within the cultural context that it occurs in.
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Self-reflexivity
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The process by which we learn about ourselves and our positions in society.
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Communication
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A symbolic process by which meaning is shared and negotiated.
I am terrible at communicating with people. When I fail to relate certain words with certain concepts, I make up a word or substitute a word of a different meaning. However, I often forget to define my new (use of the) word thus causing constant, frequently embarrassing, misunderstandings. |
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Intercultural communication
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When people with different cultural backgrounds interact.
Intercultural communication is something that I will be dealing with every day if I manage to make it to my dream career: being a missionary. |
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Perception
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A way of looking at the world.
Everyone's individual perception is different, but similar enough to function in their cultures and co-cultures as a whole. Sometimes, I feel as though mine is some sort of a freak mutant perception, since I find it rather difficult to function in any culture or co-culture I ever remember being exposed to. |
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Embodied ethnocentrism
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Feeling comfortable with the familiar places, behaviors, and actions of others of your own culture.
I have trouble getting too comfortable. At the same time, I already am. |
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Values
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Deep beliefs shared by a culture that reflect a perception of what should be rather than what is.
Spiritual growth is my most important value. Every one of my other values are a result of this one. Without it, my entire value system is pointless. |
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Worldview
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A particular way of looking at the world.
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Individualism
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A value that places importance on the individual rather than the whole.
Sometimes, I can be very focused on myself. However, when I have to make hard decisions, I find it rather difficult to value only myself. |
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Power distance
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The extent to which people will accept an unequal distribution of power.
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Masculinity / femininity
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The degree to which gender-specific roles are valued and a cultural group values masculine or feminine values.
Believe it or not, I like gender equality and prefer feminine values. That doesn't mean I'm a feminist. |
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Uncertainty avoidance
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The degree to which one feels threatened by ambiguous situations.
I'm terrified by uncertain situations, but I'm also uncomfortable with the lack of freedom that comes with too many rules. |
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Context
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The situation in which communication occurs.
I believe that context is essential to understanding things and using them to prove a point. If you try to prove something with an out of context example, the moment someone points out the mistake, your entire argument will be considered invalid by most people (including those who may agree with you, but still think your version of proof is crap). |
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Power
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The extent to which an individual can control social situations.
I have very little power in every group I find myself in. |
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Ethnocentrism
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The belief that one's own cultural group is superior to all other cultural groups.
I don't think that my own cultural group is superior. However, I've observed that if you're proud to be a part of any minority group, you're considered strong, but if you're proud to be white, you're considered racist. |
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Stereotypes
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Widely held beliefs about a group of people.
I am frequently a victim of racial profiling. Since I'm white, many black people assume I'm racist if I'm just a bit too aware of their presence. |
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Prejudice
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An attitude toward a particular group based on little or no evidence.
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Discrimination
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The behavior that results from stereotyping or prejudice.
I am often discriminated against for being short and childlike in social situations. Those who discriminate against me assume that looking like a kid and acting like a kid in informal situations automatically means I'm not responsible enough to do anything (or they're afraid that customers won't take me seriously because I look and sound much younger than I am). |