Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsThe Importance of Cultural AwarenessHow to Be More Culturally AwareWhat If I Say the Wrong Thing?Cultural Awareness and Sensitivity in Intercultural/Interracial RelationshipsCan I Ask Someone to Help Me Learn About Their Culture?Pitfalls of Not Developing Cultural Awareness

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

The Importance of Cultural Awareness

How to Be More Culturally Aware

What If I Say the Wrong Thing?

Cultural Awareness and Sensitivity in Intercultural/Interracial Relationships

Can I Ask Someone to Help Me Learn About Their Culture?

Pitfalls of Not Developing Cultural Awareness

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Becoming more culturally aware is a continual process and it can help to have curiosity, an open mind, a willingness to ask questions, a desire to learn about the differences that exist between cultures, and an openness to becoming conscious of one’s own culturally shaped values, beliefs, perceptions, and biases.

The Value of Cultural AwarenessCultural awareness is important because it allows us to see and respect other perspectives and to appreciate the inherent value of people who are different than we are. It leads to better relationships, healthier work environments, and a stronger, more compassionate society.

The Value of Cultural Awareness

Cultural awareness is important because it allows us to see and respect other perspectives and to appreciate the inherent value of people who are different than we are. It leads to better relationships, healthier work environments, and a stronger, more compassionate society.

Read on to learn more about cultural awareness, including the impacts it can have, how to become more culturally aware, how to approach conversations about cultural awareness, and how to address cultural awareness in intercultural relationships.

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Cultural awareness involves learning about cultures that are different from your own. But it’s also about being respectful about these differences, saysNatalie PageEd.D., chief diversity officer at Saint Xavier University in Chicago. “It’s about being sensitive to the similarities and differences that can exist between different cultures and using this sensitivity to effectively communicate without prejudice and racism,” she explains.

5 Reasons Why Cultural Awareness Is ImportantHere are five reasons why it’s important to become more culturally aware:When you strive to become more culturally aware, you gain knowledge and information about different cultures, which leads to greater cultural competence, says Dr. PageEngaging in cultural awareness makes you more sensitive to the differences between cultures that are different than your own, Dr. Page says; you also become less judgmental of people who are different than you.Studies have found that greater cultural awareness in the workplace leads to an overall betterworkplace culturefor everyone involved.Research has found that cultural awareness creates better outcomes for people in healthcare environments,and in other environments where people are receiving care from others.According to Nika White, PhD, author ofInclusion Uncomplicated: A Transformative Guide to Simplify DEI, cultural awareness can improve your interpersonal relationships. “Just like any other relationship, you must understand their culture to truly understand someone’s lived experiences and how they show up to the world,” Dr. White describes.

5 Reasons Why Cultural Awareness Is Important

Here are five reasons why it’s important to become more culturally aware:When you strive to become more culturally aware, you gain knowledge and information about different cultures, which leads to greater cultural competence, says Dr. PageEngaging in cultural awareness makes you more sensitive to the differences between cultures that are different than your own, Dr. Page says; you also become less judgmental of people who are different than you.Studies have found that greater cultural awareness in the workplace leads to an overall betterworkplace culturefor everyone involved.Research has found that cultural awareness creates better outcomes for people in healthcare environments,and in other environments where people are receiving care from others.According to Nika White, PhD, author ofInclusion Uncomplicated: A Transformative Guide to Simplify DEI, cultural awareness can improve your interpersonal relationships. “Just like any other relationship, you must understand their culture to truly understand someone’s lived experiences and how they show up to the world,” Dr. White describes.

Here are five reasons why it’s important to become more culturally aware:

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Knowing about the importance of being more culturally aware is one thing, but actually taking steps to do so is something else.

It’s about being sensitive to the similarities and differences that can exist between different cultures and using this sensitivity to effectively communicate without prejudice and racism.—NATALIE PAGE ED.D

It’s about being sensitive to the similarities and differences that can exist between different cultures and using this sensitivity to effectively communicate without prejudice and racism.

—NATALIE PAGE ED.D

Here are a few tips for how to go about becoming more culturally aware.

Understand That It’s a Process

“Becoming culturally aware is a process that is fluid, birthed out of a desire to learn more about other cultures,” says Dr. Page.

Ask Questions

You can also respectfully ask others about their lives. But make sure the exchanges aren’t one-sided, she recommends: when you ask others about their cultures, tell them about yours, too. “Tell your own stories to engage, build relationships, find common ground, and become more culturally aware of someone from a different culture,” she says.

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Educate Yourself and Do the Work

There’s no way around it: if you want to become more culturally aware, you need to take action and educate yourself.

“Don’t lean on assumptions,” says Dr. White. “Actually research cultures different from yours.” This can help you become more aware of how culture affects every aspect of your life and the lives of others. In addition to research, educating yourself often involves seeking and participating in meaningful interactions with people of differing cultural backgrounds. “Expand your network to include people from different cultures into your circle,” Dr. White recommends.

Study the Cultural Competence Continuum Model

The Cultural Competence Continuum Model is an assessment tool that helps us understand where people are on their journey to becoming more culturally competent.

Different people fall intovarious categoriesalong the continuum. Categories include cultural destructiveness, cultural incapacity, cultural blindness, cultural pre-competence, cultural competence, and cultural proficiency.

Studying this model can help us become more aware of the process of moving toward more cultural sensitivity, and become more patient with ourselves and others as we move through the process.

