Describing Culture

Culture plays a primary role in how we communicate with each other. As human services workers, we often encounter individuals whose cultural perspective is very different from our own. Knowing the key elements that differentiate cultures, as well as our own cultural orientation, is important in being able to communicate effectively. In this discussion, you will be describing aspects of cultural difference that may impact interpersonal communication. You will also be reporting on your own cultural orientation.

Read Chapter 2 from The Interpersonal Communication Book. In addition, answer the fourteen questions on your cultural orientation found on pp. 35 – 36.

Reflect on the findings of the cultural orientation test that you completed. How did this help you to understand your own cultural orientation? Were there some elements that really made sense to you while others did not? How did this compare to what you read about differing components of a cultural orientation? How would you describe your own specific cultural orientation (not just as the United States or your country or origin)?

Initial Post: Prepare a 300-word minimum reply that sufficiently addresses each of the items below:

• Based on what you read in the textbook, describe at least three factors can that be used to understand a culture.
• Describe the impact of culture, as a whole, on communication.
• Discuss your own cultural orientation in relation to these three factors.
• Explain how understanding a cultural orientation may aid in interpersonal communication in a human services work setting. Please use at least one example in your explanation.

Communication Theory

Much of what we know about how we communicate and engage on a daily basis is guided by theory. Theories provide useful and informative frames of reference that help explain different phenomena. Have you ever tried to understand the motivation behind a person’s actions or habits? Or perhaps questioned a technique or approach a professional might use when working with a client? If so, it is more than likely that some type of theory was involved. In this discussion, you will have an opportunity to read about various communication theories and describe them within different contexts.

Read the following communication theories: Constructivism, Attachment (Links to an external site.), Communication Accommodation (Links to an external site.), and Attribution (Links to an external site.).

Initial Post: Reflect on the significance and application of the theories presented and prepare a 300-word minimum post that sufficiently addresses each of the items below:

• Briefly describe each of the communication theories that are presented.
• Describe how two of the communication theories can be applied in a health and human services setting. For example, how can constructivist theory be used to understand people’s views of the world in human services work? How can levels of attachment, as related to the attachment theory, be used by human service professionals to understand client needs?
• http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/attachment.htm

http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/communication_accomodation.htm

http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/attribution_theory.htm

Required Text

DeVito, J. A. (2016). The interpersonal communication book (14th ed.). Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu