1, read the attachment and answer the 3 Q. #.How did you identify yourself growing up as a child: Did you see your family as a part of the dominant culture or from a co-culture? ##.What values, attit

3-1aDominant Cultures, Co-Cultures, and Cultural Identity

Dominant culture refers to the learned system of norms held by the majority group of empowered people in a society. The dominant culture of the United States has evolved over time. It once strictly reflected and privileged the values of white, western European, English-speaking, Protestant, heterosexual men. Before the 1960s, people immigrating to the United States were expected to adapt to this dominant culture in place of the culture of their native country. Immigrants even changed their names to sound more American. They were expected to learn English quickly and use it instead of other languages. Since the 1960s, however, the United States has begun to experience a gradual modification of the dominant culture to demonstrate respect for the diverse cultures that co-exist here.

In addition to embracing the dominant American culture, then, many people also identify with one or more co-cultures. A co-culture is a group comprised of a smaller number of people who hold common values, beliefs, attitudes, and customs that differ from those of the dominant culture.

Co-culture also influences communication behavior. For example, co-cultural group members sometimes code switch, altering their linguistic and nonverbal patterns to conform to the dominant or co-culture depending on the topic and participants involved in a conversation (MacSwan, 2013) (Photo 3.2). So Linh may speak Vietnamese and defer to her older relatives while conversing at the dinner table. She may speak English and question her teachers openly during class discussions at school. And she may speak a mixture of Vietnamese and English (as well as slang and other accepted in-group jargon) when hanging out with friends. If you are familiar with the movie Windtalkers, you might know that the film is based on the real-life role Navajo code switchers played in Saipan during World War II (Jackson, 2004). You can see a short story about these Navajo code switchers on the Navajo Code Talkers Web site.

Cultural identity is the part of our self-concept that is based on how closely we associate with both the dominant culture and various co-cultures (Ting-Toomey & Chung, 2012). For example, you may be proud to be a third-generation Polish American who embraces the co-culture of your heritage through communication patterns, religion, food choices, and so on. Or you might identify more with the dominant American culture and rarely think about being Polish. If the dominant culture stigmatizes your co-culture, you might downplay this part of your identity to fit into the dominant culture or identify even more closely with the co-culture and become a vocal activist for it. For example, Cindy is a Polish American who hid that fact while growing up because her classmates often told jokes that stigmatized Polish Americans as foolish and unintelligent.

Some of the co-cultures that exist in the United States today are formed around shared beliefs and values related to, for example, race, ethnicity, sex and gender, sexual orientation, religion, socioeconomic status, age or generation, and disability.

Race Traditionally, the term “race” was used to classify people based on physical, biological characteristics (e.g., skin and eye color, hair texture, body shape). However, today the use of the word “race” has become problematic and some scholars prefer to use the term “populations” instead (Waples & Gaggiotti, 2006). Nevertheless, people do experience the social effects of perceived race and form co-cultures based on similar experiences with respect to it (Rhodes, Lie, Ewing, Evangelista, & Tanaka, 2010). For example, the dominant American culture respects police officers as protectors. However, based on collective experiences of unjust treatment by some police officers, some African American co-cultures may not respect police officers as protectors, but instead view them with suspicion.

Ethnicity Whereas race is related to biological characteristics, ethnicity refers to a shared cultural heritage that is learned rather than inherited. The degree to which people identify with their ethnicity can vary greatly. For example, Maria and Juan are both Mexican Americans. Juan, who immigrated to the United States recently, continues to identify strongly with his ethnicity in terms of the foods he eats and the way he dresses. Maria, who is a fourth-generation Mexican American, identifies more as an American than a Mexican American.

Native (or first) language is the language of one’s ethnic heritage and is typically the language a person learns from birth. Native language obviously influences communication. Even after learning English, many immigrants choose to speak their native language at home and to live in close proximity to others from their home country. Although the United States is considered an English-speaking country, Spanish is the second most common language spoken here and is the primary language spoken at home by 38.3 million people in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). Not only that, Spanish is the third most common language used on the Internet (Global Internet Usage, 2014). So today, most toll-free telephone numbers offer the option of conversing in English or Spanish; most cable and satellite television packages include Spanish-language channels; and Spanish radio stations can be heard across the country.

