Values, beliefs, human kinds & diversity 2012

Values, Beliefs, Human Kinds
& Diversity

Understanding Your Human Heritage

Denise M. Ajeto, Ed.D. (2012)
Saturday, September 8, 2012

AGENDA

~ Triangles & Reading Test ~ Human Kinds
What the heck are those?
~ Process of Perception
~ Values Exercise
Putting it all together
~ Values
Who gives us our values?
What function do they serve?

Triangles

PARIS BIRD
IN THE IN THE
THE SPRING THE HAND

ONCE
IN A
A LIFETIME

Source: Executive Diversity Services, Inc. (2002)

Reading Test

In raeding a wrod, the olny necassry
tihng is taht the frist and lsat
ltteer be at the rghit pclae. Yuor
mnid supppleis the wrods form
tohse cuues alnoe. It tnues out all
tohse woorngly palced lteters.

The Process of Perception: We see what we expect to see

Brain is pre-wired to categorize
Efﬁcient Fast Survive Evolve

Mind is wired via relationship
& experience (relationship)
Parents
Culture
Religion Lens
Media
School
Technology

Interpret/Navigate the world

“Oh, I know what that means”

Filters
~ Culture
~ Stereotypes/Generalizations
(All ___ people are ...)
~ Education
~ History/Experience
(You think something)

Input Output
Stimulus/Information Behaviors/Actions/Beliefs
(You observe something) (You do something)

The Process of Perception
(How we see what we expect to see)

All good people agree,
And all good people say,
All nice people, like us,
are We,
And everyone else is They.

-Rudyard Kipling
“A Friend of the Family”


What are Values?

Why do we have Values?

Who gives us our Values?


Values
~ Central “shoulds” and “oughts”

~ Few in number

~ Develop early in life
-18 months – 3 years
- Deeply held
- Pre-verbal
- Unconscious
- Unexamined

Values we have by age 10, are the values we
will have our entire life, unless we have a
“SEE” that causes us to re-evaluate them.


Two Kinds of Values
Terminal Instrumental


Terminal Values Instrumental Values
(Espoused Values) (Lived Values)

Goals or Shared Values Behaviors or Actions
(What) (How)

“World peace” What we do to express
“Honesty” or demonstrate the
“Integrity” terminal value or help
“Respect” us achieve it

Universal Cultural
Most would agree these “This is the way we do
are good or important. things around here.”

Internal Visible


Eight Values Found In All National Cultures Studied
(not in priority order)

LOVE
TRUTH
FREEDOM
FAIRNESS
COMMUNITY
TOLERANCE
RESPONSIBILITY
REVERENCE FOR LIFE

Source:
Rushworth Kidder from the Institute for Global Ethics: “Shared Values for a Troubled World” - Jossey-Bass, 1994


INDIVIDUALISM
COMPETITION & WINNING
MATERIAL POSSESSIONS & COMFORT
TEN KEY AMERICAN VALUES WORK ETHIC
DOING & ACHIEVING
COOPERATION & FAIR PLAY
YOUTH & ATTRACTIVENESS
PROGRESS/CHANGE
EQUALITY
FAMILY

Sources:
Gary Althen, “American Ways,” Intercultural Press, 1989.
Edward C. Stewart & Milton Bennett, “American Cultural Patterns: A Cross Cultural Perspective,” Intercultural Press, 1994.


Eight Values Found In All National Cultures Studied?

LOVE
TRUTH
FREEDOM
FAIRNESS
COMMUNITY
TOLERANCE
RESPONSIBILITY
REVERENCE FOR LIFE

Source:
Rushworth Kidder from the Institute for Global Ethics: “Shared Values for a Troubled World” - Jossey-Bass, 1994


INSTRUMENTAL VALUE = Handshake

INDIVIDUALISM
COMPETITION & WINNING TERMINAL VALUES
DOING & ACHIEVING
COOPERATION & FAIR PLAY

BUSINESS (U.S. Mainstream)

RESPECT
REVERENCE FOR LIFE
RESPONSIBILITY
COMMUNITY

RELATIONSHIP (American Indian)


INSTRUMENTAL VALUE = Eye Contact
TERMINAL VALUE = Showing Respect

US Mainstream = Direct
“Look at me when I talk to you!”

