In Figuring Foreigners Out, the article reflects on the different aspects of a culture that makes us able to differentiate them from one another. Within the text, the main ideas surround whether cultures are individualistic or collectivist, monochronic or polychronic, internal or external, and direct or indirect communication. Though all of these elements are present in every culture, the degree to which they are present differ. The Hofstede Dimensions of Culture covers the different ways that values are influenced by culture in workplace environments and organized the different elements into dimensions. They were coined as dimensions of culture and they are power distance index (PDI), individualism (IDV), masculinity (MAS), uncertainty avoidance index (UAI), and long-term orientation (LTO). Understanding these elements of a culture can make it easier for a traveler to move more nimbly in an environment that they are unfamiliar with occupying.
I predominantly agree with the assessments made as these elements actually helped me in my travel to the Dominican Republic. We studied these elements in my Intercultural Communication and Education course abroad and it helped me understand the manner in which people spoke to me and the varying comfort levels people had with me. Power distance is the most interesting observation for me because it is the most noticeable thing to me. My peers that were raised in some households don’t look their parents in the eyes because it is deemed disrespectful, and in my household, we are all loud and we talk with our hands and our bodies as well. In this case, my native culture and target cultures are one and the same, but I will say that Ghanaian kids raised in Ghana seem to show a lot more deference than my partly American culture has raised me to be. It goes with the low power distance associated with Northeastern American culture.
Though I do like the way that these concepts are broken down in a digestible way, this quick guide can sometimes skim over the minute nuances in a culture that may be regional or racial. Just in the U.S, the mannerisms of Black and White people that share similar spaces may be drastically different due to the differing histories of the populations in the area. I think that it should be pushed to the forefront of the dialogue of this work, that this can be a guide to traversing unfamiliar territory, but not assessments that should be taken to the most literal degree. On the drastic side, it could even lead to unconscious xenophobia of a people and a region of the world. When used appropriately, they can serve as a blueprint for interaction and even make calculated business decisions for a company. I like that the title of the text jumps to something brash because in our heads people who we are unfamiliar with are genuinely foreigners, even if we are the foreigners in question ironically.
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