Module 3 ConclusionThrough this module’s online lectures and textb.docx
- 1. Module 3 Conclusion Through this module’s online lectures and textbook readings, you analyzed how values and ethics are developed. You also evaluated the importance of accepting and managing diversity effectively. Here are the key points covered:The six value orientations— individualism or collectivism; preferred personality; view of human nature; human-nature relationship; power distance; long- term vs. short-term orientation—all influence how individuals and groups understand and respond to the world, which in turn, affects how they interact with others.In addition to being truthful, ethical communication involves deciding which information can and should be disclosed or withheld as well as assessing the benefits or harm associated with specific messages.Truthfulness plays a fundamental role in ethical communication due to two reasons, you expect messages to be truthful and messages have consequences. The ethical consequences of sharing or withholding information depend on whether it is likely to help people to make informed decisions or not. A message is considered legitimately private when other parties have no right to expect access to it. Finally, to be an effective communicator, you have to discern the benefits or harm associated with your messages.The process of determining ethical choices and decisions can be based on both individual perspective and communal perspective. When ethics are discussed in an organizational context, the rights of the individual, such as the right to free speech or privacy, assume importance. However, a communal approach focuses on the common good or the best interests of the entire community. The morality of an action is assessed based on its consequences for the group.The three barriers to accepting diversity include preconceptions or lack of knowledge, stereotyping, and prejudice. These internal barriers however, can be overcome by increasing motivation, increasing knowledge of self and others, and avoiding stereotypes.Diversity can enhance your
- 2. interpersonal effectiveness by increasing your opportunities, enhancing your abilities at work, and improving your self- awareness. Diversity; Interpersonal Effectiveness Learning about and accepting diversity can improve your interpersonal effectiveness and increase your personal and professional opportunities. It also allows you to widen your circle of friends and acquaintances and may even open up new business opportunities by helping you work in or manage diverse work groups. Learning about diversity can increase your effectiveness at work. It can also help improve your ability to communicate with colleagues and customers or clients who differ from you. This may pave the way for organizational rewards and opportunities. In addition, accepting diversity and honing your skills in this area can enhance your self-awareness. Part of accepting and understanding diversity is the ability to understand and critique your own cultural beliefs and values. This understanding can help inform the choices you make or lead you to new experiences and beliefs. Overcoming Barriers to Diversity Now that you are aware of the three barriers to accepting diversity in any environment, you will look at some ways to overcome these barriers, listed as follows: Increase Your Motivation Perhaps the most important component to overcoming the barriers to accepting diversity is motivation. Without the motivation to be an effective communicator, no other skills will be relevant. For example, part of the problem in longstanding inter-ethnic or inter-religious conflicts is the lack of interest, on both sides, in communicating more effectively. Some parties on both sides may even have an interest in prolonging conflict. To resolve conflict, a strong desire to improve communication skills is, therefore, necessary.
- 3. Increase Your Knowledge of Self and Others In addition to being motivated, you must also educate yourself about intercultural communication to become a more effective communicator. For example, having some knowledge about the history, background, and values of people from other cultures can help you communicate with them better. When you demonstrate this type of knowledge to people from other cultures, you communicate that you are interested in them and affirm their sense of identity. Obviously, no one can ever learn everything about every culture; nonetheless, some general information can be helpful and can help create awareness of the importance of context. Self-knowledge is also very important. For example, if you were socialized to be very individualistic, you may initially have a hard time understanding collectivistic tendencies. Once you become aware of these differences, however, you can more easily communicate with people of different perspectives. If you grew up in a middle-class family, this may also influence your perceptions. Many middle-class people assume that anyone can become middle class through hard work. However, this view overlooks the discrimination that some immigrants and minority groups face. How can you increase your cultural self- awareness? Perhaps the best way is to cultivate intercultural encounters and relationships. Avoid Stereotypes Cultural differences may lead to stereotyping and prejudices. Furthermore, stereotyping can become self-fulfilling (Appel & Kronberger, 2012). If you stereotype people and treat them in a prejudiced or negative manner, they may react in ways that reinforce your stereotype. On the other hand, overreacting by being very sweet can be equally off-putting. African Americans sometimes complain about being “niced” to death by white people (Yamato, 2001), and this complaint appears to continue (Alberts, Nakayama, & Martin, 2015). Try to pay attention to
