Posted: November 18th, 2015

Cultural Identity Reflection

Our beliefs, values, and ultimately our culture influence how we view ourselves and the world around us. This analysis requires you to reflect on your various cultural identities that shape you, your behavior, and your communication. This assignment requires you to examine the cultural values that shape, reflect, and predict your culture’s attitudes, beliefs, and communication norms. Specifically, this assignment examines the beliefs, values, and norms that you have been taught as a member of this culture – these are often subconscious as we “know, because we know.”

Think of this assignment as an ethnography of a culture and the members therein. Describe and interpret the values, beliefs, and communication norms that may be unfamiliar to individuals not associated with your culture. Write your paper as if the person reading it has no knowledge of your culture. The elements of culture, communication and identity should be paramount in your reflection.

Outcomes Fulfilled

Identify and analyze one’s own cultural identity.
Explain how environmental factors affect and make cultures different.
Assignment Expectations

You have two options to fulfill the requirements of this assignment, a paper or a video. PAPER: Your cultural identity reflection should be 4-5 pages in length, typed and double-spaced with 1-inch margins. VIDEO: Your cultural identity reflection should be 5-7 minutes in length, well-organized, and visually appealing. Your assignment should include the following information:

Introduction, Clear Thesis, and Preview of your Main Points
Internal Headings: underlined in bold font, throughout your reflection (i.e. Introduction, Cultural Identity, Social Identity, Personal Identity, Communication Norms, Conclusion)
Cultural/Ethnic Identity: the beliefs, values and communication norms evident in this culture.
Include the name of the culture and your cultural identities (i.e. ethnicity, gender, generational, regional, national, etc in notes).
4. Communication Norms: both verbal and nonverbal norms evident in your culture (CH4/5).

5. Social/Relational Identities: the organizations, groups and interpersonal relationships that have helped to shape you (i.e. family, religion, jobs, interests, hobbies, sports, etc in notes).

6. Personal Identity: tell me about you – how individual experiences, personality traits, and abilities shape and influence your personal identity. Explain how these experiences shape your own personal beliefs, values, norms, attitudes, worldview, and the people around you (notes).’

7. Conclusion: summarize your main points and reflect on the intersection between culture, community, personal identity and communication.

Please cite the textbook, our notes, or another external source at least 5 times in your paper, drawing connections between your lived experience and the concepts covered in class. Please bold the concepts and include citations. i.e. ethnocentrism (Jandt, p. 57)

Here are some screen shots:
https://puu.sh/lpBP7.png
https://puu.sh/lpBNI.png

Please make sure you Cite your sources and Bold your sources when you use it in a sentence.