Free Essays on Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism is a commonly used word in circles where ethnicity, inter-ethnic relations, and similar social issues are of concern. The usual definition of the term is â€Å"thinking one’s own group’s ways are superior to others† or â€Å"judging other groups as inferior to one’s own.† Ethnocentrism can be more specifically defined as, â€Å"making false assumptions about others’ ways based on our own limited experiences.† The key word is assumptions; because we are not even aware that we are being ethnocentric, we don’t understand that we don’t understand. The definition given above emphasizes that we make false assumptions based on our own limited experience. If our own experience is the only â€Å"reality† we have, then it is normal to assume it is the â€Å"natural† basis of reality. And our own ways work for us. Our perceptions of colors, values, our social roles, our beliefs about life and the universe, and all our other ways help us organize life experience and provide important meanings and functions as we move through daily and life span activities. It is normal to assume these provide a meaningful and functional basis for life in general. One example of ethnocentrism that I experienced during the week was the other day I pulled my car up to my apartment to drop off some groceries. As I was unloading the car the resident advisor had opened his door to see if his Chinese food had arrived. Usually food delivery people pull right up to your door. The R.A. told me he thought I was the person delivering his food because he heard the car and thought his food had arrived. As I was driving away someone pulled up to the door, at that moment my roommate said, â€Å"that must be his Chinese food,† he said this, and I though it to myself because the driver was Chinese. It turned out that it was the Chinese delivery person. This type of remark would be considered ethnocentric because it assumes that because, in this... Free Essays on Ethnocentrism Free Essays on Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism and values are like the spine of cultures. It separates culture from culture and how we look at each other. Ethnocentrism and values can bring good and bad, it may manifest itself in attitudes of superiority or hostility toward members of other groups and is sometimes expressed in discrimination or violence. Values are those ideas and things considered important by a given group of people, values are no written laws, it’s what we as a culture find important. For example in the U.S it’s an important value to give or help the poor. This values change from culture to culture; other American values are personal achievement and success, hard work, faith in progress, efficiency, and practically since Americans comes from so many different cultural backgrounds, many people have values that are different from those of the majority. Ethnocentrism is the attitude and/or ideology concerning the relationship between an individual’s own group and other groups. E thnocentrism occurs when negative value judgments are made about others based on the differences between one’s own culture and a foreign culture. Ethnocentrism occurs when an individual considers his culture/nation to be absolutely superior to other nations or cultures. An AFS book that all AFS students get before they arrive to a their host country explains values and ethnocentrism with an interesting twist. They have a picture of an iceberg where 10% is over the water and 90% that you cant see is under the water. This illustrates the â€Å"hidden laws† or values of a culture. Since 90% of the â€Å"laws† are under the water it’s basically impossible to learn everything on a year, but it helps a great deal. There are thousands and thousands of unwritten laws, and they change from culture to culture. For example in Norway there is an unwritten law that says you should come home and eat dinner with your family, or as we saw in a movie clip about Saudi Arabia wher... Free Essays on Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism is the feeling that one’s group has a mode of living, values and patterns of adaptation that are superior to those of other groups. It is coupled with a generalized contempt for members of other groups. Ethnocentrism may manifest itself in attitudes of superiority or hostility. Violence, discrimination, proselytizing, and a verbal aggressiveness are other means whereby ethnocentrism may be expressed. Ethnocentrism can also be explained, as an attitude that one's own culture, society, or group is inherently superior to all others. Judging other cultures by your own cultural standards, and since of course other cultures are different, they are therefore inferior. Ethnocentrism means an inability to appreciate others whose culture may include a different racial group, ethnic group, religion, morality, language, political system, economic system, etc. It also means an inability to see a common humanity and human condition facing all women and men in all cultures and societies beneath the surface variations in social and cultural traditions.... Free Essays on Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism is a commonly used word in circles where ethnicity, inter-ethnic relations, and similar social issues are of concern. The usual definition of the term is â€Å"thinking one’s own group’s ways are superior to others† or â€Å"judging other groups as inferior to one’s own.† Ethnocentrism can be more specifically defined as, â€Å"making false assumptions about others’ ways based on our own limited experiences.† The key word is assumptions; because we are not even aware that we are being ethnocentric, we don’t understand that we don’t understand. The definition given above emphasizes that we make false assumptions based on our own limited experience. If our own experience is the only â€Å"reality† we have, then it is normal to assume it is the â€Å"natural† basis of reality. And our own ways work for us. Our perceptions of colors, values, our social roles, our beliefs about life and the universe, and all our other ways help us organize life experience and provide important meanings and functions as we move through daily and life span activities. It is normal to assume these provide a meaningful and functional basis for life in general. One example of ethnocentrism that I experienced during the week was the other day I pulled my car up to my apartment to drop off some groceries. As I was unloading the car the resident advisor had opened his door to see if his Chinese food had arrived. Usually food delivery people pull right up to your door. The R.A. told me he thought I was the person delivering his food because he heard the car and thought his food had arrived. As I was driving away someone pulled up to the door, at that moment my roommate said, â€Å"that must be his Chinese food,† he said this, and I though it to myself because the driver was Chinese. It turned out that it was the Chinese delivery person. This type of remark would be considered ethnocentric because it assumes that because, in this... Free Essays on Ethnocentrism Ethnocentrism â€Å"How can they eat rats? Those people are crazy!† Ethnocentrism is the belief that one race, religion, or belief system is better than another is. It can also be defined as judging another culture by our own standard instead of forming new standards. Though we are beginning to understand more and more cultures: we are judging these cultures by the standard we live by. Ethnocentrism keeps us from learning more about other cultures as well as learning more about ourselves. We as humans are ethnocentric. We make false assumptions based on our limited experience. If our own experience is the only â€Å"reality† we have, then it is normal to assume it is the â€Å"natural† basis or reality as we believe our own ways work for us. Our perceptions of colors, our time frames, our social roles, our beliefs about life and the Universe all help us to organize life experience and provide important meanings and functions as we move through daily activities. It is normal to assume that these provide a meaningful and functional basis for life in general. It is impossible to rid ourselves entirely of our values that make us ethnocentric. We use our own culture as the basis for the comparison to compare other cultures’ customs and behaviors based on our own. For example, while traveling in a foreign country, one might look at customary traditions as â€Å"wrong† or â€Å"unethical†. This is only because we look at this custom as different from what we are used to. Being ethnocentric in a foreign setting leads you to make false assumptions about the other people. Ethnocentrism leads us to misunderstand others. We distort what is meaningful and functional to other peoples through our own tinted glasses. We see their ways in terms of our life experience, not theirs. We do not understand that their ways have their own meanings and functions in life, just as our ways have for us. At the best, we can continue in our unawareness. Yet...