- 4. situations in which you might be stereotyping. For example, do you look for instances of behavior that counter your stereotypes? Or do you notice only those that fulfill them? References: Alberts, J. K., Nakayama, T. K., & Martin, J. N. (2015). Human communication in society (4th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson. Appel, M., & Kronberger, N. (2012). Stereotypes and the achievement gap:Stereotype threat prior to test taking. Educational Psychology Review, 24(4), 609−635. Yamato, G. (2001). Something about the subject makes it hard to name. In M. L. Andersen & P. H. Collins (Eds.), Race, class and gender: An anthology (pp. 90–94). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Module 3 Overview Evaluate the role cross-cultural communication plays with respect to performance and functionality in international business.Analyze organizational communications by using the functional, meaning-centered, and emerging perspectives approaches.Identify barriers to establishing and maintaining positive values and ethical practices regarding diversity and suggest approaches to abrogate or overcome these barriers, from domestic and international perspectives.Analyze dyadic communication within an organization and evaluate the effects that power, diversity, and conflict have on interpersonal effectiveness (from both domestic and international/global perspectives). Every organization has a set of values and ethics that forms the basis for its members' behaviors. These values and ethics may relate to equality, humanity, and power, and most organizations use them to define acceptable standards and behaviors for their members. Most organizations also hope to achieve excellence in their field while following their ethical code. However, what is hoped for and what is achieved are not always the same. At times, leaders and employees may not be communicating well interpersonally. There might be differences
- 5. in value and ethics resulting from the misinterpretation of the organization’s stated ethics policy with the individual cultural ethics in a diverse workplace. Also, there may be intrapersonal challenges, whereby a leader’s or follower’s personal beliefs, values, and ethics do not align with what the organization expects or perhaps what is expected in another country (think globally) when factoring in the international business component. How are individual and organizational values reconciled in your organization? What are the possible barriers to communication in a diverse workforce? What are the possible communication barriers in an international/global workforce or business partner situation? Can you identify some strategies for overcoming these barriers and encouraging the acceptance of diversity? This module will explore and answer all of these questions. In this module, you will briefly review the six value orientations that impact individual beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. You will also analyze ethical communication in organizations at both individual and corporate (domestic and international) levels. Finally, you will delineate the three barriers to diversity, explore the strategies for overcoming them, and discuss how accepting and learning about diversity is related to interpersonal effectiveness, both domestically and internationally. This module’s lectures and the assigned textbook readings will cover individual and organizational values, ethical behavior, and the relationship between communication and diversity. Ethics and the Organization From debates over drug tests, affirmative action, and high salaries for chief executing officers (CEOs) of struggling companies to outrage over business scandals in corporations such as Enron and WorldCom, Americans are paying more attention to business ethics than ever before. However, observers do not always agree on where the responsibility for ethical behavior rests within an organization. When determining what ethical choices and decisions an organization should make,
- 6. people usually view the process in one of two ways:Individual perspectiveCommunal perspective (Widdows, 2013) Many Americans take an individualistic perspective, viewing ethical failures as resting on the shoulders of the individuals within the organization. From this perspective, each person in the corporation is responsible for his or her own behavior. In the communal view, however, individuals are considered to be members of communities that are all partially responsible for the ethical behavior of their members. This means that changing an individual's behavior requires a change in the community as a whole. Ethics discussions in an organizational context tend to focus on individual rights, such as the right to free speech or privacy. Policies and behaviors that infringe on these rights are seen as unethical. However, a communal approach focuses on the common good or what is in the best interests of the entire community. The morality of an action is assessed based on its consequences for the group. For example, in an individualistic approach, discussions regarding drug abuse in the workplace usually center on whether organizations should be allowed to infringe on the employee's right to privacy. From a communal approach, however, the discussion would revolve around what types of drug policies are the most likely to promote the good of the community, the employer, and the employee. On the contrary, when you view corporations in the communal way and hold them responsible for unethical practices (such as dumping toxic waste), no single individual is held accountable or liable. Consequently, those responsible for the decision to engage in unethical and, often, illegal practices may not suffer any consequences and may be free to continue these practices. How will you balance these two approaches? You need to hold both the community and the individuals who lead it responsible for their practices. For example, political leaders are tried in war courts for crimes against humanity even though their subordinates performed the atrocities. At the same time, when
