Multicultural exchange gives insights into diverse societal perspectives influencing interpersonal skills such as communication, etiquette, creativity, adaptability, ideas, tolerance, negotiation, and cultural awareness. Essentially skills obtained from intercultural exchange are powerful in exposing one’s to different viewpoints and enhancing their overall competencies, such as diversity essential for employment. From a personal experience, interacting with a Japanese friend was favorable to discipline, timekeeping, ethics, and etiquette. Inter-social mingling is instrumental in informing new viewpoints but may be limited by the cultural barriers of ethnic shock, prejudice and stereotypes that can be mitigated by developing self-awareness, cultural awareness, and etiquette skills.
Cultural barrier is a possible problem likely to occur during multicultural exchange due to ethnic shock, prejudice, and stereotypes. While the cultural shock is the feeling of anger or anxiety after developing awareness of the conflicting values or customs of the new tradition, prejudice is the discrimination or unfavorable treatment of a cultural group due to threatening or humiliating values and customs (Ritson, 2019). Societal stereotyping is the broad misguided generalization that all people in a culture share cognitive limitations and biases. Cultural shock, prejudice, and stereotypes lead to unfair treatment, dissatisfaction, obscurity in communication, and social isolation, hindering effective cultural exchange.
Cultural barriers can be mitigated by enhancing self-awareness, etiquette, social awareness, diversity, and appropriate communication skills. Being conscious of thoughts, feelings, and actions while demonstrating etiquette, diversity, and good communication skills improves one’s interpersonal bearing and trigger responsiveness in cross-ethnic interchange to prevent prejudice and stereotypes. Social awareness is breaking down other traditions’ values, customs, and cultural barriers before the interaction to avert ethnic shock. Understanding more about oneself, etiquette, social awareness, and diversity will acknowledge how to engage, appreciate, and respect different people.
Reference
Ritson, A. (2019). Culture Shock and Dealing with the Impact of Cultural Differences in Our Classrooms. Web.