Assignment

Cross cultural psychology

Bs-psychology-IV
Submitted to Ma’am Asia
Submitted by
Maryam khan
Fatima saeed
Arooj ali
Mahrosh zafar
Nimra rahman
Omara haq

Date: 10/07/2019
 ETHNOCENTRISM

Ethnocentrism refers to a tendency to use your own culture as the standard by which
to judge and evaluate other cultures. In other words, taking an ethnocentric point of
view means using your understanding of your own culture to gauge what is "normal."

This can lead to biases and a tendency to view cultural differences as abnormal or in a
negative light. It can also make it difficult to see how your own cultural background
influences your behaviors.
ORIGIN:
The term was coined by Sumner (1906), who noted that there exists a strong
tendency to use one’s own group’s standards as the standard when viewing other
groups, to place one’s group at the top of a hierarchy and to rank all others as lower.

DEFINITION:
"thinking one's own group's ways are superior to others" or "judging other
groups as inferior to one's own".

"Ethnic" refers to cultural heritage, and "centrism" refers to the central starting
point, so "ethnocentrism" basically refers to judging other groups from our own
cultural point of view.
EXAMPLES:

 We often talk about British drivers driving "on the wrong side" of the road. Why
not just say "opposite side" or even "left hand side"?
 We talk about written Hebrew as reading "backward." Why not just say "from
right to left" or "in the opposite direction from English."

TYPES OF ETHNOCENTRISM:

1. American exceptionalism: perception that us differs from other developed

nations because of its unique origins, national credo, historical evolution and
distinctive political and religious institutions; belief that US is hope for humanity;
moral superiority.
2. Eurocentrism: emphasis on european culture and western world at the expense
of other cultures; other cultures are inferior or even denied their existence as truly
human.
3. Indian nationalism: political and cultural expression of patriotism by citizens of
India; pride in the history/heritage of India and visions for its future.
4. Japanocentrism: belief that Japan is, or should be, at the center of the world
culturally, economically, and politically.
5. Sinocemtrism: any ethnocentric perspective that regards China to be central or
unique relative to other countries.

XENOCENTRISM OPPOSITE TO ETHNOCENTRISM:

The opposite of ethnocentrism is xenocentrism. Xenocentrism means preferring ideas

and things from other cultures over ideas and things from your own culture. At the
heart of xenocentrism is an assumption (conscious or unconscious) that other cultures
are superior to your own.

IMPORTANCE:
1. An ethnocentric perspective eliminates social order criticisms.
2. It can increase the levels of devotion to a community, country, or society.
3. Ethnocentrism can enhance solidarity in society.
4. It can produce higher levels of self-esteem.
5. This view can help an evolving society remember who it has always been.
6. Ethnocentrism created the world as we know it today.
7. It creates an attitude of independence.
8. Ethnocentrism can be a way to improve the world.

CAUSES OF ETHNOCENTRISM:
The values and beliefs of a particular cultural group are built into various aspects,
including religion, politics, language, and many more. When we grow up within our
culture, we are inundated with these values and beliefs.

Ethnocentrism is the failure to acknowledge the relative value of another culture's

beliefs and values. Due to a lack of knowledge about the functions and importance of
a different culture's behaviour, there's a tendency for us to think that we always "know
what's best" for other cultures.

ETHNOCENTRISM AND PATRIOTISM:

Ethnocentrism is the belief that your group (country, ethnic group) is better than all
of the other.
Patriotism is the love and pride in one's country, while ethnocentrism has more to
do with nationalism--feelings that your country is the best and the only one who could
be the best.

EFFECT OF ETHNOCENTRISM:
The positive of this is that it offers confidence and assurance to the culture. It helps
the group remain cohesive and centered. The negative is that ethnocentrism can lead
to arrogance and a tendency to ignore the useful and even superior knowledge or
mindset another group might offer.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ETHNOCENTRISM:
An individual with ethnocentric view.
 Identifies strongly with in-group ethnicity, culture etc.
 Feels proud, vain, superior about in-group.
 Views economic, political and social events from the point of their in-group.
 Defines their cultural elements ‘correct’ and ‘natural’.
 Thinks in-group norms are universal.
 Rejects out-group ethnicities, cultures etc.
 Feels like other culture and ethnicities inferior.
 Defines other cultural elements ‘incorrect’ and ‘unnatural’.

WAYS TO OVERCOME ETHNOCENTRISM:

There are some simple habits that can help us overcome ethnocentrism:
 Avoid Assumptions. Don’t forget that people from different culture
would have other customs, beliefs, values or traditions that we should respect.

