ETHNICITY, CULTURE & RELIGIOUS BELIEFS

What is culture?
The word culture comes from the Latin root colere (to inhabit, to cultivate, or to honor).
It refers to the sum total of the way of living; includes values, beliefs, standards, language, thinking
patterns, behavioral norms, communications styles, etc. Guides decisions and actions of a group
through time.
Culture has three elements:
Values comprise ideas about what in life seems important, e.g. priorities, preferences.
Norms consist of expectations of how people will behave in different situations.
Artifacts things, or material culture derive from the culture's values and norms.
Subculture
Is cultural patterns that set apart some segment of a societys population?
Subculture can be based on age, ethnicity, and residence, sexual preference, occupation and many other
factors.
Examples: Nursing, gay community, youth.
Enculturation
The process by which a child learns his or her own culture.
It is transmitted both by direct instruction and by observation.
It is used to define the world, express feelings and make judgments.
Culture is learned by:

experience,
imitation,
informal instruction from parents
Contact with peers.

Learning begin at the moment of birth

Ethnicity
Sharing a strong sense of identity with a particular religious, racial, or national group
Examples: African American, Asian American, European American, Hispanic American, Middle
Eastern/Arabic American, Native American.
Race
Classification of people based on physical or biological characteristics

Involves multiple cultures and ethnic groups.

Cultural Diversity
Differences based on cultural, ethnic, and racial factors
Must be considered when providing health care
Healthcare providers must recognize and appreciate the characteristics of all patients.
Cultural competence
Is the ability to think, feel and act in ways that acknowledge, respect and build upon ethnic, [socio]
cultural, and linguistic diversity
The Culture-Bound Syndromes (CBS)
A culture-bound syndrome is characterized by:

categorization as a disease in the culture (i.e., not a voluntary behaviour or false claim);
widespread familiarity in the culture;
complete lack of familiarity of the condition to people in other cultures;
no objectively demonstrable biochemical or tissue abnormalities (merely symptoms);
the condition usually is recognized and treated by the folk medicine of the culture.
Examples: KORO, AMOK, LATAH, Qi-Gong, Shenjing shuairuo

The Cultural Competence Continuum