- 7. making decisions, corporate leaders need to consider the effects of their decisions on both individuals and society. What role does communication play in organizational ethics? Communication figures in organizational ethics in many ways (Mainiero & Jones, 2013). First, many of the ethical issues in organizations revolve around communication. Organizations have to decide when to tell employees about impending layoffs; they have to develop advertising campaigns that communicate the identity of their corporation and its products to consumers and they must decide how to communicate information regarding their profits and losses to shareholders and Wall Street. Further, organizations must decide what types of employee communications are ethical and what media is allowable in the workplace (Mainiero & Jones, 2013). Second, the ways in which an organization defines, communicates, and responds to ethical and unethical behavior shape how individuals within the organization behave. If corporate policy and organizational leaders are vague on the issue of ethics or, even worse, fail to address ethics, employees may believe that ethics are not a central concern of the organization and may behave accordingly. For example, in 2014, Brook published an article in USA Today regarding documents that had been secured and alleging how hundreds of millions of dollars had been awarded to soldiers as kickbacks for persuading friends to enlist. In 2005, Esquire Magazine published an article about the alleged ethical violations of military recruiters. The military personnel interviewed for the article claimed that despite written policies encouraging ethical behavior, recruiters were violating policies and ethics standards in order to meet the recruitment goals. Perhaps the recruiters believe that recruiting ethically is secondary or perhaps even an unnecessary consideration in order to meet recruiting goals. So a question that likely comes to mind is, why might recruiters think in this manner? Shortly after Brook’s article, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made statements acknowledging military ethics violations and alleged
- 8. military ethics violations and said that there needed to be increased urgency in addressing the ethics violations (WJLA News, 2014). So far you have learned about organizational principles that affect employee communication and behavior. Next, you will examine how another organizational principle—diversity— impacts employees and their relationships with one another and their companies. References: Brook, T. V. (2014). Recruiting fraud, kickback scandal rocks Army. USA Today.Retrieved from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/03 /army- national-guard-bogus-bonus-payments-iraq- afghanistan/5182717/ Mainiero, L. A., & Jones, K. J. (2013). Workplace romance 2.0: Developing a communication ethics model to address potential sexual harassment from inappropriate social media contacts between coworkers. Journal of Business Ethics, 114(2), 367– 379. Widdows, H. (2013). The connected self: The ethics and governance of the genetic individual. Cambridge, NY: Cambridge University Press. WJLA News. (2014, February 5). Defense Secretary Hagel addresses ethical issues in military. Retrieved from http://wjla.com/news/local/defense-secretary-hagel-addresses- military-ethics-99943 Ethics and Individual Now, let us take a look at some of the attributes and responsibilities of individuals when communicating ethically. Truthfulness Truthfulness plays a fundamental role in ethical communication for two reasons:Others expect messages to be truthful.Messages have consequences. People inherently expect speakers to communicate truthfully, which makes their being deceived easier (Ozar, 2013). If an
- 9. audience is not suspicious, they probably will not look for cues that the speaker is lying (Ozar, 2013). However, because of the implicit contract to be honest, the discovery of deception can severely damage relationships. The more intimate the relationship, the greater the expectations of honesty and the more damaging any deception will be. The second reason why messages should be truthful is the possible consequences of deception. Your communication can influence the beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors of others. Deceptive communication could persuade a customer to purchase an item, a friend to loan you money, or an acquaintance to go on a date with you. The more consequential the outcome of your message, the more you will be held accountable for the truth. For example, you might not be criticized too harshly for exaggerating your salary when flirting with a stranger, but an employer would probably consider lying about your salary on a job application grossly unethical. Sharing or Withholding Information Another fundamental principle of ethical communication concerns what information should be divulged and what can be withheld. When is withholding information a matter of legitimate privacy, and when is withholding information a matter of inappropriate secrecy? For example, telling the significant other the number of previous sexual partners is up to each individual. A message can be considered legitimately private when other parties have no right to expect access to the message. Inappropriate secrecy, on the other hand, occurs when other parties might legitimately expect access to a withheld message. This distinction is important because, typically, maintaining privacy is ethical but engaging in secrecy may be unethical. Communicators have an ethical responsibility to share information that other people need to make informed decisions. On the other hand, revealing information can sometimes be unethical. For example, if you have agreed to maintain