Sex and Gender In the dominant American culture, sex (which consists of biologically determined physical traits) and gender (which consists of the learned roles and communication patterns deemed “appropriate” for males and females) tend to be intertwined. In other words, the dominant American culture expects men to communicate in masculine ways and women to communicate in feminine ways. If you have ever heard someone tell an outspoken young girl to “hush up and act like a lady,” or a weeping boy to “buck up and act like a man,” you have witnessed young people learning gender based on their sex. Generally, women who identify with the feminine gender co-culture may tend to speak more about their personal relationships, more easily describe their feelings, be more likely to include others in conversation, and actively respond to others (e.g., head nods, smiles). On the other hand, men who identify with masculine gender co-culture may focus more on tasks and outcomes, as well as emphasize control, competition, and status (Wood, 2010). Obviously, people differ in the extent to which they identify with these gendered co-cultures, and those who do not strongly identify with them may not behave in accord with these expectations at all (Photo 3.3).

Sexual Orientation The dominant American culture has historically valued and privileged heterosexuality. People who deviated from the heterosexual norm were severely mistreated (Photo 3.4). Although laws that reflect a change in attitude toward sexuality are gaining popularity, people who are not heterosexual still face discrimination, as well as legal and physical threats. Thus, co-cultures exist across the country based on the collective experiences of those who embrace a sexual orientation that is not heterosexual. Although many people are working hard to modify the dominant American culture with regard to sexual orientation, and some progress has been made, much remains to be done.

Religion A religion is a belief system with a set of rituals and ethical standards based on a common perception of what is sacred or holy. Although the dominant culture in the United States values religious freedom, historically it has privileged monotheistic Judeo-Christian values and practices. However, many religious co-cultures exist harmoniously across the country today. Unfortunately, some people in the United States have become prejudiced against Muslims based on a misunderstanding that inaccurately equates all Muslims with Al-Qaeda, the militant group responsible for the 9/11 terrorist attacks and, more recently, ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, which promotes extreme violence and mass killings in the name of its extremist religious ideology. These terrorist groups, however, are not representative of Muslim religious views. About 23 percent (1.6 billion people) of the world’s population is Muslim, and among the core values of this religion are peace, mercy, and forgiveness (DeSilver, 2013; Faruqi, 2007).

Socioeconomic Status (SES) Socioeconomic status (SES) is the position of a person or family in the power hierarchy of a society based on income, education, and occupation. SES is typically divided into three categories: high, middle, and low. Most Americans identify with the middle class even though they may really be members of a higher or lower class (U.S. Department of Commerce, 2010). People develop co-cultures that reinforce distinct values, rituals, and communication practices based on SES. Although not true in all cases, parents in low SES groups tend to emphasize obedience, acceptance of what others think, and hesitancy in expressing desires to authority figures. Middle-class parents tend to emphasize intellectual curiosity. Such differences based on SES may lead those from middle-class backgrounds to speak more directly and assertively than people from lower-class backgrounds. And, in terms of nonverbal communication, people of high SES backgrounds tend to perform more disengagement cues (e.g., doodling) and fewer engagement cues (e.g., head nods, laughs) than people from low SES backgrounds (Bornstein & Bradley, 2003; Kraus & Keltner, 2009). Finally, SES is at the heart of the American dream. Unfortunately, however, recent reports suggest that “the widening gap between the rich and poor is eroding the American dream” (Lynch, 2013).

Age/Generation People born and raised in the same generation may identify with a co-culture distinct to it. Although not all people identify with their generational co-culture, generally speaking, people who grew up during the Great Depression tend to be frugal and those who grew up during World War II tend to value sacrifice of self for cause and country. Baby Boomers who came of age during the turbulent 1960s are likely to question authority. Many Generation Xers, who grew up as latch-key kids(with parents at jobs outside the home when they got home from school), are likely to be self-sufficient and adaptable. Millennials (a.k.a. Generation Y and Generation NeXt), who grew up during the 1990s and came of age after 9/11, have never known life without computers, became aware of the realities of school and world violence at an early age, and experienced globalization. They tend to be adept at using technology to multitask, be cautious about issues of safety, and appreciate diversity (Pew Research Center, 2007). Finally, Generation Z (a.k.a. the Internet Generation or Digital Natives) were born after the Cold War era and the fall of the Soviet Union. They have never known a world without instant access to information via Internet searches on computers and smart phones, nor access to others via text messaging and social media sites like Facebook. They are adept at multitasking, as well as learning and using new technologies such as gaming (Prensky, 2001; Wallice, 2006).