 Learn about other cultures. Research about traditions and lifestyle from another
countries; when you keep an open mind to new or different things its easy to
learn appreciate culture diversity.

 Avoid judgments.When people around you act differently, do not assume they
are making a mistake. Learn to appreciate differences.

 Be respectful. Keep in mind the golden rule. “Treat people the way you want to
be treated”

PREJUDICE

The word "prejudice" comes from the Latin roots "prae" (in advance) and "judicum"
(judgment), which essentially means to judge before. When we "pre-judge" someone,
we make up our minds about who they are before we actually get to know them.
Prejudice is a negative attitude that one has based mostly on opinions and stereotypes
rather than facts/evidence. Although prejudice is a noun and not a verb, the behavior
is often influenced by bias. Once the switch is made from "thought/feeling" to
"action," discrimination has occurred. Psychology definition experts hold that
prejudice involved three main things:
 Negative feelings
 Stereotyped beliefs
 A tendency to discriminate against a stereotyped group
Prejudice is often born of stereotypes and forms the fertile soil of discrimination.
Different kinds of prejudice lead to different forms of discrimination.
TYPES OF PREJUDICE:
Prejudice can be based on a number of factors including sex,
race, age, sexual orientation, nationality, socioeconomic status, and religion. Some of
the most well-known types of prejudice include:
1. Gender Prejudice
Gender stereotyping refers to the attitude that all members of a particular gender -- all
women, all girls, all men, all boys -- are a certain type of person. From this stereotype
emerges sexism, which is the belief that members of one gender are inferior to
another. For example, the attitude that girls don't understand math and science as well
as boys do is based on a long-held stereotype about basic female intelligence.
2. Racial/Ethnic Minority Prejudice
There are many examples of racial prejudice in today's society. For starters, when the
owner of a large hotel chain chooses not to employ those of a certain race or ethnicity
because he believes they are in some way inferior to another, he is discriminating
based upon a specific kind of prejudice called racism. This also includes profiling,
which happens when a person of color is, for example, pulled over based on their skin
color .

DISABILITY PREJUDICE
Ableism refers to the belief that those with physical or
mental disabilities or handicaps are inferior to able-bodied people. Discrimination
against the disabled is born of this belief and involves limiting the rights of disabled
individuals to basic things that able-bodied people take for granted, such as adequate
housing, health care, employment and education.

XENOPHOBIA
Xenophobia, or fear of strangers, is a broad term that may be applied
to any fear of someone who is different from us. In someone who suffers from
legitimate xenophobia, hatred is generally a reaction to the fear. In addition,
xenophobia need not be limited to those of a different race. Homophobia, fear of those
from different cultural backgrounds, and even fear of those who dress, speak or think
differently could be considered subsets of xenophobia. Whether xenophobia qualifies
as a legitimate emotional disorder is a subject of ongoing debate.

THE SOURCES OF PREJUDICE:

Social research across the globe has shown that prejudice is
fundamentally related to low self‐esteem. By hating certain groups (in this case,
minorities), people are able to enhance their sense of self‐worth and importance
Social scientists have also identified some common social factors that may contribute
to the presence of prejudice and discrimination:
 Socialization. Many prejudices seem to be passed along from parents to children.
The media—including television, movies, and advertising—also perpetuate
demeaning images and stereotypes about assorted groups, such as ethnic
minorities, women, gays and lesbians, the disabled, and the elderly.
 Conforming behaviors. Prejudices may bring support from significant others, so
rejecting prejudices may lead to losing social support. The pressures to conform
to the views of families, friends, and associates can be formidable.
 Economic benefits. Social studies have confirmed that prejudice especially rises
when groups are in direct competition for jobs. This may help to explain why
prejudice increases dramatically during times of economic and social stress.
 Ethnocentrism. Ethnocentrism is the tendency to evaluate others' cultures by
one's own cultural norms and values. It also includes a suspicion of outsiders.
Most cultures have their ethnocentric tendencies, which usually involve
stereotypical thinking.
 Group closure. Group closure is the process whereby groups keep clear
boundaries between themselves and others. Refusing to marry outside an ethnic
group is an example of how group closure is accomplished.
 Conflict theory. Under conflict theory, in order to hold onto their distinctive
social status, power, and possessions, privileged groups are invested in seeing
that no competition for resources arises from minority groups. The powerful may
even be ready to resort to extreme acts of violence against others to protect their
interests. As a result, members of underprivileged groups may retaliate with
violence in an attempt to improve their circumstances.