- 10. confidentiality about a topic, revealing what you know could be considered unethical. However, if you violate a confidence because of a higher ethical principle, most people would consider your behavior ethical. Benefit and Harm of Messages Finally, to make the most ethical choice, you should consider the benefit or harm associated with your message. One classic example concerns whether lying to a potential murderer about the whereabouts of the intended victim is right or ethical. A principle of honesty suggests that you should tell the truth. But, in this case, once you evaluate the potential harm of sharing versus withholding the information, you might well decide to withhold the information. However, most issues of harm and benefit are less clear. Since many communication events are complex and the underlying ethical principles are not definitive, you will gradually develop your own philosophy of ethical communication and apply such ethical communication on a case-by-case basis. This is one requirement of being an effective communicator. Reference: Ozar, A. (2013). Sincerity, honesty, and communicative truthfulness.Philosophy Today, 57(4), 343−357. Six Value Orientations Now, let’s briefly discuss each of these six value orientations. Individualism or Collectivism One of the most central value orientations is whether an organization or individual prioritizes the rights and needs of the individual or those of the group. Believers in individualism respect autonomy and independence. They do not meddle in another's problems unless invited. On the other hand, individuals who are more collectivistic in nature tend to stress
- 11. group needs over individual ones. For example, many North American and Northern European cultural groups value individualism and independence. These cultural groups believe that one's primary responsibility is to one's self (Janakova & Magdolen, 2013). In contrast, many cultures in South America and Asia (Ho, 1987) hold a more collectivistic orientation (Hofstede, 2001; Triandis, 1995). For collectivists, the primary responsibility of an individual is to his or her relationships with others. Collectivists tend to view the interdependence in family, work, and personal relationships as a positive trait and thus value group harmony over independence and self-sufficiency. Preferred Personality Preferred personality describes whether an individual or group believes it is more important to do or to be (Kluckhohn & Strodtbeck, 1961). In the United States, researchers have found that doing is the preferred value for many people—because it allows for some future achievement as each goal is achieved— including European Americans, Asian Americans, and African Americans (James, 2015; Stewart & Bennett, 1991). In general, the doing mode means working hard to achieve material gains even if it means sacrificing time with family and friends. Other cultural groups, such as Latinos, prefer the being mode, which emphasizes the importance of experiencing life and the people around them fully even if this experience limits personal financial gains (Hecht, Sedano, & Ribeau, 1993; James, 2015). View of Human Nature View of human nature refers to whether a person sees humans as fundamentally good, evil, or a mixture of both. The Puritans, a group of people who believed that human nature was fundamentally evil, settled in the United States in the 17th century and are commonly known for having influenced the Salem witch hunts (Reed, 2015). Even in modern and post- modern times, cultural groups, such as some fundamentalist
- 12. religions which view humans as essentially evil, emphasize punishment over rehabilitation. During the same time, a shift occurred and was reflected in the US legal system, which has traditionally emphasized rehabilitation, suggesting a view of humans as potentially good. However, some evidence of the early 21st century indicates that Americans in general may be moving again toward the aforementioned view of human nature although arguably not to the extreme view of the Puritans. Recent laws, such as the three strikes rule, emphasize punishment over rehabilitation by automatically sending to prison anyone who is convicted of a crime three times although even this practice has come under debate (Sutton, 2013). Human-Nature Relationship The human-nature value orientation portrays how an individual or organization sees the relationship between humans and nature. At one end of this value continuum is the view that humans are intended to rule nature. At the other extreme, nature is seen as ruling humans. In a third option, the two exist in harmony. The predominant value in the United States has been one of humans ruling over nature, as evidenced by the proliferation of controlled environments. In contrast, many people in the Middle East view nature as having predominance over humans. This belief that one’s fate is held by nature is reflected in the common Arabic saying Enchallah (Allah willing), suggesting that nature will (and should) determine, for example, how crops grow. Finally, many American Indians/Native Americans and Asians value harmony with nature. Followers of this cultural orientation believe that nature enriches human life and that humans and nature should coexist as one. Power Distance Power distance, the fifth value orientation, refers to the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organizations within a culture expect and accept an unequal
