Maria is a Mexican citizen; who five years ago moved to America where she has been living and working as a nanny to a well-off family in Maine. She is a competent helper and is ever trying to make her employee pleased and keep the children happy and healthy at all times. However, she has been trying to get a baby for the past two years without succeeding. She and her partner have been to many health and fertility clinics but there seem to be no results, and this has proved to be troublesome for her. She has begun experiencing signs of depression, and this has made them consider taking her to see a counselor. The following is the conversation that the counselor and Maria had.
[Counselor’s thoughts: Okay, let us see…Mexican nanny. It’s not very good to ask a woman direct questions.]
Counselor: Hello Maria
[Maria’s thoughts: Why do I have to see the counselor? I wonder if he is supposed to help me get a baby of my own.]
Maria: Hello Doctor Carl.
[Counselor’s thoughts: well she seems friendly; her file says that she is suffering from signs of depression, let me question her to establish the truth.]
Counselor: How are you today? I am told that you are having some stress relating to the issue of not having a child. Has the stress and aggression subsided?
[Maria’s thoughts: why is he asking that? Would I be here if I was good? I have already established that I hate this session.]
Maria: I am fine, I guess; though I still feel a little stress and aggression towards life.
[Counselor’s thoughts: Well I noticed some anger in her speech, she might already have developed an attitude towards me. Let me get to the point.]
Counselor: How long have you been in America?
[Maria’s thoughts: This is not what I came here for. I should be working]
Maria: About five year now
[Counselor’s thoughts: Usually Mexican women are known to have large families. She may be experiencing stress because she might not get a child and be looked upon by her family members. It may be the case, but I need to question her more.]
Counselor: So, Maria tell me a little about your family and the life you had before you came to America
[Maria’s thoughts: Here comes the therapy I don’t need. I might be sick though. I hope no one will know about this..]
Maria: Okay, so … I come from a single parent family of seven…
The term dyadic refers to the interaction amid two individuals while communicating. There might be several individuals in the transaction but only two communicators that are responsible for playing the chief role. The interpersonal communication is on a constant change evolving with every turn in the conversation. According to Storti (2017), a bond is created between the communicators that become the point of origin of great success aimed at any performance target. It is through dyadic relations that one finds comfort and support while helping us and others to form self-concepts which can be used to validate and maintain or enhance oneself through time ((Heasman " Gillespie, 2017). A dyadic interpersonal communication, the role played by the speaker and listener are seamlessly interchanged, feedback is immediate and of high quality while knowledge is more intimate. The communication becomes more intimate thus allowing people to anticipate each other’s behavior.
People from different cultural background tend to have different views about things and other people. A good example is that evident from the dialogue where the counselor has the notion that most Mexican women have a lot of children; he thinks that it must be the reason why Maria is stressed that she has not yet been with a child though all the trials and medication. Most American individuals are seen as being proud and behaving to know it all since they are in a developed country with access to world-class technology and thus they're arrogant (Storti , 2017). Another cultural perspective is that where people think that African culture is primitive and backward. The other continents are quick to jump to conclusions that have a primitive notion in it with regards to African things. Most Asians are thought to be bright; to find an Asian student who is struggling with the school is thought to be a scenario that most people might not believe.
Misunderstandings between people of different cultural backgrounds exist and will continue existing for as long as people will be living in their cultural background and not diversify their lives. They arise because cultures are different and what people in one culture view to be right might not necessarily be right or how they do it in their home place thus the misunderstanding (Awang-Shuib, Sahari " Ali, 2017). When individuals are culturally ignorant and insensitive to others, then they will likely find themselves in a tight position where they will be accused of being insensitive and thus fuel misunderstanding. An example would be for one to imagine that an African living in America; has family in Africa that wears animal skins for clothes. For them to communicate or imply that in their speech will bring about a misunderstanding of huge proportions. The lack of alertness of dissimilar communal lifestyle practices also causes misunderstandings amid individuals. Levels of development of nation-states determine the lifestyle found in their country. When people do not understand this concept, they are likely to even conflict with one another.
The difference in cultural practices, perceptions of illness and treatment strategies, miscommunication and misinterpretation are all responsible for misunderstanding that occur for individuals of different artistic backgrounds. If an individual, for instance, comes from a country or background in which they believe in taking herbs for treatment and not science, they are likely to get offended by an offer to be taken to hospital despite the seriousness of the illness. They will still try to use the herbs and are likely to be angered by such a notion (Heasman " Gillespie, 2017). If people do not understand where they are coming from with that perception, they are likely to be a misunderstanding as their culture has not been given the much respect that it deserves and if the roles are to be changed the result would be the same.
Cultural misunderstandings can be reduced through several ways. Individuals need to be edified on the different cultural practices, perceptions and the societal backgrounds of different cultures. This will ensure that people will not seem insensitive when faced with a different practice of belief from someone from a different cultural background as them. It will also ensure that they respect one another thereby reducing if not completely terminating instances of misunderstandings that have their roots in cultural practices (Awang-Shuib, Sahari " Ali, 2017). A cross-cultural experience should be nurtured and advocated for as it would enable said individuals to have an experience of different cultures thereby knowing the experiences that they undergo; in a way putting themselves in their shoes. Miscommunication and misinterpretation can also be minimized by people using concise words that are not ambiguous to mitigate the chances of misunderstandings occurring. In conclusion, it is evident that cultural misunderstandings occur on a daily basis. They are normally fueled by the biases that people have towards certain cultures or people. For these misunderstandings to be cleared up, it is essential that people learn to respect each other’s cultures and learn about them to be diverse and sensitive.
Reference
Awang-Shuib, A. R., Sahari, S. H., " Ali, A. J. (2017). Multicultural awareness and urban communities: Validating a multicultural awareness scale. Journal of Asian Behavioural Studies, 2(5), 45-55.
Heasman, B., " Gillespie, A. (2017). Perspective-taking is two-sided: Misunderstandings between people with Asperger’s syndrome and their family members. Autism, 1362361317708287.
Storti, C. (2017). Cross-cultural dialogues: 74 brief encounters with cultural difference. Nicholas Brealey.
