How does the “Intercultural Praxis” approach differ from other intercultural models or methods you’ve read about this past week, or even experienced yourself? Based on your readings of other theories these past two weeks, in what ways (if any) do you think this model may work better? What might it be missing?
The intercultural praxis model is significant in the sense that it includes the already-existing background of an individual. Whether it is education, upbringing, or general knowledge, the Intercultural Praxis model goes from where individuals are. As each person has different intercultural experiences that are hard to classify or categorize, a model that helps engage people in intercultural communication should be reflective of these differences, and I think this is one of the strongest traits that make this model effective.
Inquiry was the point of entry to the model that I was most interested in and was able to relate to. In situations where people encounter cultures different from their own, people tend to feel offended or uncomfortable. These immediate emotions about a new culture may not be something we can control and could even be a defensive instinct to reject unfamiliarity. In the process of erasing this feeling people sometimes forget to take the next step and confront to learn about what made them so unpleasant.
A genuine curiosity and eagerness to learn about a culture can rarely be offensive. As being educated and culturally sensitive becomes more of a thing, an expected quality for all, some people feel embarrassment, uneasiness, or even guilt when they face a culture they are not used to, as they feel like they should have already known about it. Not knowing is okay. Ignorance is not a sin. Not willing to learn could be, but there is absolutely no reason for you to be discouraged by something you don’t know. I tell all my friends this all the time – please ask. Just ask! What better way can there be than to ask the person in front of you to learn about their culture? Not asking leads to assumptions, and assuming frequently leads you to cultural stereotypes. Even if you spend the time to google it, you’ll never get a perfect answer. Simply ask, and you’ll get the right answer on how to respect that person in their own culture. Ask. Ask. Please just ask. I am always happy to answer.
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