- 13. distribution of power (Hofstede, 2001). In Denmark, Israel, and New Zealand, for example, many people value small power distances, and most people believe that inequality—while inevitable—should be minimized. Societies that value large power distance—for example, Mexico, Philippines, and India—are structured around a hierarchy in which each person has a rightful place. Interactions between supervisors and subordinates are more formal (Hofstede, 2001). Seniority, age, rank, and titles are emphasized more in these societies than in small power distance societies. When working internationally, understanding how different cultures value power distance enhances functional communications, and thus, results in functionally effective business relationships. Long-Term vs. Short-Term Orientation This dimension reflects a society’s attitude toward virtue or truth. A short-term orientation characterizes cultures in which people are concerned with possessing one fundamental truth. This is reflected in the monotheistic (belief in one god) religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Other qualities associated with a short-term orientation are an emphasis on quick results, individualism, and personal security and safety (Hofstede, 1997). In contrast, a long-term orientation tends to respect the demands of virtue. This idea is reflected in several polytheistic (believe in more than one god) Eastern religions, such as Confucianism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Shintoism. Other qualities associated with a long-term orientation include thrift, perseverance, tenacity, and the willingness to subordinate oneself for a higher purpose (Nielsen, 2015). An understanding of cultural values is essential because they greatly influence peoples’ behavior and communication. Communicating in highly diverse organizations involves confronting and responding to individuals who possess entirely different sets of cultural values. For example, team members who value collectivism also tend to have a long-term
- 14. orientation. Such team members may be more comfortable with large power differences and putting relationships before productivity. In addition, these team members are also more likely to believe that a person need not hurry to create solutions and that the powerful members of the organization should retain most of the decision-making. References: Hecht, M., Sedano, M., & Ribeau, S. (1993). Understanding culture, communication, and research: Application to Chicanos and Mexican Americans. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 17(2),157–165. Ho, M. K. (1987). Family therapy with ethnic minorities. Newbury Park,CA: Sage. Hofstede, G. (1997). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mindRev. ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s consequences (2nd ed.).Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. James, A. B. (2015). Teaching children who are hard to reach.Reclaiming Children and Youth, 23(4), 56−61. Janakova, H., & Magdolen, L. (2013). Creative impact measure of cross-cultural managerial aspects. Creative and Knowledge Society, 3(2), 16−27. Kluckhohn, F., & Strodtbeck, F. (1961). Variations in value orientations.Evanston, IL: Row, Peterson. Nielsen, K. (2015). Background and history of Confucianism— A literature review. Unpublished manuscript, Birkbeck Institutional ResearchOnline, Birkbeck College, University of London, London, UK.Retrieved from http://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/12459/ Reed, I. A. (2015). Deep culture in action: Resignification, synecdoche,and metanarrative in the moral panic of the Salem Witch Trials.Theory and Science, 44(1), 65−94. Stewart, E. C., & Bennett, M. J. (1991). American cultural patterns: A cross-cultural perspective. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press. Sutton, J. R. (2013). Symbol and substance: Effects of
- 15. California's three strikes law on felony sentencing. Law and Society Review, 47(1), 37−71. Triandis, H. (1995). Individualism and collectivism. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Communication Ethics Defining Communication Ethics Values describe an individual’s beliefs and attitudes. Ethics, on the other hand, refer to how individuals enact their values in specific behaviors and choices. More specifically, ethics refer to the standards of what is right and wrong, good and bad, or moral and immoral; they are the rules or codes by which people abide (Hazels, 2015). Communication ethics describe the standards of right and wrong that one applies to messages that are sent and received. When you hear the term communication ethics, you might assume the phrase simply refers to whether messages are truthful. Although truthfulness is one fundamental ethical standard, communicating ethically requires much more than simply being truthful. Truthfulness also involves deciding what information can and should be disclosed or withheld as well as assessing the benefit or harm associated with specific messages. Each individual has a responsibility to evaluate the ethics of his or her own and others’ communication efforts. Similarly, organizations should weigh the ethics of sharing or withholding information that might affect the value of their stock shares. Also, broadcasting companies should decide whether reporting private information about individuals is ethical. Reference: Hazel, T. (2015). Ethics and morality: What should be taught in business law?Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 19(2), 77−89. Values Values are beliefs, attitudes, or conceptions regarding the ideals of how the world should be. Individual choices and interpretations are influenced by a person’s particular values.
