Cultural Differences

Cultural Differences

This paper will cover two multicultural concepts; cultural identity and racial identity, and provide the significance in understanding cultural differences. Throughout the world, there are different cultures and each culture have its own differences and similarities. Culture refers to a set of shared values, beliefs, and norms held by individuals of a group. Culture includes customs, material artifacts, and language transmitted from generation to generation (Hall, 2010).

Excluding other countries, several cultural differences are represented in the United States. People have different perceptions of the world, they dress differently, have different languages, and display diversity in expressing his or her personality. It is one thing to be different in a group compared to differences within a culture. According to The World, 2013, "A culture can be said to be those beliefs, traditions, and institutions that create and mediate individual, community, and national identity" (What is culture? 2013, p. 1). For example, an individual's personality, beliefs, or education affects that individual's behavior and values. Although in a group, an individual's behavior, personality, beliefs, or values does not necessary represent that of a culture.

Cultural Identity

Cultural Identity is an individual's personal history and how he or she can be referred to as an individual. An individual's culture is generally where he or she is from (geographic), the language he or she speaks and his or her religion. Typically, a person eats according to his or her culture. For example, it is believed that Chinese's primarily food is rice or African American's primarily food items are soul food.

Also a person's practices are according to his or her religion. For example, most Christians believe, practice, and celebrate Christmas, Easter, and other cultural religious holidays. An individual's identity includes age, ethnicity, gender, even employment. A person's upbringing affects a person's identity. For example, if a person's family environment was considered bad, people outside the family may have the impression that an individual of the family is bad or if quite a few members of a family consist of drug users, outsiders may perceive that everyone in the family is a drug user, even if that individual is not a drug user.

Cultural identity also involves cultural backgrounds. People throughout the world are identified by his or her cultural background. Cultural backgrounds include race, religion, beliefs, values, gender, morals, sexual orientation as well as social views, political positions, and family. Some cultures have comparable views, whereas views of other cultures are set apart. Some cultures share similar views, but many cultural views are distinctively different from other cultures.

The United States has faith in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Similar to the United States, other nations have similar views in their culture. Canada's belief is peace, order, and good government (Ian, 2012). Cultural diversity is also defined by social and family structure. For example, the United States' social structure is a three-class model; upper class, middle class, and lower class. An individual's social status, wealth, success, and education, are the determinants of what social class a person falls in.

For example, the upper class is those