Cross-Cultural Awareness
For the Reference Desk
Richenda Wilkinson & Margaret Mellinger
Oregon State University Libraries
Poster Presentation for
ACRL 12th National Conference,
Minneapolis, April 7-10, 2005.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
What is cultural awareness?
Open minds. Open doors.TM
What is cultural awareness?
“Culture is the shared assumptions,
values, and beliefs of a group of
people which result in characteristic
behaviors.”
(Storti, 1999)
Open minds. Open doors.TM
What is cultural awareness?
Open minds. Open doors.TM
What is cultural awareness?
Culture can be visualized as an
iceberg… 10% of it is visible above
the water (behaviors), and 90% of it
is hidden under the water
(assumptions, values, and beliefs
that drive behaviors).
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Cross-cultural awareness is a
developed sense of the impact that
cultural background and differences
have on our social interactions. It
implies a commitment to creating an
environment that supports members
of underrepresented groups, and
that encourages multiculturalism
and continuous learning about
ourselves and others. (adapted
from Winston, 1995).
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Stages of Cultural
Awareness
Storti (1999)
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Stages of Cultural Awareness
• Unconscious incompetence
(blissful ignorance)
• Conscious incompetence
(troubling ignorance)
• Conscious competence
(deliberate sensitivity)
• Unconscious competence
(spontaneous sensitivity)
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Stages of Cultural Awareness
• Unconscious incompetence
(blissful ignorance)
Unaware of cultural differences;
Unaware of the possibility of making
cultural mistakes or misinterpreting
others’ behavior. Have no reason at
this stage not to trust your intuition.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Stages of Cultural Awareness
• Conscious incompetence
(troubling ignorance)
Realize there are cultural
differences; unsure of what the
differences are and how numerous
or deep they may be. Unsure of
your intuition.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Stages of Cultural Awareness
• Conscious competence
(deliberate sensitivity)
Know there are cultural differences,
and what some of them are; try to
modify your own behavior to be
sensitive to differences; Have to
make a conscious effort; know you
can figure out what to do if you can
remain objective
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Stages of Cultural Awareness
• Unconscious competence
(spontaneous sensitivity)
No longer have to think about what you
are doing in order to be culturally
sensitive (in a culture you know well);
culturally appropriate behavior comes
naturally; you can trust your intuition
because it has been reconditioned by
what you know about cross-cultural
interactions.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
1 Obtain top level support
For any diversity initiative to
succeed, leadership must provide a
commitment to the process.
Diversity training and cross-cultural
awareness fit very well with library
missions and professional practices.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
2 Research best practices
There are many wonderful books
and articles available. We have
provided some of these in our
bibliography.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
3 Identify partners
Identify the agencies, groups or
individuals in your community with
whom you might partner for training,
or tap as consultants or facilitators.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
4 Conduct a needs assessment
A needs assessment instrument can
be used to determine the focus of the
training program. The developmental
level of the participants is important.
Assess the group’s current needs
and attitudes and readiness.
Understand the demographics and
the needs of your community.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
5 Develop objectives
Based on the needs assessment,
decide what the focus of the training
will be.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
6 Design informational and
transformational programs
An example of informational programs
would be communicating the mission,
policies, procedures and service ethic of
the library to new employees.
Transformation programs are those that
provide opportunities for employees to
develop their cross-cultural skills, attitudes
or beliefs.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
7 Use various methods and media
If the focus of your training is skills, you
might use role playing, communication
exercises, storytelling, videos, simulations,
vignettes, etc. For building knowledge
and awareness, you might use short
readings, self-assessments, or
presentations by expert guest speakers. If
your focus is on attitudes and beliefs you
bring in outside facilitators to lead the
group through exercises and discussions.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
8 Allow participants to establish
ground rules for behavior
Diversity issues are complex, and
people need a safe space to explore
them. Encourage participants to be
open to different ideas and to refrain
from personal attacks on others.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
9 Assess the effectiveness of the
training
Ask the participants to evaluate their
knowledge and cultural awareness
before and after training sessions to
determine if the objectives are met.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Creating Effective Diversity
Training Programs
10 Realize that training is a longterm process
Cross-cultural awareness doesn’t
happen in one session, so training
should be viewed as ongoing,
integral part of orientation and
continuing education in the library.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Self-Assessment Checklist
for Cross-Cultural
Communication
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Self-Assessment Checklist
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I speak slowly, audibly and distinctly.
I keep my sentence structure and vocabulary simple.
I avoid jargon or slang.
I allow extra time to communicate with someone whose
first language is not mine.
I am sensitive to the emotional state of library users.
I appreciate different ways of communicating.
I do not judge people on their accents or language
fluency.
When I experience frustration or sense conflict in a
cross-cultural situation, I ask myself, “What’s really
going on here?”
I consider the effect of cultural difference on messages
being transmitted and I check my assumptions.
I adapt my style to the demands of the situation.
I listen as much as I speak; I do not interrupt.
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Self-Assessment Checklist
• I rephrase the library user’s question to be sure I understand.
• I check to see if I have been understood, and I rephrase and
repeat my answers and instructions as needed.
• I am objective and neutral when handling reference requests.
• I like to learn as much as possible about other cultures,
especially those of members of my community.
• I am aware of resources within my community that serve
international students, visitors, workers, and citizens.
• I am aware of services for persons with disabilities.
• I look for ways to improve library services to
underrepresented groups.
• I understand that politeness, consideration, caring and
sensitivity can yield positive responses in all people.
• I treat all library users with the same high level of respect,
attention, and courtesy.
•
(adapted from Liu, 1995; and Valuing Diversity Part III, 1987.)
Open minds. Open doors.TM
OSU Libraries’ Progress
What we have done thus far:
• Gained top-level support
• Researched best practices
– on campus, in the library literature and in corporate, training
and social science literature.
•
Identified partners on campus
– Team Liberation
http://oregonstate.edu/groups/teamliberation/
– Office of Diversity
– Affirmative Action Program
– Difference Power and Discrimination program
– Ethnic Studies department
– Multicultural, Women and GLBT Centers
– Committed to Diversity committees of the OSU Office of
Diversity
– Several individuals on campus known for expertise in
diversity training
Open minds. Open doors.TM
OSU Libraries’ Progress
What’s next?
• Institutional Review Board Approval
• Needs Assessment
• Develop a training program and
schedule
– Embedded in students’ current training
– Diversity training and lecture series open
to all staff and faculty
• Assessment
Open minds. Open doors.TM
Bibliography
Selected Bibliography
<http://www.oregonstate.edu/~mellinma/ACRL2005/bibliography.doc>
Open minds. Open doors.TM