SUBJECT

Cultural Aspects - Intercultural Relations

lecture + practical

master

Faculty of Education and Psychology

5

Semester 2

Spring semester

Aim of the course

The course investigates the relationship between psychological processes and culture in different domains in psychology. The questions raised in this part of the course help to better understand the underlying mechanisms of the interaction between people and groups of different cultural background. Acculturation and adaptation, cultural identity, bi/multicultural identity, attitudes to multiculturalism, attitudes of the larger society to ethnocultural groups as well as migrants are discussed. Special attention is paid to power and status differences as well as to related identity mechanisms and the broader social, historical background of the intercultural interactions.

Learning outcome, competences

knowledge:

• Understanding of the relevance of a cultural approach in the study of psychological processes.
• Understanding of the interaction of culture and human behavior.
• Knowledge of the conceptual, theoretical, and methodological framework of cultural, cross-cultural and indigenous psychology.
• Understanding of the basic mechanisms of the interactions between people and groups of different cultural background.
• Understanding of the processes of acculturation, adaptation, and multicultural identity.

Attitude:

• Openness to other cultures and their values.
• Recognition of the legitimity of differences and the importance of cultural identity.
• Ackowledgement of cultural diversity as an opportunity which has assets to be capitalized on for the betterment of communities and society.

Ability:

• Ability to view the approaches and findings of mainstream psychology with the criticism from the perspective of a cultural approach.
• Ability to reflect on the hidden assumptions of one’s own culture and to realize and identify one’s own prejudices and ethnocentrism and their role in the interaction with others.
• Ability to apply the knowledge of intercultural relations in practice.

Content of the course

Topics of the course

• Cultural approaches in psychology: cultural, cross-cultural, and indigenous psychology
• Dimensions of cultures, values, and relational models
• Cultural approach in the study of perception
• Cultural approach in the study of social behavior
• Cultural approach in the study of development and socialization
• Cultural approach in the study of personality
• Intercultural relations in long-lasting interactions: acculturation, acculturation strategies
• Sociocultural and psychological adaptation
• Acculturation of migrants, refugees, international students and expats
• The attitudes of host society, intergroup threats and contributions
• Bi/multicultural identity.

Learning activities, learning methods

 interactive lecture

• working in small groups and dyads
• reading literature
• project plan on promoting intercultural relations.

Evaluation of outcomes

Learning requirements, mode of evaluation, criteria of evaluation:

requirements

• written reflections on readings
• written test
• presentation of project plan

mode of evaluation:

written and oral

criteria of evaluation:

• Understanding the course materials and the connection between diffent concepts.
• Ability to apply knowledge in practice.

Compulsory reading list:

• Benet-Martínez, V., ­­– Hong, Y. (Eds.) (2013).Handbook of multicultural identity: Basic and applied psychological perspectives. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
• , J.W. – Breugelmans, S.M. – Poortinga, Y.H. – Chasiotis, A. – Sam, D.L. (2011). Cross-cultural Psychology: Research and Applications. Cambridge University Press.
• – Montreuil, A.– Barrette, G. – Montaruli, E. (2009).  Acculturation and immigrant-host community relations in multicultural settings. In Demoulin, S. –Leyens, J.- P. – Dovidio J. F. (Eds.) (2008). Intergroup misunderstandings: Impact of divergent social realities. NY: Taylor & Francis, New York. 39-61.
• Cole, M. (1998).Cultural psychology: A once and future discipline. Harvard University Press. Chapter 2.
• Gardiner, H. W. – Kosmitzki, C. (2011). Lives across cultural: cross-cultural human development. Fifth edition. Allyn&Bacon, Boston.
• Kagitcibasi, C. (2007). Family, self and human development across cultures. Theoy and application. Second edition. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Mahwah.
• , S., –  Cohen, D. (Eds.) (2007).  Handbook of cultural psychology. The Guilford Press, New York.
• Sam, D. L. –Berry, J. W. (Eds.) (2016).The Cambridge handbook of acculturation psychology. Second edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• Smith, P. – Fischer, R. – Vignoles, V.I. – Bond, M.H. (2013). Understanding Social Psychology Across Cultures: Engaging with Others in a Changing World. Second Edition. Sage Publications, London.
• , E. – Walsh, S. (2016). Testing a New Theoretical Model for Attitudes Toward Immigrants The Case of Social Workers’ Attitudes Toward Asylum Seekers In Israel. Journal of Cross- Cultural Psychology, 47, 72-96.