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English Teaching and Outreach Forum,
April 2017
The building blocks of culture
Definitions of culture
There are about as many different definitions of culture as there
are cultures! Any definition must first consider the breadth of
culture's reach; how many areas of everyday life are affected or
determined by a person's culture.
What culture includes:
Manners, customs, beliefs, ceremonies, food, clothes, values, laws, language, behaviour, opinions,
goals/ambitions, entertainment, music, motivation, attitudes, social interactions, marriage,
greetings, farewells, hierarchy, death, life, institutions, artefacts, architecture …
..... absolutely everything!
Although certain basic human needs and conditions exist that hold true for all humans (e.g.
Maslow's 'Physiological' needs of air, water, food, clothing, shelter, reproductive opportunity, etc.) 1
how humans go about meeting these needs is different in different settings; it is culturally
determined. This is even clearer as Maslow's pyramid rises from basic needs through to complex
social requirements.
A few sample definitions of culture:
'The things we believe without thinking about them.'
'Something that gives us group identity and belonging.'
'The way we do things around here.'
'Culture means the distinct characteristics of a people's total way of life.'2
'Culture is the characteristics of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language,
religion, cuisine, social habits, music and art.'3
'A system of meanings and values that shapes one’s behaviour.'4
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Abraham H. Maslow, (1943) "A theory of human motivation", Psychological Review, 50 (4): 370 - 96.
Margaret Wardell and Robin Thomson, Entering Another's World (Nottingham: St John's Extension Studies,
1994), 3.
3
Kim Ann Zimmermann, LiveScience Contributor (posted Feb 19th, 2015, accessed Mar 16th, 2015):
http://www.livescience.com/21478-what-is-culture-definition-of-culture.html
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'The collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from
another.'5
'Culture is the relatively stable set of inner values and beliefs generally held by groups of people in
countries or regions and the noticeable impact those values and beliefs have on the peoples' outward
behaviours and environment .'6
Analogies
Illustrative analogies are always helpful in some ways but simultaneously unhelpful in others. How
do the following analogies help us understand culture - at least on some levels? Culture is ....
1. The Water in a Goldfish Bowl - if the fish represents the person, the water it is swimming in
represents that person's culture. Most people are about as aware of
their own culture as a goldfish is aware of the water it's swimming in, so
if you want to know about the properties of water, so the illustration
goes, then don't bother asking the goldfish.
2. An Onion - It has often been said that understanding a culture is a
little like peeling an onion (e.g. David Burnett). 7 Once you have
observed something at one level you begin to realise that there is something more underneath,
'When one peels off one layer it reveals another, deeper layer.' Burnett argues that the outer layers
such as dress and customs are undergirded by the deeper layers of values and ideas.
 Behaviour – the first things you notice; dress, activities, greetings. (‘It’s the way we do things
here’).
 Values – the generally accepted pre-set decisions a society
makes. (E.g. ‘Punctuality is important.’)
 Beliefs – the ideas underlying corporate values. (E.g.
‘Education helps you escape poverty’.)
 Worldview – the answers to the most basic questions of life.
(E.g. Who am I? Who is God? What's life all about?)
4
Richard and Catherine Weston, co-founders of Friends International, from a church presentation (December
2009).
5
Geert Hofstede, Culture's Consequences (London: Sage Publications, 1980), 21.
6
Brooks Peterson, Cultural Intelligence, A Guide to Working with People from Other Cultures, (Boston:
Intercultural Press, 2004), 17.
7
Wardell and Thomson, Entering Another's World, 5, 8-9.
ET & OF 2017, Oak Hill College, The building blocks of culture, 07.04.2017, David Baldwin.
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3. A Tree - Ted Turnau describes a 'Worldview tree'.8 The roots
represent our presuppositions about reality, the trunk is the 'world
story' or 'meta-narrative', the branches are the life philosophy and
answers to the big questions of life and, finally, the fruit and leaves
are the applied beliefs as they work out in the behaviours and
practices of every-day life.
4. An Iceberg - Many authors, Brooks Petersen included, prefer the iceberg
analogy. The little that shows above the water (20%) is observable
behaviour and the finer expression of culture, e.g. arts and music. These
can be perceived with the five senses. Everything below the water is
unconscious culture; the realm of the presuppositions, attitudes, beliefs
and values (80%).
5. Glasses - Some prefer to think of culture as shades or tinted glasses,
through which people look at the world. In looking out, the wearer is
unaware of the glasses themselves but their lenses give a certain tint to
everything viewed. Everything seen is coloured by a predetermined
worldview.
