When individuals or groups from different cultures communicate, this process is called intercultural communication. The transaction process of listening and responding to people from different cultural backgrounds can be challenging. The greater the difference in culture between two people, the greater the potential of misunderstanding and mistrust. Misunderstanding and miscommunication occur between people from different cultures because of different coding rules and cultural norms, which play a major role in shaping the patterns of interaction (Jandt, 2012). When one encounters a culture that has little in common with own, one may experience culture shock. This is a sense of confusion, anxiety, stress and loss one may experience. One of the barriers in effective intercultural communication is ethnocentrism. It stems from a conviction that one’s own cultural traditions and assumptions are superior to those of others. It leads to a tendency to look the world primarily from the perspective of one's own culture. It is one of the fastest ways to create a barrier that inhibits, rather than enhances communication (Jandt, 2012). In the United States today, a nurse is more likely to encounter patients who speak a language that is different from their own. This kind of intercultural difference poses a formidable communication challenge, as one’s ability to communicate will depend on whether one can understand one another's verbal and nonverbal codes (Jandt, 2012). Miller, Leininger, Leuning, Pacquiao, Andrews, and Ludwig-Beyer, (2008) support that the skill of cultural competency in nursing is the ability to gather relevant cultural data on the presenting problem of the patient. This cultural assessment is defined as a "...
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... (2003). Unequal treatment: Confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. Taylor, Elizabeth Johnson. (2001) Spiritual Care: Nursing Theory, Research and Practice, Prentice Hall. pp. 197-205 Tomasello, M. (2009). The cultural origins of human cognition. Harvard University Press.
Singleton, K., & Krause, E. (2009). Understanding cultural and linguistic barriers to health literacy. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 14(3). United Nations. (2008). Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Dignity and Justice for All of Us. Accessed on October 29, 2010. From: http://www.unhchr.ch/udhr/lang/eng.htm Young, C., & Koopsen, C. (2010). Spirituality, health, and healing: An integrative approach. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Cultural Competency is fundamentally linked with the principles of social justice and human rights because it provides the nurses with the opportunity to develop interpersonal skills to provide equal care despite one’s cultural background. However, using the principles of social justice and human rights to educate nurses allows them to learn how to negotiate cultural differences. Removing their own cultural filters, and seeing events through the eyes of those who are culturally different accomplish this. An embedded experience, in which nurses interact with various cultures, would encourage them to adopt Cultural Competency knowledge (Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, 2008).
Martin, Judith N., and Thomas K. Nakayama. Intercultural Communication in Contexts. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013. Print.
Wells, M. I. (2000). Beyond cultural competence: A model for individual and institutional cultural development. Journal of Community Health Nursing, 17(4), 189-199.
Cultural competence has to do with one’s culture. Culture affects among other factors, how children are raised, how families communicate, what is considered normal or abnormal, ways of coping with issues, the way we dress, when and where we seek medical treatment, and so forth. I should know because I come from a very cultural home where it is considered bad to talk to a male doctor about anything gynecological.
In caring for patients with differing cultural backgrounds nursing theorist Madeline Leininger suggests three major modalities—culture care preservation or maintenance, accommodation or negotiation, and repatterning or restructuring—to help nurses provide cultural competent care (Sagar, 2012). In the hypothetical situation that I was caring for Ginny as a patient in an acute care setting I would incorporate nursing interventions, or care modalities, unique to her cultural needs into the care plan. First I would use cultural accommodation to assess anxiety and emotional distress through subtle changes in body language and affect, instead of relying on facial expression and verbal expressions of emotional change. I would need to use Leininger’s modality of accommodation as it is uncommon for individuals of Ginny’s culture to express emotions or feelings of distress to others.
