TWELVE DIMENSIONS OF CULTURE 1

12 Dimensions Paper

Tamara Perk-Schlueter

8175564

HSF 1210

Debashis Dutta

February 13th, 2018

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Knowing one’s own culture is very important, and something that many people

often do not think about. Examining one’s culture is necessary in order to be aware of

their values and of the dominance they have over others. To begin, I am going to

examine how each of the twelve dimensions of culture apply to me. Then I will discuss

how sexual orientation, race, physical ability, income, and age from the diversity wheel

give me privilege over minority groups. I will conclude the paper by assessing what I

need to do in order to be sensitive and better aware of as I work with those who have

less privilege and dominance than I.

12 Dimensions of Culture

History

Unfortunately, I do not know much about the history of my background. I do not

know what group of Indigenous people I belong to because my father was adopted.

However, I am aware of the oppression that my people have had to and are still dealing

with to this day. When European settlers first arrived the traditions of my people were

taken away. This began a constant negative cycle that has and still does affect the

poverty surrounding native people, illnesses, and the lack of resources on reserves. A

whole generation of children also had their identity and culture forcefully taken from

them when residential schools began. These children were given new names, were not

allowed to speak their own language and were punished in an attempt to wash them of

their culture. My father believes he may have been a victim of the sixty’s scoop, this is

when many First Nations and Metis children were taken from their families and adopted

out to white families. I believe that this plays a role in me not knowing very much about
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my background in regards to my culture and family. My mother is German-Canadian,

and our family has been settled in Canada for many generations.

Value Orientation

Growing up, my family taught my siblings and me that the way we represent

ourselves and the way we treat others is incredibly important. My parents were

constantly reminding me about using my manners and acting in an appropriate way

especially when we were out in public. I remember always being told by my mother that

I needed to treat others the way I wanted them to treat me. That was probably the motto

of my childhood. I believe that the reason my parents such set high standards in this

area is because this is the way they judged whether or not someone else was a good

person. They also taught me that it was important to show respect to people who have

authority over me and to my elders in general. Overall, I appreciate that my parents

were so strict about these aspects of my life because I believe it has made me realize

how important it is to treat others respectfully.

Religion

Religion has never been a very important aspect of my life. My mother was

baptized and raised Lutheran, and my father is spiritual. While growing up, my parents

did not teach me about religion nor was I baptized. My father did not want any religion to

be pushed on me as a child and does not believe in religion. My father is Native

American and was adopted by a Christian family as a child, he was raised Protestant.

As my father grew up, he backed away from religion and learned more about his

background and says he is spiritual. I have not explored religion, and I would not say I

have any specific beliefs. I believe that there is a higher power, but I do not know very
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much about religion as I have never thought about it. Religion does not play a significant

role in my life, however, I would be open to learning more about it.

Social Status

The dimension of social status involves the social group I belong in based on

income, education, and occupation. I grew up in a middle-class family in terms of

income. My father has a university education and is a quality assurance engineer, and

my mother somewhat recently went back to college and works in healthcare. Even

though I knew that my family was well off, I also knew that it took my parents a lot of

hard work to get where they were. Despite my family being well off I was never too

spoiled and I knew that if I wanted something that I would have to work for it. I grew up

having many opportunities to be involved in recreational activities, and always had the

resources necessary to go to school and be successful.

Language and Communication

I have grown up in a time where most communication is done online. Social

media has become one of the primary ways in which we communicate with others. Due

to the fact that social media has such an important role in this generation, it causes a

distorted view of what life is really like. The images posted by public figures typically

convey that money and material items are the key to a happy life. Sometimes I feel

affected by this distorted view of what life is like and I have to reality check myself.

Personally, I use social media as a way to communicate with my friends and family quite

frequently. However, I also strongly value having face to face conversations. For me,

being able to spend time with others and communicate directly gives me the ability to

connect on a deeper level. As much as I appreciate the convenience of communicating

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at the touch of a button, I feel that it could never replace the feeling that having a great

face to face conversation provides.