Peterson says that he has encountered no end of cultural analogies, including a salad bowl, melting
pot, tapestry and mosaic. And rather less obviously: 'a rose, a hot dog, a spiderweb, a pizza, a toilet,
clouds, a wheat field, a bath tub, a circus, a dog (complete with fleas), and so on.' 9
Recent Rise in interest in Cultural Studies
Although people from different cultures have met to trade, fight and marry since the dawn of time,
it is only since the two World Wars and the nuclear threat inherent in the Cold War that cultural
studies have been taken seriously in an attempt to avoid future catastrophes. Factor in the modern
potential for international trade made possible through the rise in technology that has effectively
'shrunk' the globe and the reasons for the recent interest in cultural studies become obvious.
8
Ted Turnau, Popologetics, Popular Culture in Christian Perspective (New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2012), 7-15.
Brooks Peterson, Cultural Intelligence, A Guide to Working with People from Other Cultures (Boston:
Intercultural Press, 2004), 18.
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Intercultural communication training emerged as a relatively new discipline in the 1960s and 1970s.
In 1980 a Dutch scholar, Geert Hofstede, produced his groundbreaking work, Culture's
Consequences, International Differences in Work Related Values.10 Hofstede's analysis is based on a
large number of behavioural examples taken from a broad range of real life situations within
multinational companies from around the world (using questionnaires). Hofstede is often thought of
as the father of modern cultural studies.
Hofstede uses a rigorous scheme for analysing cultures based on several cultural dimensions. These
cultural dimensions include things like Individualism (vs. Collectivism), Power Distance (how cultures
handle inequalities) and Uncertainly Avoidance (risk taking). His initial analysis has been revised and
reformulated over the last three decades.
Since Hofstede many more theories have been developed about how cultures work and how people
can be trained to communicate well across cultures. Many of the theories resemble Hofstede's in
offering a number of key cultural dimensions, aspects or scales by which cultures can be classified
and understood.
Craig Storti 11 is one such author and trainer in the secular world; much of the cultural analysis in this
course is based on Storti. Distinctively Christian analyses of culture are also numerous and especially
helpful for Christians seeking to communicate the Gospel across cultural barriers, e.g. David
Burnett,12 Duane Elmer,13 Sarah Lanier.14
Five Cultural Dimensions
Brooks Peterson15 describes five cultural dimensions, which he believes are easy to understand,
remember and use in everyday life.
There are, of course, other aspects of culture that may be analysed, but these five scales capture
what are largely recognised as the core components of human culture, viewed sociologically. On
these five scales the culture of a particular ethnic group may helpfully be plotted and compared
with other groups. It isn't an exact science but a general rule of thumb. For example, whilst most
scholars would agree that German people tend to be more direct in communication than their
British counterparts, it would be an over simplification to state that on the Degree of Directness
scale, 'Germans score 2.3'. Sociologists will never agree on exact scores, and anyway, within
Germany there are many sub-cultures, not to mention that individual Germans will vary greatly.
10
Culture's Consequences, Sage Publications, London, 1980
Craig Storti, Figuring Foreigners Out (Boston: Intercultural Press, 1999).
12
David Burnett, Clash of Worlds (Nashville: Oliver Nelson, 1990)
13
Duane Elmer, Cross-Cultural Connections (Illinois: IVP Academic, 2002).
14
Sarah Lanier, Foreign to Familiar (Hagerstown, MD: McDougal Publishing, 2000).
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15
Brooks Peterson, Cultural Intelligence: A Guide to Working with People from Other Cultures (London:
Nicholas Brealey Publishing, 2004) p. 33 and following.
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1) Equality
Hierarchy
2) Direct
Indirect
3) Individual
Group
4) Task
Relationship
5) Risk
Caution
1) Equality - a society which values everyone's opinion, wants everyone to have a say and which
emphasises egalitarian values. It is OK to challenge those in power and subordinates are expected to
use their initiative, e.g. Australia.
Hierarchy - a society in which people look to their leaders to provide direction and follow them
without much question. The high regard in which leaders are held is obvious from their subordinates
deference and the respect they are shown, e.g. Korea.
2) Direct - cultures that value plain speaking and invest the actual words communicated with
authority to convey the intended meaning. The recipient's feelings are far less important than
effective transmission of the message, e.g. Germany.
Indirect - much more reading between the lines is expected because the meaning may not be in the
words so much as the way they are used and the subtleties of other forms of communication. Face
and honour are preserved at all costs, e.g. Japan.
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3) Individual - parents teach children to stand on their own two feet, take responsibility for
themselves and to be independent. Originality and self-sufficiency are highly valued, e.g. UK.
Group - decisions are made together and doing your own thing is considered anti-social and
isolating; lonely even. Identity is wrapped up in the group so that the individual realises his or her
significance only as part of that group, e.g. Sub-Saharan Africa.
