Week 7: Culture and Psychology 4 June 2020

Week 7: Culture and Psychology

4 June 2020

This post will cover the influence culture has on people’s psychology. It is interesting to see the connection between them.

Every culture shapes its people’s ideas and understandings of what a person’s character should be like, what a person should do or look like, based on gender. Worldwide, men and women are associated with certain characteristics and traits. For instance, in some cultures, men are expected to be strong, brave, minimum emotional, aggressive, engage in certain occupations (construction, engineering, astronomy, driving, politics), etc. As for women, they are supposed to know how to cook well, do house chores, work with children in schools, freely express emotions, etc. In other words, cultures create an “ought-self,” meanwhile, people also have a “real-self.” What matters is how much those two correspond and match. If people fit the format created by the local culture, then they will have better self-esteem.

Now, there some defects to this system. This process generates fears and diseases. For example, anorexia and schizophrenia are known to be culturally made. People often suffer because they just don’t fit into the local standards. However, it does not mean that those people are wrong in any way. They are just born in a culture that doesn’t yet understand or accept their unique talents.

Just like in every culture, I would like some concepts and ideas to be changed or improved in mine. For example, a woman driving a car is often not welcomed by men. Women, here, are stereotyped as bad drivers. Moreover, traditionally, they are not supposed to deal with cars. This does not mean that no woman drives here, but the culture makes things difficult. However, things are changing at a very low pace.

My home culture might potentially affect me in the TESOL classroom, but with the knowledge and new views I gain through my studies, I am able to look beyond the local standards. Additionally, I think that not only teachers but also students should be informed about cultural diversity. They should raise their cultural awareness just as much as teachers do. It will help avoid major conflicts and problems that might potentially arise in the classroom.

 

References
https://video.byui.edu/media/06+Culture+and+Psychology/0_s4h3d6bc

 

Mane Mamajanyan