Acknowledge Your Own Bias

It is important to acknowledge this as it can help us see how our culturalbiasesmay prevent us from being as culturally sensitive as we wish to be.

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Often, people don’t want to address topics having to do with culture or race because they are afraid they will say the wrong thing or make a mistake while talking to someone.

The truth is, most people makemistakeson their journey toward cultural awareness, and that’s understandable, says Dr. Page.

“If you make a mistake, simply apologize and let the person that you may have offended know that you are learning and be open to any suggestions they may have,” she recommends. Sometimes it even makes sense to apologize in advance, if you are saying something you are unsure of. You can say, “I may have this wrong, so I apologize beforehand but…” Dr. Page suggests. “The key is to be sincere in your conversations and always open to learning from others,” she says.

Making mistakes is a necessary part of the learning process and it is important to approach these topics and conversations with shared respect, compassion, and grace.

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If you are in a relationship with someone who is of a different race or culture than you, it’s important to have open, honest discussions about this. “If a person is going to grow in interracial and intercultural relationships, you have to step out of your cultural comfort zone and seek an understanding about other cultures,” says Dr. Page.

Questions to Ask Someone to Learn About Their Culture

Having a genuine discussion with someone about your differences can feel awkward, and it can be helpful to kick-start the conversation with a few open-ended questions. Dr. White shared some helpful questions:

Here are some additional questions that could be asked with respect and consent, to another (and also to yourself!):

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One of the important ways to develop culture awareness is to educate yourself about other cultures. Learning directly from people of different cultures is a fantastic way to get authentic information. But it’s important to engage in conversations with others about their cultures inrespectful, appropriate manners.

When you decide to ask others about their culture, be mindful that they may not want to answer, and know that that’s okay, says Dr. White. It’s also important to make the conversation a two-way street. Don’t just ask them about their culture—talk about your culture as well. “Share your culture first to model the behavior and let others know it is safe to talk about their culture,” Dr. White suggests.

Finally, make sure to take it upon yourself to do some of the work. “Once you learn of someone’s culture you wish to cultivate a relationship with, do your homework to learn as much as you can,” Dr. White says. Don’t simply rely on others to educate you—this may be seen as insensitive, Dr. White says.

How to Respect Other People’s Boundaries

The main pitfalls of not developing cultural awareness is that we don’t expand our understanding of other cultures, we don’t deepen our relationship with people who are different than we are, and that we risk continuing to have a narrow view of the world around us.

“We live in an ever-changing diverse world,” Dr. Page says. “We rob ourselves when we only hang out with people from our cultural groups. We have to branch out and experience the beauty that others bring.”

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5 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Angelis T.In search of cultural competence. Monitor on Psychology. 2015;46(3):64.Shepherd SM, Willis-Esqueda C, Newton D, et al.The challenge of cultural competence in the workplace: perspectives of healthcare providers. BMC Health Services Research. 2019;19:135. doi:10.1186/s12913-019-3959-7Kaihlanen AM., Hietapakka L, Heponiemi T.Increasing cultural awareness: qualitative study of nurses’ perceptions about cultural competence training. BMC Nursing. 2019;18(38). doi:10.1186/s12912-019-0363-xCalkins H.How You Can Be More Culturally Competent. Good Practice. 2020:13-16.Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.Improving Cultural Competence.

5 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Angelis T.In search of cultural competence. Monitor on Psychology. 2015;46(3):64.Shepherd SM, Willis-Esqueda C, Newton D, et al.The challenge of cultural competence in the workplace: perspectives of healthcare providers. BMC Health Services Research. 2019;19:135. doi:10.1186/s12913-019-3959-7Kaihlanen AM., Hietapakka L, Heponiemi T.Increasing cultural awareness: qualitative study of nurses’ perceptions about cultural competence training. BMC Nursing. 2019;18(38). doi:10.1186/s12912-019-0363-xCalkins H.How You Can Be More Culturally Competent. Good Practice. 2020:13-16.Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.Improving Cultural Competence.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Angelis T.In search of cultural competence. Monitor on Psychology. 2015;46(3):64.Shepherd SM, Willis-Esqueda C, Newton D, et al.The challenge of cultural competence in the workplace: perspectives of healthcare providers. BMC Health Services Research. 2019;19:135. doi:10.1186/s12913-019-3959-7Kaihlanen AM., Hietapakka L, Heponiemi T.Increasing cultural awareness: qualitative study of nurses’ perceptions about cultural competence training. BMC Nursing. 2019;18(38). doi:10.1186/s12912-019-0363-xCalkins H.How You Can Be More Culturally Competent. Good Practice. 2020:13-16.Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.Improving Cultural Competence.

Angelis T.In search of cultural competence. Monitor on Psychology. 2015;46(3):64.

Shepherd SM, Willis-Esqueda C, Newton D, et al.The challenge of cultural competence in the workplace: perspectives of healthcare providers. BMC Health Services Research. 2019;19:135. doi:10.1186/s12913-019-3959-7

Kaihlanen AM., Hietapakka L, Heponiemi T.Increasing cultural awareness: qualitative study of nurses’ perceptions about cultural competence training. BMC Nursing. 2019;18(38). doi:10.1186/s12912-019-0363-x

Calkins H.How You Can Be More Culturally Competent. Good Practice. 2020:13-16.

Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.Improving Cultural Competence.

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