4) Task - the job in hand needs to be completed on time, efficiently and to the highest standard.
Interruptions are not welcomed and everyone is expected to understand that the task takes priority
over everything because time is money. Social time is compartmentalised separately from work
time, e.g. USA.
Relationship - if the job gets finished that's fine but time isn't so much a precious commodity as an
endless resource. Interruptions are welcomed as people are considered to be far more important
than the task. A meeting could start anytime, when everyone is there, but definitely won't finish
until everything is done, because the significance of being together far outweighs the significance of
the clock. e.g. Peru .
5) Risk - entrepreneurial flair is valued and people are praised for going out on a limb and thinking
outside the box. The focus in on the present and the future and systems incorporate large degrees of
flexibility in order to respond and change direction quickly, e.g. Canada .
Caution - new ideas are scrutinised minutely and distrusted until they have proven themselves
elsewhere. Tried and trusted methods are preferred as there is a strong attachment to the past.
Rules and regulations are welcome safeguards, e.g. China.
Dialogue
Read the following conversation: 16
Mr. Sogo: Mr. Collins! Good to hear your voice again. What brings you to Osaka?
Mr. Collins: Good to hear you too, Sogo-san. I’m here on business with my new company. I’d
like to invite you and Ozawa-san to dinner on Wednesday.
Mr. Sogo: Thank you very much. I’ll tell Ozawa-san. Did you hear his good news?
Mr. Collins: No.
Mr. Sogo: He’s been made president of the company.
Mr. Collins: That’s wonderful. Please give him my congratulations. I look forward to seeing
you both on Wednesday.
16
Craig Storti, Figuring Foreigners Out.
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Mr. Sogo: I’m sure Ozawa-san will be very pleased to see you again. Where shall I tell him to
meet you?
Which cultural dimensions are in play here? What is going to happen on Wednesday night?
Cultures in collision
Have you experienced any cross-cultural misunderstandings personally?
How does an understanding of the dimensions of culture clarify the underlying issues of those
misunderstandings?
Cultural intelligence
Most writers agree that cultural intelligence can be increased.17 The keys are having the right
attitude, motivation and awareness. Growth in cultural intelligence is often described using the well
worn schema outlined below. 18 Storti describes these four stages that he believes the cultural
learner will go through as he or she moves towards cultural competence.19
1. Unconscious Incompetence (blissful ignorance) - A parochially minded person in
this state is completely unaware that people from other places have cultures that cause them to do
things differently. The idea that he or she might be making cultural blunders, either in sending or
receiving messages for example, simply doesn't occur. The person treats people from different parts
of the world in exactly the same way as they might treat someone from their home town and sees
no reason not to go purely on their gut instincts and intuition in all their dealings.
2. Conscious Incompetence (troubling ignorance) - At this stage a person has noticed
that misunderstandings happen and that this is because people seemed to be wired differently if
17
E.g. Craig Storti, Figuring Foreigners Out and David Livermore, Cultural Intelligence: Improving your CQ to
Engage our Multicultural World (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2009).
18
Initially described as “Four Stages for Learning Any New Skill”, the theory was developed at Gordon Training
International by its employee Noel Burch in the 1970s but is often attributed to Abraham Maslow (despite the
model's absence from his major works).
19
Ibid., 157 ff.
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they come from elsewhere. This person in now aware that there may be problems and
misunderstandings but has little idea of the exact causes and the extent to which they operate. They
have begun to lose faith in their own intuition in dealing with people from other places and maybe
be doubting their ability ever to 'figure foreigners out'.
3. Conscious Competence (deliberate sensitivity ) - Having understood a little more
about cultures and cultural differences this person is now in a position to try a few behavioural
differences when in the presence of those from other cultures. They are aware of the need to
demonstrate cultural sensitivity and enjoy getting it right when their efforts seems to work. There is
no naturalness as yet but a studied determination to make oneself cross-culturally acceptable and
not be misunderstood. There is an increasing hope that it might well be possible to 'figure foreigners
out'.
4. Unconscious Competence (spontaneous sensitivity) - Now the trans-cultural
individual moves effortlessly between people of different cultures without having to stop to think
about it. Culturally appropriate behaviour flows from this person without being forced or contrived.
His or her actions and reactions are unstudied and come completely naturally and without effort.
Having been re-conditioned, the intuition comes back into play, as the individual can now trust their
gut instincts once again.
What stage are you at now?
Be encouraged! With your basic cultural tool kit progress is not only
possible ... it's even likely!
Visit the 2:19 website for more information and resources: http://www.twonineteen.org.uk/
ET & OF 2017, Oak Hill College, The building blocks of culture, 07.04.2017, David Baldwin.