Cultural Diversity Competence - Essay Example

Mikel (p.14) views culture as a multi-level entity comprising five levels. The global culture shapes one’s relations at the international level among persons of different nationalities. National culture determines one’s behavior and relations toward fellow citizens of varied ethnic orientations. Organizational culture is the way people relate with each other in an organization and with others outside the organization following the organization’s pre-set cultural affiliations. Group culture is informed by one’s alignment to a particular group characterized by gender, age, religion, and other social aspects. Individual culture is one’s values, norms, and preferences that are generated from within an individual. All these levels interact to shape one’s general competence toward various cultures.

Cultural competence is, however, hampered by several factors, oral and non-verbal. Ethnocentrism is one of such factors. Americans, for instance, regard their culture to be superior to others, therefore, undermining them. Jargon and slang are common in every culture. These pose a great problem to those from other cultures as understanding becomes difficult. Personal space is interpreted differently by different cultures. Some, like the Eastern cultures, do not mind being too close, while Western cultures find this insulting. Human beings tend to stereotype and judge others according to existing stereotypes, thus, creating mistrust among people. To some cultures, direct eye contact is a sign of disrespect, while to some it is a sign of respect and honesty. Finally, time is yet another aspect with different connotations to different cultures.