The formation of culture Flashcards
FAMILY ETHNICITY REINFORCEMENT
The family is crucial in creating and reinforcing an individuals sense of ethnic identity. A family surname and first name can portray a sense of ethnic identity eg. the name Gareth jones suggests a welsh link. the languages spoken in a family home the food and clothing selected for children are also important influences.
The values held by the family may be related to ethnicity. Francis and Archer show how educational achievement is valued by British chines families. The family family plays a crucial role in the educational success of their children with families making considerable sacrifices to ensure success for their children often going without consumer goods in order to pay private school fees. However this does not mean that children blindly follow the guidance of their family. It is likely that young people conform to some expectations whilst rejecting others.
Modood et al show how young south asian are less likely than their elders to spear to other family members using a southern asian language. this may suggest a shift with young asian identifying more the british identity. However, caution should be exercised in assuming that traditional values are disappearing. Dench et al studied bangladeshis living in tower hamlets in east london. through interviewing white and bangladeshi residents they build up a picture of the new east end of london which showed the persistent strength of the extended family for many if not all bangladeshi families.
There are also structural differences between families from different ethnic groups.
Education and ethnicity
Education ln school an individual’s ethnic identity is shaped by the formal and the informal curriculum. Mason (2005) maintains that many schools are ethnocentric. They evaluate other cultures and practices from the perspective of their own This can have a significant impact on ethnic identity within schools where Johal and Bains (1998) argue t at some children wear a metaphorical ‘white mask in order to fit in with the majority culture.
Derrington and Kendall (2004) interviewed children and parents from Traveller communities over a three—year period, aiming to find out the experience of Traveller children in secondary schools and the extent of their ethnic/cultural identity. Some of the Traveller children were clearly proud of their identity. One Year 9 girl said, ‘I tell people that I’m a Traveller and I tell them, “If you don’t like it, you can lump it”.’ Other children try to hide their Traveller identity from their peers and teachers. It is suggested that this is for reasons of self-protection, as many of these children had experienced racism, and had a strong desire to gain social approval from the peer group.
The formal curriculum is likely to contain a cultural bias, whether it is by focusing on British history or by emphasising the teaching of some religion(s) more than others. To challenge this, Sewell (2000) offers a curriculum—based perspective on an African-Caribbean viewpoint, which he argues could fit with National Curriculum requirements. However, it could be argued that an emphasis on historical examples, such as slavery, the anti-colonial struggle and the Holocaust, reinforce stereotypes and that a wider perspective is needed to highlight positive achievements. There are major black achievements, for example, not just in music and sport, but in many other fields including business and science.
The UK has a number of faith schools (Christian, Muslim, Hindu), which offer an education tailored towards a particular religion. Whether this is in tune with the value of religious tolerance in the UK is a debated point, and there can be little doubt that faith schools will be ethnocentric to some degree. Faith schools formally link education to religion and can be considered as important in establishing an ethnic identity. It has been argued that Catholic secondary schools, many of which are heavily over—subscribed, contain both a mixed ethnic and social class population, albiet from within the universal Catholic Church. The informal curriculum can also influence ethnic identities. Wright et al. (2006) discovered that the black girls in her study felt that some teachers treated them unfairly in lessons. From the girls’ viewpoint the teachers’ actions were racist. Sewell (2000) observed that the black boys in W5 study tried to resist racism from teachers who often did not believe or understand that some of their teaching practices were actually racist.
Mass media
In locations where few minority ethnic groups live or visit, people often rely on media representations for their understanding of different ethnic groups.
Research based on the media representation of minority ethnic groups in the UK has shown that, in the past, they were either ignored or portrayed in a limited number of roles, which ‘ frequently highlighted a particular feature of their ethnicity. ln soap operas, for example, Asian characters’ main story line has been based around arranged marriages and the portrayal of African-Caribbean communities has been based around social disorder or social problems Jhally (1992) maintains that being ignored unrepresented or being stereotyped and misrepresented was a feature of ethnic representation in the British media through the 1970s to the late 1990s. However, recently a change has come about with a new group of ethnic—minority media stars writing the material for and starring in television programmes.
