Social and Cultural

A college sociology instructor challenged me with this question: Is it feasible for us to be completely culturally relativistic? She stated she feels a specific amount of ethnocentrism is healthy. I agreed that ethnocentrism is not all poor...if we are willing to try and have an understanding of other cultures, and to acknowledge that "my" way, or my beliefs may possibly not be the appropriate ones for everybody. I may well be proud of being an American for certain causes (such as: Americans have led the globe in technology, specially in the development of medical technology), and for this worldwide health care contribution, I am still proud of American ingenuity. Nevertheless, there are other issues about being an American I am unquestionably not proud of (such as: getting the highest homicidal, and incarceration rate in the world). I have noticed that I am ethnocentric about particular aspects about my culture, though other elements I am not.

I feel ethnocentrism becomes problematic when we refuse to think about any other opinions, regardless of the evidence. Then, we just turn into "ignoramuses," as my nation father used to say. I boast of myself that I am an "open-minded skeptic." Yet, evolution, progress and improvements are portion of human development thank goodness for innovative minds! We need to keep our minds open for new suggestions and concepts so we can advance and move forward in our lives, while nonetheless requiring sound evidence to substantiate people's claims. In the end, I would say I'm a blend of mild ethnocentrism (which includes a dose of wholesome skepticism), and a social scientist who is constantly searching to find the bigger image of why many people behave as they do.

The notion that anyone can be 100% unbiased or culturally "relative" is a nice-sounding theory. Ethnocentrism is a healthy response to the social conditioning of household, pals and community that we have had since birth. Those persons who did not bond with their family are maladjusted and mentioned to have a personality disorder named, Attachment Disorder, which can plague them the entire of their lives. Relating to, getting a portion of the "in-group" (as psychology terms it) is clearly key to development of individual wholesome identities, and subsequently, essential. Even from an evolutionary psychology viewpoint, we are genetically predisposed, even "programmed" to respond to other people in our atmosphere by forming attachments, therefore forming "culture."

It is a vital and wholesome part of social psychological development, and interpersonal and communication development to "attach" and determine with our culture. To reject our atmosphere family members, friends, and country, is in a sense a rejection of a piece of ourselves. We all come from somewhere. We all have a distinct, unique history. We may possibly not pick out our parents or our nation, but to deny our attachment to them is to dismiss our genetics, our heritage, our history, no matter how humble or how lofty, how awful or how excellent. I think to be completely culturally relativistic is to be devoid of a connection to one's own roots...to live in shameful denial of one's originating culture is to deny an imperative component of one's identity. I don't believe I want to be entirely culturally relative I'll be proud of who I am right now, and of my heritage, understanding that it has combined to make me an integrated entire person, a Gestalt. Our lives are a tapestry, as singer Carole King pointed out: "My life has been a tapestry of rich and royal hue, an everlasting vision of the ever changing view. A wondrous woven magic in bits of blue and gold, a tapestry to really feel and see, impossible to hold" (Tapestry, Carole King).

One more form of ethnocentrism is noticed as ego-centrism, wherein the individual attributes far more significance to self than to any other. Again, every of us should have a healthy dose of self-love and self-respect to have a healthy personality. The opposite of self-adore is self-destruction. Without self-confidence and a strong ego, we fall prey to manipulation and abuse. As Christ mentioned, "Enjoy other people as you adore your self." He knew that self-like is related closely to our capacity to love others. We must accept ourselves as we are, and make wholesome possibilities for ourselves first and foremost then, and only then, are we wholesome enough to supply acceptance and really like to others. We need to be ego-centered, or we will be other-centered. Without having loving the core of "me," I can not enjoy the core of anybody else. As with ethnocentrism (really like of the group), ego-centrism (really like of self) is a wholesome and crucial foundational personality component.

So whilst ethnocentrism and ego-centrism may perhaps seem on the surface to be unnecessary or even evil, it is like a vaccine a little amount of it can maintain us wholesome, maintain us from getting seriously cognitively ill, whilst a huge dose of it may possibly just kill us. Cultural relativism is a pleasant theory, and that's all I ever want it to be, given that I want you to enjoy you, and I want me to enjoy me, just as you are, and just as I am. Just as each person is a tapestry, special as the individual's fingerprint, so is each culture. To strive for intercultural tolerance, understanding and compassion is a worthy objective! We ourselves ought to initially discover, and teach our children to respect differences. However, to be blind to differences is not the answer either. There is a pleased medium: to appreciate our heritage, to love ourselves as we are today, and finally, to accept other people as we accept ourselves...and that's no theory!