The Cultural Context

Many students are fans of A&E Television’s hit series, Duck Dynasty, which chronicles the lives of the Robertson family from rural Louisiana who struck it rich with their family business making products for duck hunters. Students can get pretty riled up talking about it! Some find the show offensive, perpetuating stereotypes about individuals from the rural southern United States (especially after cast member Phil Robertson was taken off the show temporarily after making anti-gay remarks); others find the show empowering with positive portrayals of family interactions and the possibility of socioeconomic mobility.

To ensure that diversity is respected in professional situations, organizations (as well as the U.S. government) enact policies and codes of behavior to protect employees from hurtful, antagonistic communication regarding their race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, and abilities. This type of derogatory communication, known as harassment, is discussed in Chapter 11.

As you likely know from experience, culture is an incredibly powerful context of communication: it has a profound effect on the way we perceive events, as well as ourselves and others. Think back to the competent communication model in Chapter 1. The ring that comprises the cultural context is made up of variables that make our perceptions unique: race, ethnicity, religion, politics, gender, sexual orientation, age, education, role, occupation, abilities/disabilities, geography, and so on. These differences are known as diversity (Loden & Rosener, 1991). (Also see our discussion of co-cultural variation in Chapter 5.) Even your positive or negative perceptions of a show like Duck Dynasty are linked to your perceptions about age, education, occupation, geography, religion, and a host of other factors. To communicate effectively and appropriately in today’s world, you must possess an understanding of and appreciation for people who perceive others differently than you do. It’s also important to understand the way your unique background affects your perceptions.

image
DO YOU SHARE a cultural identity with any of these groups? Factors such as age, gender, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation—even where you grew up—affect your own perceptions and the perceptions of others. (top left) Digital Vision/Getty Images; (top right) Michael Williamson/The Washington Post/Getty Images; (bottom left) PATRICK ANDRADE/Landov; (bottom right) Tom Shaw/Getty Images