Art and Expression

Although I am not an artist or a musician, I still find ways to express who I am

through the way I act. I enjoy helping others and making people laugh. I also enjoy

having deep conversations with my friends about different aspects of life. Sometimes

we talk about how we deal with the negative situations going on in our lives or how we

feel about things going on in the world. By doing this, it allows me to learn more about

myself and be able to express who I am to my close friends. I do not typically let other

people into my life and allow them to see who I really am, as I like to keep my life

relatively private. I also use social media as a way to express myself. I have a private

blog where I post photos and quotes that inspire me. Despite the fact that no one I know

can see this blog, I use it as a way to express who I am for my own benefit.

Clothing

While I was growing up, my parents did not have a lot of money to buy me

expensive clothes. I usually wore hand me downs and used clothing, and for the most

part, my parents picked out my clothes for me. As I got older, I started buying my own

clothes and my parents did not have much to say about what I decided to wear. In my

house there were no set rules about what I could and could not wear, however, I knew

that my mom and dad would not appreciate me dressing inappropriately so I never tried

to. My parents taught me that having the nicest clothes and material items was not

important. As I grew up I began to question this because everyone I knew had new
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brand name clothes and it seemed to be very important to them. Since then, I take what

my parents would want me to wear into consideration.

Family Life Process

While I was growing up my parents were not together and they had shared

custody of me. Despite spending most of my time with my mother, I would say that both

of my parents shared roles and provided for me fairly equally. They both provided for me

financially, took care of me as a baby, and provided equal nurturance to me as a child.

My mom was very busy when I was growing up so, in turn, my father was more active in

teaching me skills. He taught me how to read, write, and tie my shoes. He also taught

me recreational skills such as skating and riding a bike. However, I spent more time with

my mother therefore while I was growing up I was closer to her than I was to my father.

The role I had as a child was to follow the rules and expectations that were set out by

my parents. My parents would always try their best to hear me out but in the end, I was

expected to listen to what was told to me.

Diet and Food

My family has fluctuated quite a bit in regards to the food we eat. As a child my

family rarely out and when we did it was most often at restaurants. We also always ate

dinner as a family and I was not allowed to take my food anywhere except the dinner

table. However, now my family is the polar opposite of what we used to be like in

regards to how we eat. My parents work a lot and the majority of their meals are take

out. I try as often as possible to cook meals for my parents and encourage them to eat

food made at home, but I understand their busy lifestyle. I do not enjoy eating out as

often as they do and I normally make my own meals if they have ordered take out. I try
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to be very careful about the food I put in my body for health reasons. Growing up, table

etiquette was very important to my family and I was taught the rules for eating at the

table from the moment I could comprehend it. In the same way that the food we eat has

changed, so have my parents’ expectations for where and how I eat because we do not

normally eat together as a family.

Small Group Interaction

I prefer to be involved in smaller groups because it is hard for me to relate to a lot

of people. I like to be part of smaller groups and have fewer friends because I feel that I

can connect with them more. A lot of people do not understand my sense of humor and

may think I am just a negative person. I always try to use humor as a way to connect

with others because I enjoy making people laugh and feel comfortable. Having fewer

friends is not an issue for me because I would rather have a small group of friends that

are significant in my life than have a million friends who mean nothing to me.

Healing Beliefs and Rituals

I feel that because I was born in Canada and have always had access to health

care, my family never put much thought into any alternative medicine or therapy. My

family and I believe in going to the doctor for a health issue, and then following the

doctor’s advice and treatment whether it be medication, therapy, or surgery. Both of my

parents have suffered a heart attack and diabetes, and they truly appreciate how far

medical science has come. I know that my parents do not believe in alternative

medicine, which is one area where I do not have the same beliefs as them. Although I

do not know that much about alternative forms of medicine, I am interested in learning

more about them.

