Gaining cross-cultural awareness

Considerations and practical suggestions to becoming more culturally sensitive.

Overview

Every person has a culture, which can be thought of as customs, behaviours, and beliefs that shape our perspectives with which we engage with the world.  This includes things we consider polite, ways we communicate, and use non-verbal behaviours, such as how much eye contact we keep.  When we engage with people from other cultures, there may be mismatches in our expectations or ways of doing things as a result of cultural differences.  When mentoring people from another culture it is key to understand and appreciate that there are differences, and then seek to find ways to engage meaningfully and respectfully with our mentee and their cultural background.

Theoretical perspectives

All people are cultural beings and are therefore influenced by belief and value systems, as well as norms and practices that influence psychological processes (APA, 2002).  This means that every person is in some way shaped by the place they grew up and the people they have engaged with.  When we then engage with people from a different culture, we are practically speaking engaging with someone that has a different rule book than our own.  This can include many different aspects of speech and behaviour, such as how directly people communicate (e.g., high and low context cultures – the extent to which it is the words or the way the words are said that carries the most meaning; United Language Group, n.d.) or how long a pause needs to be for it to be considered a long silence in conversation (e.g. BBC, 2017).  If we are not aware of our own cultural norms and have an appreciation for others, there is a chance that we might be insensitive in our interactions with our mentees, which can erode trust and impact the success of our relationship.

Cultural awareness (or cultural sensitivity) comes from learning about and being conscious of these differences, and then to use that knowledge to shape our interactions with other people.  This requires us to be aware of our own cultural practices, but also to have a willingness and a curiosity to learn about others.  Cultural awareness helps us break down barriers between people from different cultures and can help us appreciate better those who are different from us. This fundamentally allows us to have better and more meaningful interpersonal relationships, which is key in being an effective mentor (e.g., University College Dublin, 2022)

Context for mentoring African International Students

You will almost certainly work with a mentee that has a different culture than your own.  The mentoring relationship can benefit from cultural awareness in two main ways; one, you can better understand and support your mentee when you understand and appreciate that they have a different culture from yours; and two, you can function as a cultural guide for your mentee to help them adjust to the new culture they find themselves in. 

There are some key factors that you should consider when thinking about cultural differences.  Firstly, the education system in the mentee’s home country might have a very hierarchical structure, meaning that people in more senior positions, such as faculty like yourself, are seen as authority figures, and the mentee might therefore bring that expectation into the mentoring relationship.  Furthermore, the extent to which your mentee trusts in institutions and bureaucracy is likely to be culturally determined, which can affect the type of advice or questions they appreciate.  Lastly, think about the way that you communicate about and show emotions.  There are big cultural differences in the extent to which people are open about emotions and particularly in a relationship when there are differences in the amount of power that the people hold. Your mentee might feel uncomfortable sharing emotions with you as a result of the role you hold, but may feel a pressure to share this if you ask.  Ensure that you explore how comfortable your mentee is communicating about emotions before asking about deep emotional experiences.

Practical suggestions

In order to be culturally sensitive, you must both know about your own culture and the culture of your mentee.  Reflecting about your own culture can give you a sense of what assumptions you are bringing to the conversation, and then being genuinely curious is the best approach to learning about other cultures.

Here are some more considerations:

  • Think beyond race and ethnicity.  Culture is more than just ethnicity and race; it is shaped by their lived experiences and the customs of where your mentee grew up.  Two people with a similar race can have widely different cultures, and people with different races can share a similar culture.
  • Learn by asking.  Asking questions about your mentee’s culture can help you build connection, and when done respectfully can build trust and appreciation.
  • Think about the importance of religion.  The extent to which religion plays an important part of a person’s life can be culturally dependent.  Make sure you do not let your own conceptions influence the relationship.
  • Listen carefully. Listen beyond what is said and instead listen for the assumptions behind it.
  • Avoid slang and jargon.  Language is very influenced by culture and our references and expressions are largely influenced by our background.
  • Honour flexibility in people’s self-identification.  Culture can influence how people will identify themselves and sometimes people might not identify in the way you would identify them.  Listen to how they speak about themselves and use that language.
  • Be aware of your own biases and how they are influenced by culture.

Useful Links

A guide to cultural awareness

Cultural awareness

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