Most Asian Cultures = Indirect
What message from parents? “Don’t you dare look at me when I talk to you!”


“HUMAN KINDS”

Source:
Berreby D. (2005) “Us and Them: Understanding Your Tribal Mind,” Little, Brown & Co.


Human Kinds are roles or scripts (or norms)

“Mother”
“Teacher”
”Manager”
“Employee”
“Police Ofﬁcer”
“Leader”
“Male”
“Female”
“Adult”
“Child”


Human Kinds also deﬁne who you are...
... or who you can be

Knowing “kind” of person you are affects:
~ how you see yourself & the world
~ where you belong... or don’t belong
~ the choices you make

“Good student” “Loser”
“Athletic” “Helpless”
“Capable” vs “Ugly”
“Intelligent” “Stupid”
“Achiever” “Not leadership material”

Other Scripts:
Generational
Gender
Professional


Human Kinds allow us to predict behavior -
Which is a critical human need

Survival:
Friend or Foe?
Share/Not Share?

Security:
Know how to behave / Avoid trouble
“Social Contract”
Avoid being ostracized
(also about survival)
Manage fear of uncertainty
“Denial of Death”

Self-esteem:
Sense of belonging
Sense of competence/worth
Avoid SHAME


Human Kinds = Instrumental Values
Instrumental Values = Culture
Culture is a neutral term, neither good nor bad,
and refers to the broadest conception about the
learned knowledge that humans use to fulﬁll
their needs and wants.

It refers to the collective historical patterns,
values, societal arrangements, manners, ideas,
and ways of living that people have used to
order their society.

It is comprised of all those things we learn as
part of growing up including language, religion,
beliefs about economic and social relations,
political organization and legitimacy, and the
thousands of "Do’s and Dont’s" society deems
important that we know to become a
functioning member of that group.


We relish the norm, while overlooking the
productive potential to be found in variance.

- Ken Corbett


Exercise in Values


EXERCISE IN VALUES

A family of Vietnamese has come to a forest camp together. Mr. Nguyen (Mr. “Win”) goes to
the Recreation Manager to ask if they may use the recreation facility on Monday evening for
traditional dancing. The Manager says yes. Monday evening arrives and the Vietnamese enter
the recreation facility to find a large group of young men using the facility. When Mr. Nguyen
approaches Charles, the apparent leader, a confrontation ensues. Charles says the recreation
facility is “first come, first served” and they were there first. The Vietnamese leave.

The next morning Mr. Nguyen approaches the Recreation Manager and explains the problem.
The Manager states that there had been a mistake since the facilities are, in fact, first come,
first served. Mr. Nguyen is told he will need to find another place for his activities. That
evening when the group of young men enter the facility they find that the Vietnamese are
already there and have begun their dancing. Another confrontation occurs between Charles
and Mr. Nguyen during which Tom, one of the young men, shouts “Why don’t you freaks just go
back where you belong.” Peter, one of the young men, feels badly about the confrontation and
the comment but says nothing.

The young men leave the facility but go to the Vietnamese family’s campsite and dump garbage
all over it. When Mai, one of the Vietnamese women, hears what has happened, she gets angry
and smashes the headlight on one of the young men’s cars.

The Recreational Manager is called to resolve the situation.


Rank the six people in this story:

1 (acted most honorably) to 6 (acted least honorably)

First ranking: INDIVIDUAL 2 minutes
Second ranking: TEAM 5 minutes

Mr. Nguyen _____
Peter _____
Rec Manager _____
Charles _____
Mai _____
Tom _____

Rules:
1. Each number can only be used once
a. No double ranking / No ties
2. Must have group consensus


Lessons Learned

Forced to do the activity fast &
then you had to get consensus!

~ Not enough time
~ Not enough information

What you were seeing were their Instrumental Values (behaviors/actions)
What you were judging from were your Terminal Values

Every day, we make hundreds of decisions with even less time or
information than you had in the exercise.


The next time you observe yourself reacting to
something that someone is doing...

Take a moment to pause and ask yourself:
- Why am I reacting to this behavior?
- What other meanings might there be for this behavior?
- Is it a difference that makes a difference?
- Is there something cultural going on here?


What did you learn from this session?
(Group Dialogue)


Values, beliefs, human kinds & diversity 2012

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