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Recreation

Within my family, we do not have specific activities that we do to have fun with

each other. We just enjoy spending time together in our daily lives. I am the same way

when it comes to my relationships with friends. I do not have a specific activity that I

enjoy doing with others for fun. I just enjoy spending time with my friends and having a

good time. This could be doing anything from driving around and talking, going to the

movies or bowling. These are some activities I enjoy doing with my friends, but I

normally base my friendships off of how much fun we can have while doing nothing in

particular. I appreciate the ability to enjoy myself without having to do something all the

time.

Privilege and Dominance

Sexual Orientation

My sexual orientation allows me to have dominance over others. Heterosexuality

is socially acceptable, and those who do not conform to what is acceptable face

oppression (Anzovino, T., & Boutilier, D., p. 33). I am heterosexual and compared to

those who are homosexual or of other sexual orientations I have more privilege in

several ways. For one, I have never been put in the position where I have to come out

about my sexuality to others. Other people typically just assume that another person is

heterosexual, therefore I have never had to justify my sexual identity. Because of this, I

have never had to worry about losing people I care about because they do not agree

with my sexual orientation. I also have more opportunity than those who are not

heterosexual. I am also permitted to marry the person I love. I could be living anywhere

in the world and have the ability to get married, whereas those who are not
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heterosexual may have to travel somewhere else to get married, or not have the ability

for their marriage or partnership to be legitimate and recognized by the government.

Another way I have privilege over non-heterosexual people is that I do not have to face

possible violence due to my sexual identity. I will never have to worry about being in

public and having someone harass me because I am straight.

Race

One of the most noticeable ways one can have dominance over another group is

race. I have white skin, and I have been told many times that because I am native that I

am lucky it is not physically apparent. Those who have to face racism in their everyday

life face much more discrimination than I will ever receive. They face individual

discrimination, systemic discrimination, and structural discrimination (Anzovino, T., &

Boutilier, D., p. 30). All types of discrimination have a negative effect regardless of the

discrimination was intentional. One’s skin color is one of the most prominent features

that other’s tend to notice immediately upon meeting someone. There are many

stereotypes and prejudice associated with different skin colors, and I have privilege over

others because my skin colour is considered “normal”. I never have to worry about

being singled out or harassed because of my race. I can go shopping, walk around in

pretty much any neighborhood, or even do something as normal as going to school

without being bothered because of my skin color or physical traits. Those who are of a

minority group may live in constant worry when performing everyday tasks out in public.

They never know how people around them are going to treat them and feel constantly

judged.
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Physical Ability

In society, being physically able to complete tasks independently and without the

need for assistance is also an area where I have dominance over others. The impact of

having a physical impairment can cause people to feel powerless and result in the

individual believing the stereotypes associated with their disability. This is called

internalized oppression (Anzovino, T., & Boutilier, D., p. 32). I am lucky to be in a

position where I do not have any physical impairments, as I recognize anything could

happen to cause a physical impairment at any point in life. I know that when I want to go

somewhere or complete an activity that I can do this without the help of others. I never

have to worry about if the destination I am going to has a wheelchair ramp, I have the

ability to communicate with whoever I want without using sign language or another

method of communication, and I never have people staring at me wondering why I look

the way I look. I also have the privilege that my body has never prevented me from the

ability to get a job. Despite that employers are not supposed to judge an individual’s

ability to perform a task based on any disability, I will never have to wonder if the reason

I did not receive a job offer was related to my physical abilities.

Income

A person’s family income growing up, or even an individual’s income on their own

can have a significant impact on the opportunities and quality of life that person has.

Poverty can cause individuals to be marginalized. When people living in poverty are

pushed away from society it is called marginalization (Anzovino, T., & Boutilier, D., p.

31). For example, if someone does not have a home then it makes it harder for them to
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get a job. Because they do not have a job they become inactive members of society.