Martin, J. N., & Nakayama, T. K. (2013). Intercultural Communication in Contexts (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Cultural competence has a variety of definitions and, in health care, basically refers to the act of developing an awareness of yourself, your existence, your thoughts, and your environment and making sure that those elements do not unjustly affect the clients you serve (Giger, 2013). In this paper, I will share my total score and what I learned about myself after taking the Cultural Diversity Self Assessment (IllinoisCTE, n.d.), discuss two weaknesses or areas with lower scores, and review two strengths with higher scores. I will reflect on my findings and examine the impact that my strengths and weaknesses may have on my nursing care. In addition, I will discuss improving cultural competence and two strategies
Durant, A. & Shepherd, I. (2009).Cultural and communication in intercultural communication.Retrieved November 5, 2013 fromEbscohost online.http://web.ebscohost.com.libproxy.troy.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=156ad285-9697-4852-955e-40fe40b75b83%40sessionmgr110&vid=6&hid=118
This causes problems about the diagnosis as well as how nurses may tell patients about issues with their care. A way a nurse can overcome this is by having an interpreter when they know that a patient doesn’t know English, but this is not always the case for most nurses as there are not a lot of interpreters around. In health practice language isn’t always to do with culture but it can be the way a nurse or doctor speaks to the patients so they may adopt certain types of jargon and the patients may feel intimidated. Madeleine Leininger, who is the founder of transcultural nursing, says that providing competent care across all cultures and to be customized to fit patient’s different beliefs and traditions and different languages that a patient may speak. Divi et al (2007) claims that language barriers increase the risk of patient care and safety as they will find it difficult to understand what is going on with their care, so it is important for patients to have access to language services such as an
Many people who go to visit or work in another country suffer some misunderstanding from the local people, because they have a different culture. Different culture will cause disparity points of view about almost everything. In the article, Intercultural Communication Stumbling Blocks by Laray M. Barna, there are five stumbling blocks mentioned that are seen in a cross-culture communication. These blocks are: language, nonverbal signs and symbols, preconceptions and stereotypes, the tendency to evaluate and high anxiety. Barna wants to use these stumbling blocks to show the common blockades between different cultures. I agree with what she thinks about the language, nonverbal signs and symbols, preconceptions and stereotypes, and the tendency
Intercultural communication is an evolving discipline that occurs between individuals from contrasting backgrounds. It include...
Characteristics can be as diverse as ethnic background, language spoken, gender status, physical appearance, race, and religion to name a few. Migration from various countries is creating a diverse population with different cultures and languages within the United States. Due to these cultural differences and lack of knowledge, disparities are increasing. Studies have shown that both language barriers and lack of cultural customs can hinder the services provided to the patient by the healthcare worker (Renzaho, Romios, Crock, & Sonderlund, 2013). This study provided a positive outcome when communication and cultural mutual understanding took place and patients had a more positive health outcome. It is very important that nurses are diversified in various cultures in order to better care for our patients. According to Mareno and Hart (2014), cultural competency has become one of the core values being taught in nursing programs. Their study showed that the perceived level of cultural awareness and skills among the nurses provided was low. Awareness and knowledge levels increased with higher education. It was highly recommended that self-awareness exercises be incorporated into the nursing course and continued to be addressed during the remaining curriculum until
Humans have been communicating since four million years. On the other hand, the birth of culture is estimated to have taken place about 35,000 years ago. Today, both culture and communication have evolved considerably and have become interdependent of one another, to the point that communication is considered to be a product of culture. Thus, our own culture has a deep impact on our thoughts and behaviors. Since each culture has its distinct aspects, intercultural communication can be the cause of conflict and disorder. There are three main issues which are at the root of the problem of intercultural miscommunication : language as a barrier, cultural diversity and ethnocentrism. I will analyze these three notions in situations in which intercultural communication is frequent such as : the workplace, the classroom and vacation trips.
What does it mean to be a competent communicator and a competent intercultural communicator? A Competent communicator defines as a person who can communicate with others properly and sufficiently, and a competent intercultural communicator is the ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with people of other cultures. It takes many abilities to be an effective competent communicator and an effective competent intercultural communicator. While some environments and factors can affect the way you communicate properly, there are also abilities that can help you achieve better communication. In this discussion I will be comparing and contrasting the concepts of both competent communication and competent intercultural communication.
Communicating with other cultures characterizes today’s business, classroom, and community. Hence, the art of knowing how to communicate with other cultures should be a workplace skill that is emphasized. Various authors have studied on intercultural communication; however, their studies have diverse perspectives and emphasis. The various views give a balanced approach to intercultural communication. This paper outlines the various facets that authors have on the importance of intercultural communication in the field of education, business, medicine and counseling. In addition, perspectives that various authors have on intercultural communicate are