IMPACT OF PREJUDICE
 Prejudice makes the victim feel defensive and works on you like a cancer does
on a person.
 Prejudiced people rely on stereotypes to inform themselves about what they
think they need to know about a person.
 Prejudice is the gateway to hurtful and intentional racism, homophobia and
inferiority and superiority complex.
  A person who experiences prejudice is denied a chance to explain who they
are and share their story, They might experience shame, anger, sadness,
withdrawal or an increase in motivation to make changes
 Prejudice also prevents that person from a chance to learn about a community
from that community’s perspective.

SOLUTIONS TO PREJUDICE:
For decades, sociologists have looked to ways of reducing
and eliminating conflicts and prejudices between groups:
 One theory, the self‐esteem hypothesis, is that when people have an appropriate
education and higher self‐esteem, their prejudices will go away.
 Another theory is the contact hypothesis, which states that the best answer to
prejudice is to bring together members of different groups so they can learn to
appreciate their common experiences and backgrounds.
 A third theory, the cooperation hypothesis, holds that conflicting groups need to
cooperate by laying aside their individual interests and learning to work together
for shared goals.
 A fourth theory, the legal hypothesis, is that prejudice can be eliminated by
enforcing laws against discriminative behavior.

STEREOTYPES

A stereotype is an over-generalized belief about a particular category of people.

Stereotypes are generalized because one assumes that the stereotype is true for each
individual person in the category.
Stereotypes are characteristics imposed upon groups of people because of their race,
nationality, and sexual orientation. These characteristics tend to be
oversimplifications of the groups involved, and while some people truly do embody
the traits of their stereotype, they are not necessarily representative of all people
within that group. Stereotypes are not always accurate and even if positive, can be
harmful.
FUNCTIONS:
1. Cognitive functions:
Stereotypes can help make sense of the world. They are a form of
categorization that helps to simplify and systematize information. Thus, information is
more easily identified, recalled, predicted, and reacted to. Stereotypes are categories
of objects or people. Between stereotypes, objects or people are as different from each
other as possible. Within stereotypes, objects or people are as similar to each other as
possible.
2. Social functions:
Stereotypes are used for explaining social events. Stereotypes are used
for justifying activities of one's own group (ingroup) to another group (outgroup).
Stereotypes are used for differentiating the ingroup as positively distinct from
outgroups.

TYPES OF STEREOTYPES:
1. Negative stereotypes:
Negative stereotypes are traits and characteristics, negatively valenced
and attributed to a social group and to its individual members. Strereotype about
individual or group which dispalyas them in poor light and is normally entirely
unrepresenytative of actual situation.
For example; all teenagers are rebels.
2. Positive stereotypes:
Stereotype which claim to depict the admireable, favourable and
advantageous factors and traits of the members of specific group or cultural class.
For example; all white are successful.
All french are romantic.
3. Racial stereotypes:
Stereotypes that are about races, ethnic groups or cultures. Although
these are different but at this moment we will take them as same.
For example; Filipino can be friendly with someone so quickly.
Filipino speak Pidgin English.

4. Gender stereotypes:
Gender stereotypes are are simplistic generalization about the gender
atributes, differences or role of individual or groups.
For example; All women like pink colour.
All men are better at sports.

STEREOTYPE THREAT:
A “stereotype threat” arises when one is in a situation where one has the
fear of doing something that would inadvertently confirm a negative stereotype. It is
cued by the mere recognition that a negative group stereotype could apply to you in a
given situation.
According to Steele, stereotype threat generates “spotlight anxiety” , which causes
emotional distress and “vigilant worry” that may undermine performance. Students
worry that their future may be compromised by society’s perception and treatment of
their group so they do not focus their full attention on the test questions.
Students taking the test under stereotype threat might also become inefficient on the
test by rereading the questions and the answer choices, as well as rechecking their
answers, more than when not under stereotype threat.
PREVENTING CULTURAL STEREOTYPING:
There are many interventions to keep cultural stereotyping from
happening. One of the best ways of preventing cultural stereotyping is teaching about
different cultures at a young age. By doing this you can teach children that it is alright
to be different and that they need to get to know the person before they can make any
judgements on them. Another good way to prevent stereotyping is to show them what
it is and how it can be hurtful, and by showing them what it is someone will fall into a
category that the teacher talks about and they will actually feel what is is like to be
stereotyped.
Some good ideas are to:

 Invite individual who challenge stereotyping to speak to the class.

 Have students read books and view videos that challenge stereotypes and address
discrimination.
 Display pictures and materials that challenge stereotypes.
 Discuss and critique how language, books, television shows, commercials,
cartoons, hokes, toys and common everyday items create and foster stereotypes.
 Compare items images, and words and expressions that portray various groups.
 List and discuss stereotypes that students have about others, as well as the
stereotypes that others have about them.