Because I grew up in a family where money was not often an issue, I have privilege

over those who are facing poverty. There were times when money was tight, but I never

had to go without because of it. I recognize that this is a privilege because there are

families who barely have enough money to feed their family or pay their bills. The

privilege of growing up in a household where my family was financially stable provided

me with the opportunity to go to college or university. There was never a question of if

my parents would be able to afford it, or if I would have the means to pay back a loan.

My parent’s income also gave me the opportunity to participate in recreational activities.

All in all, being born into a middle-class family gave me more opportunities to live a

fulfilling life where I never have to worry about whether or not my basic human needs

will be met.

Age

Many people look down amongst the elderly, I have a privilege in this sense

because I am still young. Being young is a privilege because of the way people

represent us, the way others view our abilities, and that I don’t have to worry about

being mistreated for my age. Young people are represented incredibly widely in the

media, and generally in a positive way. Older people are represented as boring,

physically unable, and lacking mental capacity. The belief that older people represent

these characteristics is prejudiced. Prejudice is similar to stereotyping however it

involves prejudging based on their physical and social characteristics (Anzovino, T., &

Boutilier, D., p. 27). Due to the fact that I am young, I generally am not represented in a

negative way. First of all, I do not have to worry about being turned down for an
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opportunity because I am too old. Many employers want to hire a younger individual

because they believe their abilities are more beneficial to them than someone who is

older and may not be able to work for as long. Furthermore, elderly people can also be

in a vulnerable position if they have others helping to care for them. They are at risk for

being physically, emotionally, or mentally abused. Not that everyone is out to harm the

elderly, but there are people who may take advantage of their power over them. Due to

this, elderly people are also at a high risk for fraud. There are many telephone and

internet scams, and elderly people may be at a higher risk if they are unable to tell if

what they are being offered is true or false.

Impact

Before examining my own culture and analyzing the areas which give me

privilege and dominance over others, I did not realize how much privilege I had. I was

always aware that I was privileged in the obvious ways that society talks about – such

as the color of my skin, but I did not think about all the other ways I was privileged.

Realizing this has made me more aware of how I could hurt someone else by the way I

act, what I say, and even how I think. It is going to be important in my line of work that I

am constantly aware of the privileges and dominance I have so that I can be more

sensitive to those who have less.

In order to be sensitive to others, I am going to have to sympathize but not too

much. I do not want to act as if I am in their shoes and pretend as though I understand

what they have gone through or are dealing with. It would be more insensitive of me to

try to tell someone that I know what they are dealing with when it is clear that I have

never had to face what they are facing. Instead, it would be more beneficial for me to
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just listen to what they have to say, accept it, and try to be helpful without overstepping

my boundaries.

I will also need to be careful about putting a label on others. It is necessary to

understand and identify who belongs to dominant and non-dominant groups without

only identifying someone in that way. When labeling someone based on who they are it

can lead to stereotyping them. Stereotyping someone leads to not acknowledging them

as anything more than their stereotype. A person is much more than their sexual

orientation, race, ethnicity or whatever aspect of their life that puts them in a minority

group. By basing someone off of a stereotype, we do not acknowledge the vast majority

of people that do not fit that stereotype (Anzovino, T., & Boutilier, D., p. 26). In order to

be sensitive to others, I will learn to avoid labeling them based on that group.

Although I have made the effort to acknowledge some of the privileges I have,

there are still much more that I may not even realize yet. I am going to need to continue

to learn about how different aspects of my life and upbringing give me dominance over

others. I feel that in order to be sensitive I must always be aware of my privileges and

not forget that everyone comes from a different starting point.

In conclusion, I have had the opportunity to learn a lot about myself that I had not

considered until analyzing the twelve dimensions of culture. After evaluating the ways in

which I am privileged and have dominance over others I feel that I can make some

changes in the way I think and how sensitive I am to others. I used to assume that I was

“culture free” and I am now aware of how that belief has a negative impact on how I

perceived others.
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Reference
Anzovino, T., & Boutilier, D. (2015). Walk a Mile: Experiencing and Understanding
Diversity in Canada (1st ed.). Toronto, Canada: Nelson.