There can be little doubt that the media play a huge role in the creation of ethnic hybrids. A good example is language, with words such as ’bling’ and ‘chuddies’ finding their way into everyday use. Media characters such as Ali G and programmes such as Goodness Gracious Me have played a large part in the creation of what can be described as a new dialect. Some call this process Hinglish; a combination of Hindu and English-
Parker and Song (2006) researched the ways which websites were influencing ethnic identities in the UK. They found that South Asian and Chinese ethnic identities were strengthened by the use of websites targeting these these ethnic groups through the organising of social events and providing forums for the discussion Of lssues related to different ethnic identities.
Religion
There are clear links between ethnicity and religion in the contemporary UK. Some religions form the dominant factor within ethnic groups. Many people will consider that Muslims are an ethnic group based on one religion, as opposed to being a religion which is followed by a number of different ethnic groups. Similarly, Jewish people are considered as having a religious and ethnic identity which overlaps.
Figure 3.21 shows data relating ethnic group to religion. Study Figure 3.21 and answer the following three questions. 1 Which ethnic group do most Christians belong to? 2 Which religions are most dominant within the Asian ethnic group? 3 Which ethnic group is most likely to have no religion
The blurring of the distinction between religion and ethnicity is due to the cultural aspects of many religious groups. Food, dress codes, languages and beliefs can all be based on a religion, yet these are also important features in the creation of an ethnic identity. Modood (2005) observes that 100 years ago the African—American theorist Du Bois predicted that the twentieth Century would be the century of the colour BY this he meant that the divide between t 9 black and white communities would be the world’s greatest social divide. The twenty—first century may be characterised by the Islam/West divide or the differences between the Muslim and the non—muslim worlds. Events such as the attack on the Twin Towers on ll September 200l,the July 2005 bombings in London and the conflicts in Afghanistan and lraq add weight to this argument and show the significance of religion in ethnic identity in the contemporary UK.
Workplace
Modood et al. (1997) found as many differences within minority ethnic groups as between them in the workplace. Some workforces are ethnically diverse and others are dominated by one particular ethnic group. Some minority ethnic groups are more likely than others to experience unemployment. Ethnicity also affects potential earnings and the area of employment in which a person works and succeeds. This may be evidence of discrimination or it may be related to educational achievement or to family and community networks.
Two examples can be referred to. Song (2003) shows how many Chinese living in the UK are employed in the food and catering sector. Clearly this is related in some way to Chinese takeaways and restaurants. Equally it shows the influence of the family on employment opportunities and how important family socialisation is in creating or influencingoccupation. Doctors working in The NHS provide a second example of the joint impact Of work and family life. Over a third of doctors in the NHS are described as Asian. For many Indian families a career as doctors brings high status and income which will influence their social class and ethnic identities.
Peer groups
Some peer groups are made up of people of the same ethnicity; others are multi—ethnic. The ethnic make—up of a peer group is influenced by the schools they attend. Some schools have a multi-ethnic population and others comprise mainly one majority ethnic group. Multi-ethnic peer groups may strengthen ethnic identities due to the realisation of differences within the group. The concept of ’cultural comfort zone’ is significant here as it may be that people from the same cultural background feel a sense of comfort in socialising with each other. The sense of sameness and shared group belonging will provide ethnic identification for some individuals but it may have the affect of limiting Socialisation with people from different ethnicities.
Alexander (1996) studied the formation of black culture and identity within black British youth. The importance of the peer group was crucial what she described as the ’art of being black’. The males in her study displayed a strong cultural attachment to being ’one of the boys’ regularly attending ’black’ clubs which they differentiated from ‘white’ clubs.
