A Personal Cultural Analysis

983 Words2 Pages

In order to be culturally competent, it is imperative to be able to complete a personal assessment of ones culture. This includes identifying and examining your own culture, stereotypes associated with your culture, subcultures within the dominant cultures and sick roles in the culture. So what is culture? Culture, according to Locke (1992), is “socially acquired and socially transmitted by means of symbols, including customs, techniques, beliefs, institutions and material objects” (p. 3). Personally, my culture consists of being first generation Irish American. My parents immigrated to the United States for more opportunity and to start a family while they were in their twenties. I grew up in upstate New York with four brothers. A big part …show more content…

As a professional caregiver stereotypes need to be ignored and all patients should be treated with respect regardless of their culture. “The Irish were stereotyped as uncivilized, unskilled, impoverished and were forced to work the least desired occupations while living in crowded segregated ghettoes. Irish immigrants often found that they were not welcome in America; many ads for employment were accompanied by the order "NO IRISH NEED APPLY." (Jensen, R 2002). My dad has a copy of this sign hanging in his office. My family always gets a good laugh out of it. We have adopted a very hard work ethic of the Irish that dates back to my grandfather. He grew up on a farm as well as owned a farm back in Ireland. My father owned an Irish Pub in New York while I was growing up and worked hard. He would work day and night in order to support his family. My mom was a Registered Nurse that worked two jobs. She worked the night shift and would care for my brothers and I during the day, often getting minimal sleep. My parents are some of the hardest workers I have ever met. Another big stereotype is that all the Irish are drunks. Yes, many of the Irish drink a pint or two of Guinness at social gatherings. However, there are many Irish that do not drink. My mother, for example, does not drink nor do many people on her side of the family. But, as the Irish tradition goes nothing is better to cure an illness than a pint of …show more content…

A subcultural is defined as “a group that has beliefs and behaviors that are different from the main groups within a culture or society.” (2015). There are several subcultures that I would associate myself with mainly country music and a country lifestyle. The Irish do not typically listen to mainstream country music. I will travel to different cites and states to watch certain country shows and different rodeos. I recently took my mother to the National Western Stock Show and rodeo for the first time; it was very outside of her norm for her culture. My mother even commented, “she has never been to anything like this back in

Open Document