Ethnocentris

m
and
Cultural
Relativism
Encountering other cultures

 Culture shock
 Immersion in an
unfamiliar environment
causes disorientation
 Radically different
cultures can challenge
or cause us to question
our basic assumptions
 Anomie – social
instability
Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism is "my culture's the

Cultural
best in every way."

Relativism
Cultural relativism is “every culture
is equally valid, so you have no right
to impose your culture's values on
other cultures."
Ethnocentrism
 Ethnocentrism
 Viewing other cultures
through the lens of our
own
 Taking our own culture
as the “norm”
 Group solidarity & pride
in heritage
 Devaluing groups other
than own
Ethnocentrism
Cultural Relativism

 Evaluating a culture
on its own terms
 Learning to “see” from
the perspective of
another in order to
understand a culture
 Refraining from
making judgments of
“right” and “wrong”
 Cultural Relativism
• The objective analysis of other cultures –
understanding a culture’s beliefs and practices
from that culture’s point of view.
• Cultural Relativism is not about imposing
judgement or assessing the worth of other
cultures. This is ethnocentrism.
• For example, can we judge the wearing of the
burqa in Islamic communities, simply because it
differs from Western ideas about femininity?
Ethnocentrism
Cultural Relativism