Despite the similarities among cultures, there is still significant variation. Cultures may be so different that anthropologists, as well as other people who enter into another culture, usually go through a period of culture shock, which involves the stress and frustration of being in a culture that is very different from your own. Because the rules and norms of your culture no longer apply and you don’t yet know how to behave, the members of the culture you have entered into think that you are the one that is strange. For individuals who go and live in another culture, this can be an extremely intense and disorienting experience, particularly in the first few weeks. The film clip International Student Experience discusses some aspects of the culture shock that international students experience when they first come to the United States.
Anthropologists also sometimes experience what is termed “reverse culture shock.” After eventually adjusting to a new culture, they experience culture shock again when they return home and readapt to their own culture. Even for those who have not travelled into a foreign culture, culture shock can occur to some degree any time one is placed in a situation where the norms, beliefs, and behaviors one is accustomed to no longer apply. Culture shock can occur in situations such as visiting a place of worship, practicing an unfamiliar religion, travelling to different parts of the United States, or even one's first day at college or at a new job.
International Student Experience
When individuals encounter other peoples who think and behave differently, there are two ways that they respond. People take either an ethnocentric perspective or a cultural relativist perspective. These two terms are perhaps better thought of as fitting on a continuum rather than being two exclusive categories.
Ethnocentrism is judging another culture based on the values of one's own culture. It is a form of cultural self-centeredness that most often, takes the form of believing that the ways of one's own group are the best, natural, justified, and morally correct. The way of life of other groups are seen to be inferior, unnatural, or even wrong. Ethnocentrism can be quite dangerous, and these beliefs have often been used as justification for the exploitation of people in the world. The holocaust, the genocide in Darfur, and much of the warfare in human history is ideologically bolstered by ethnocentric beliefs. It should also be mentioned that ethnocentrism can also involve an overly idealized or romanticized version of another culture. Ethnocentrism is any distorted view of others by using one's own culture as the basis of comparison. Cultural relativism on the other hand, comes from Franz Boas, the founder of modern American anthropology. Boas was what we would today call a human rights activist. He believed strongly in racial equality and spoke out against the anti-immigration policies of his day. Cultural relativism is understanding a culture on its own terms. It involves taking the time to understand other peoples' perspectives and world view. In complex societies, individuals identify with many types of groups. They may not be separate cultures, but they share ideological perspectives. Sometimes the most difficult place to be a cultural relativist is in one's own culture. Political groups, such as Republicans and Democrats, or issue-based groups such as pro-choice and pro-life organizations may have difficulty understanding the perspective of the other side. In political campaigns for example, it is not unusual to hear speeches or view political advertisements that demonize the opposition as immoral or wrong.
It is important to be clear that cultural relativism is not the same thing as moral relativism. Moral relativism means that there is no objective basis for right and wrong in human groups and that all morality is socially constructed. Cultural relativism is not so much about morality, but is about trying to understand how another group comes to hold certain beliefs or to practice behaviors that are different from one's own.
However, anthropologists are sometimes faced with moral dilemmas when encountering some practices of other groups. For example, many cultures in the Middle East and Africa practice rites of passage in which they surgically remove parts of a young woman’s genitalia. Many anthropologists struggle with whether they should stay neutral about such practices or whether they should speak out against them. One guideline that many anthropologists use is that cultural relativism should not mean that human rights abuses are ignored. Many practices that may be supported by a cultural tradition violate the rights or endanger the safety of others, such as slavery, genocide, and torture. A cultural relativist should attempt to understand the historical and cultural conditions that create these practices, but that does not mean that a cultural relativist endorses them. In fact, having a richer understanding of why these practices occur is essential if one wants to conduct a meaningful intervention that is culturally acceptable to the people whose behavior you hope to change. If your action is not culturally appropriate, of if you try to force people to change, you will likely fail.
Despite the similarities among cultures, there is still significant variation. Cultures may be so different that anthropologists, as well as other people who enter into another culture, usually go through a period of culture shock, which involves the stress and frustration of being in a culture that is very different from your own. Because the rules and norms of your culture no longer apply and you don’t yet know how to behave, the members of the culture you have entered into think that you are the one that is strange. For individuals who go and live in another culture, this can be an extremely intense and disorienting experience, particularly in the first few weeks. The film clip International Student Experience discusses some aspects of the culture shock that international students experience when they first come to the United States.
Ethnocentrism is judging another culture based on the values of one's own culture. It is a form of cultural self-centeredness that most often, takes the form of believing that the ways of one's own group are the best, natural, justified, and morally correct. The way of life of other groups are seen to be inferior, unnatural, or even wrong. Ethnocentrism can be quite dangerous, and these beliefs have often been used as justification for the exploitation of people in the world. The holocaust, the genocide in Darfur, and much of the warfare in human history is ideologically bolstered by ethnocentric beliefs. It should also be mentioned that ethnocentrism can also involve an overly idealized or romanticized version of another culture. Ethnocentrism is any distorted view of others by using one's own culture as the basis of comparison. Cultural relativism on the other hand, comes from Franz Boas, the founder of modern American anthropology. Boas was what we would today call a human rights activist. He believed strongly in racial equality and spoke out against the anti-immigration policies of his day. Cultural relativism is understanding a culture on its own terms. It involves taking the time to understand other peoples' perspectives and world view. In complex societies, individuals identify with many types of groups. They may not be separate cultures, but they share ideological perspectives. Sometimes the most difficult place to be a cultural relativist is in one's own culture. Political groups, such as Republicans and Democrats, or issue-based groups such as pro-choice and pro-life organizations may have difficulty understanding the perspective of the other side. In political campaigns for example, it is not unusual to hear speeches or view political advertisements that demonize the opposition as immoral or wrong.
It is important to be clear that cultural relativism is not the same thing as moral relativism. Moral relativism means that there is no objective basis for right and wrong in human groups and that all morality is socially constructed. Cultural relativism is not so much about morality, but is about trying to understand how another group comes to hold certain beliefs or to practice behaviors that are different from one's own.