All these ideas can work for any age groups, but it would be best to start teaching
them about these things when they are young. They need to know cultural diversity
and that stereotyping can hurt. Another very good preventative to use would be role
playing so that they can feel what it is like to have things said to them and have
stereotypes put on them.

DISCRIMINATION
In human social behavior, discrimination is treatment or consideration of, or making a
distinction towards, a person based on the group, class, or category to which the
person is perceived to belong.
These include age, caste, colour, criminal record, height, disability, ethnicity, family
status, gender identity, generation, genetic characteristics, marital status, nationality,
race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. Discrimination consists of treatment of an
individual or group, based on their actual or perceived membership in a certain group
or social category, "in a way that is worse than the way people are usually treated".
TYPES :
Based on realistic-conflict theory and social-identity theory, Rubin and
Hewstone have highlighted a distinction among three types of discrimination:
1. Realistic competition: is driven by self-interest and is aimed at obtaining
material resources (e.g., food, territory, customers) for the in-group (e.g.,
favouring an in-group in order to obtain more resources for its members,
including the self).
2. Social competition: is driven by the need for self-esteem and is aimed at
achieving a positive social status for the in-group relative to comparable
out-groups (e.g., favouring an in-group in order to make it better than an
out-group).
3. Consensual discrimination: is driven by the need for accuracy[clarification
needed] and reflects stable and legitimate intergroup status hierarchies (e.g.,
favouring a high-status in-group because it is high status).
TYPES OF DISCRIMINATION:
1) Age:Ageism or age discrimination is discrimination and stereotyping based on the
grounds of someone's age.
effects:
• Loss of Experience and Potential
• Damage to Productivity
• Legal Liability
2) Caste:According to UNICEF and Human Rights Watch, caste discrimination
affects an estimated 250 million people worldwide
effects:
• It hindered national unity
• It stood against democracy
• It resulted in suppression
3) Disability:Discrimination against people with disabilities in favor of people who
are not is called ableism or disablism.
effects:
• Fewer Jobs, Greater Poverty
• Battle in the Workplace
• Hurdles in Education
• Lack of Transport
4) Language:Diversity of language is protected and respected by most nations who
value cultural diversity.Discrimination exists if there is prejudicial treatment against a
person or a group of people who either do or do not speak a particular language or
languages.
5) Name:Discrimination based on a person's name may also occur, with researchers
suggesting the presence of discrimination based on a name's meaning, its
pronunciation, its uniqueness, its gender affiliation, and its racial affiliation.
6) Nationality:Discrimination on the basis of nationality is usually included in
employment laws. It is sometimes referred to as bound together with racial
discrimination
7) Race or ethnicity:Racial and ethnic discrimination differentiates individuals on
the basis of real and perceived racial and ethnic differences and leads to various forms
of the ethnic penalty
effects:
• damage physiological and psychological health
• stress
8) Region:Regional or geographic discrimination is discrimination based on the
region in which a person lives or was born
effects
• examines the relationship between black representation and earnings for
women.
 • investigates whether pay discrimination and regional location condition the
relationship between black representation and workers' earnings
9) Religious beliefs:Religious discrimination is valuing or treating people or groups
differently because of what they do or do not believe or because of their feelings
towards a given religion.
10) Sex, sex characteristics, gender, and gender identity:Though gender
discrimination and sexism refer to beliefs and attitudes in relation to the gender of a
person, such beliefs and attitudes are of a social nature and do not, normally, carry
any legal consequences. Sex discrimination, on the other hand, may have legal
consequences.
Effects:
• it increases conflict and tension among your team members
• your work culture devalues the contribution of female employees
• female employees will feel less motivated to do their job
11) Sexual orientation:One's sexual orientation is a "predilection for homosexuality,
heterosexuality, or bisexuality". Employment discrimination based on sexual
orientation varies by country.
12) Drug use:Drug use discrimination is the unequal treatment people experience
because of the drugs they use.
Effects:
• sensitivity to feelings and need of other
• self regulation
• decision making and problem solving
13) Reverse discrimination:Some attempts at antidiscrimination have been
criticized as reverse discrimination. In particular, minority quotas (for example,
affirmative action) may discriminate against members of a dominant or majority
group or other minority groups.
effects:
• lead to hate crimes
• aggression and violence
• seggregation
What is the impact of discrimination?
Discrimination is when a person is treated less favourably because of some aspect
of their identity (eg. race, religion or gender). Discrimination can lead to:
• Feelings of sadness and lack of trust
• Isolation and exclusion
• Anxiety and fear of being attacked verbally or physically
• Inability to concentrate on schoolwork or homework
• Anger and urges to retaliate
• Reduced self-confidence, self-worth and impact on identity development