COURSE AIM

To develop your understanding of culture, diversity and multicultural society.

COURSE STRUCTURE AND CONTENTS

There are 8 lessons in this course as follows: 

Lesson 1. Cultural Diversity

• Introduction.
• Defining culture.
• Elements of culture.
• Societal structures and processes.
• Subcultures.
• Key areas of cultural diversity.
• Cultural behaviour.
• Values.
• Social discourse.
• Ideology.
• Expectations.
• Problems.

Lesson 2. Cultural Self-Awareness

• Introduction.
• Defining cultural self.
• Environmental influences.
• Family or social group.
• Definitions of self.
• Psychological influences.
• Human nature.
• Personal autonomy.
• Socio economic and political influences.
• Emphasis or minimisation of cultural diversity.
• Code switching.
• Physical environmental influences.

Lesson 3. Prejudice and Racism

• Introduction.
• Ingroups or outgroups.
• Ethnocentrism.
• What is prejudice.
• Functions of prejudice.
• How we measure prejudice.
• Theoretical perspectives on prejudice.
• Stereotypes.
• Functions of stereotypes.
• Dangers of using stereotypes.
• Discrimination.
• Social discrimination.
• Racism.
• Institutional or structural racism.
• Perception.
• Perceptual change.
• Cognitive dissonance.
• Perceptual defence.
• Reducing prejudice.
• Changing stereotypes.
• Developing cultural sensitivity.
• Belonging to a dominant culture.

Lesson 4. Working with Culturally Different Clients

• Introduction.
• Communicating across cultures.
• Principles of communication.
• Cultural differences.
• Communicating intimate information.
• The culturally skilled worker.
• Conformity.
• Factors affecting conformity.

Lesson 5. Barriers to Effective Multi-Cultural Relationships

• Abnormality.
• The counsellor's culture.
• The clients culture.
• Individual differences.
• Cross cultural communication hurdles.
• Culture shock.
• Non-verbal communication.
• Developing trust.
• Formal judgements.
• Culture and child development.
• Coping with change.

Lesson 6. Developing Cultural Competence

• Introduction.
• Culturally competent service delivery.
• Culturally appropriate service.
• Culturally accessible service.
• Culturally acceptable service.
• Training for cultural change.
• Cross culture counselling in disaster situations.
• The role of family.
• Working with other cultures.

Lesson 7. Multicultural Mental Health Issues

• Introduction.
• Problems with cultural difference in psychology.
• Cultural influences on mental health.
• Culture bound syndromes.
• Trance and possession disorder.
• Factors affecting grief and bereavement: social, psychological and cultural
  influences.

Lesson 8.  Shortcomings of Contemporary Counselling Theories and Future Developments

• Introduction.
• Culture shock.
• Stages in cultural shock and adjustment.
• Post traumatic stress disorder.
• Treatments for culture distress.
• Successful intercultural adjustment.

LESSON AIMS

• Develop an awareness and appreciation of cultural diversity.
• Explain the cultural awareness of the self through verbal and non-verbal means.
• Explain the origins and influences of prejudice and racism.
• Explain the impact of culture when working with culturally different clients.
• Explain bias toward and barriers against effective multi-cultural relationships.
• Explain the fundamentals of developing and implementing cultural competence.
• Describe multi-cultural attitudes toward mental health issues.

WHAT YOU WILL DO IN THIS COURSE

• Learn what is meant by the term ‘culture’, and different cultural groups.
• Discuss ‘cultural diversity’ and identify problems associated with it.
• Discuss ‘intra-cultural’ and ‘inter-cultural’ contact to managing cultural diversity.
• Identify reasons that people and groups make inter-cultural contact.
• Explore how we communicate non-verbally.
• Identify ways (verbal and non-verbal) that we communicate our identification to a cultural group.
• In what ways a minority culture influences a dominant culture.
• Ways that people and groups adapt to other cultures.
• Explain the term ‘individualism-collectivism’.
• Define the terms - ‘ethnocentrism’, 'prejudice’, ‘racism’, ‘stereotype’, ‘discrimination’.
• Explore the role of stereotyping by a dominant culture in perceived discrimination by an immigrant community.
• Discuss how prejudice and/or racism help a group or person feel more comfortable about other cultures.
• Define ‘culture shock’.
• Identify barriers to communication that exist in inter-cultural communication situations.
• Identify strategies to ensure effective communication with a person from another culture.
• Explore the influence of culture differences when providing helping or counselling services to clients.
• Explore ways that people from different cultures deal with psychological or communication problems such as conflict, depression, mental health etc.

WHAT IS 'CULTURE'?

Culture is, at best, a nebulous concept that may be defined in quite different ways. People might hold very different perceptions of culture, and its significance in describing human activity, and our perceptions of culture can change in response to other influences. Multiculturalism, for instance, promotes a primarily behaviour-focused view of culture to support its political and social goals of making immigration and cultural diversity more acceptable to the dominant culture, and reducing the adverse effects of prejudice, racism and xenophobia. Acceptance of cultural diversity, from this perspective, includes ‘toleration’ (a problematic word) or acceptance of differences in family or group behaviour, artefacts, food, dress, religion, language and ethnic appearance. 

To help achieve this acceptance of cultural diversity, political and social leaders have promoted non-discriminatory language, ideas and values and emphasised the cultural benefits of cultural diversity (e.g. greater variety and richness of cultural traits and foods). Some of these efforts to increase acceptance and reduce prejudice have been labelled by some as “political correctness”, implying that it comes from political motives rather than a sincere desire for social harmony. However, multiculturalism (a term, by the way, that is falling out of favour) is often also supported by legal, political and social policies that can change the social and political nature of society a little or a great deal. 

Cultures can and do change over time in response to other developments, such as changing economic structure or ideology. In many countries, at present, tension has developed between conservative or even fundamentalist ideologies and more liberal or progressive ideologies, with each side vying for power and public support. These struggles are one example of the internal forces that can work to change culture, and they may affect a culture’s views on family, education, social responsibility, art and law. Consider the profound influence such ideological struggles in the 1970’s had on the social and political discourses and patterns of many Western countries. Western culture was radically altered in some respects, for example, concerning its attitudes to the West’s colonial past, women’s roles in society, the environment, and cultural difference. Ideology and social movements can lead to fundamental disagreement over a culture’s basic assumptions about truth, personal autonomy, political and social ethics, and national identity.

What Are the Advantages of Studying Multicultural Awareness With ACS Distance Education?

• You can start at any time to suit you.
• The courses are self-paced.
• You can study when and where suits you. They are flexible to fit in around you and your lifestyle.
• It is not just a course, it is a package of learning that includes – course notes, tutor feedback, self-assessment tests, research tasks and assignments.
• Our tutors are all experts in their field, with years of experience in psychology and counselling.
• They are also keen and enthusiastic about their subject and enjoy working with students to improve their knowledge and skills.
• Courses are also updated regularly to meet the demands of the changing needs for knowledge and to keep our courses up to date.

What Next?

Study multicultural awareness and learn more about diverse cultures and the multicultural world in which we live.

You can enrol today by clicking the “Enrol Now” button above.

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