- 16. An individual is likely to be more successful when working for an organization whose values mirror his or her own. When this occurs, the employee is likely to feel that he or she fits in with the organization. Diverse organizations are not only increasingly common but also tend to be more successful, creative, and productive. How do you think organizations and their members integrate their values effectively when they are made up of diverse individuals? In part, they do so by understanding the six basic value orientations and how individuals and cultures may vary across them and accepting these differences. Does your organization do this? Although some cultures overall are more likely to endorse a specific value orientation, any individual may have his or her own unique set of value orientations. The six basic value orientations are individualism or collectivism, preferred personality, view of human nature, human-nature relationship, power distance, and long-term vs. short-term orientation. Communication and Diversity Barriers According to the Population Reference Bureau (2014), the US population will reach a point by 2043, when Caucasians will no longer be a majority, given the growth of Latino, Asian, and multi-racial segments of the citizenry. The populations in the African continent will more than double to 2.1 billion by 2050. Other developing nations are experiencing large population growth rates as well. Arguably, the ever-increasing global world and technology have led to the population increase and, as such, more peoples of the world will be interacting in global business ventures. Despite, or because of, this rapid growth in the diversity of organizational members, many coworkers may find managing and responding to their diverse work environments difficult. Frequently, these difficulties arise from one of three barriers to accepting diversity:Preconceptions or lack of knowledgeStereotypingPrejudice
- 17. Preconceptions or Lack of Knowledge To process large amounts of information every day, we tend to place things or people into groups. Grouping things or people is a natural, cognitive, and perceptual process that can lead to misperceptions. Categorizing can reduce complex individuals to a single category, and thus expects them to behave in ways consistent with their category, regardless of the circumstance. Individuals are often categorized based on limited knowledge and preconceptions. You might categorize an individual based on your perception of a person’s ethnicity (which may be wrong) and then assume that the individual endorses specific values based on that ethnicity. You may believe that your Japanese-American colleague endorses collectivism and large power differences while, in fact, your colleague may be a fourth-generation American who endorses individualism and low power differences. Although categorizing is natural and normal, you need to be aware of how your tendency to categorize may impede your understanding of others. Stereotyping Stereotyping is another barrier to accepting diversity. Stereotypes are a direct result of assumptions that overgeneralize the attributes of a particular group, often leading to stereotype threat within that group (Appel & Kronberger, 2012). You stereotype when you assume that every member of the group possesses certain characteristics. When you stereotype others, you may be basing your beliefs on your interactions with just a few individuals—or perhaps on no interactions at all. Stereotypes may also be based on information you have read, seen in the media images, or obtained from others. Once you develop a stereotype, it tends to influence what you expect from members of the stereotyped group. Stereotypes also influence what you perceive and how you interpret others’ behavior. When you hold these types of beliefs and expectations, they tend to erase a person’s individual
- 18. characteristics. You are likely to communicate with an individual as if your stereotypes were accurate, rather than basing your messages on the person’s actual behavior and communication. Over time, the person or group being stereotyped becomes psychologically uncomfortable or threatened due to the stereotype negativity (Appel & Kronberger, 2012). Prejudice Stereotypes often lead to prejudice. Prejudice occurs when people harbor negative feelings toward individuals because of their membership in a group (Rothenberg, 1992). Prejudice can be based on physical characteristics, ethnicity or perceived ethnicity, age, national origin, religious practices, and a number of other identity categories. Prejudice tends to arise out of feelings of ethnocentrism. Most people view their own group as the standard against which they evaluate others. Thus, one's own ethnic, regional, or class group is the one that seems right, correct, or normal. This tendency to view one's own group as the center against which all the others are judged is described as ethnocentrism. It comes from the Greek words "ethnos," which means nation, and "kentron," which refers to the center of a circle (Ting-Toomey, 1999). People behave ethnocentrically when they view their own values, norms, modes of belief, and behavior as better than those of the other groups. While everyone experiences ethnocentrism to some degree, it can lead to polarized thinking and behavior; if you are right, correct, normal, and even superior, then they must be wrong, incorrect, abnormal, and inferior. Such thinking can seriously interfere with the ability to communicate effectively with members of different groups. References: Appel, M., & Kronberger, N. (2012). Stereotypes and the achievement gap:Stereotype threat prior to test taking. Educational Psychology Review, 24(4), 609−635.
- 19. Population Reference Bureau. (2014). Persistent racial/ethnic gaps in theU.S. Retrieved from http://www.prb.org/Publications/Reports/2014/us-inequality- racial-ethnic-gaps.aspx Rothenberg, P. S. (1992). Race, class and gender in the United States: An integrated study. New York, NY: St. Martin’s Press. Ting-Toomey, S. (1999). Communicating across cultures. New York, NY:Guildford.