IC - Day 4

Intercultural
communication
Chapters 5 & 6
Identity and intolerance
Instructor: Bui Thu
00 Identity – A story
01 Introduction to identity
Intolerance (stereotypes,
02 prejudice, discrimination,
racism)
Outline 04 Solutions
05 Summary
Identity – A story
Who is this man?
• He had a degree from Harvard Law school.
• His father is Kenyan.
• He spent part of his childhood in Indonesia.
• He was the 44th President of the United States.

Debates around Obama’s identity
He is not qualified Is he a Muslim
to be the President Is he really
American? disguised as a
of the U.S. (a black Christian?
man).
Is he a socialist?
All these questions involve identity, in one way or another.

An introduction to
identity
Identity is defined by ‘knowing’ of ourselves.
Identity
Personal identities Social identity
Where the #3
Concepts of e.g. shy, individual #1 Role #2 Relational Membership
ourselves as athletic or meets larger identities: identities: in groups:
unique interested in collective work or lovers, family national,
individuals soccer bodies, or professional members, religious,
groups of roles enemies political
affiliation. groups, etc.
What is identity?
• Identities involve categorization
• We group people into in-groups and out-

groups and reference group – groups that
people value and look to for guidance.
Identities are complex issues.

Features of identity
• Identity is created through

communication.
• Identities are not fixed; they are

dynamic and multiple.
• Identities can be political.

Group work: Choose one topic (at random)
1. Food as an example of identity.
2. Fashion as an example of identity.
3. Music taste as an example of identity.
4. What are the advantages of being in the dominant group (in terms of ethnics,
finance, education, etc.) in your country or another country you know?
5. Why is identity a complex issue?

Intolerance
Example of extreme intolerance
• Norwegian case (2011)
• Set off bombs and took away many

lives due to hatred against Muslims.
Intolerance/ tolerance/appreciation
Intolerance: any Tolerance: the application of the
thought, behavior,
policy or social same moral principles and rules,
structure that >< caring and empathy, and feeling of
treats people
unequally based connection to human beings of other
on group terms. groups.
Appreciation: the attitude and action of not only accepting a group’s

behaviours, but also seeing the good in them, even adopting them,
and actively including the individuals of a group. aim
Different types of intolerance (cultural bias)
• Stereotypes
• Prejudice
• Discrimination
• Racism
Definition of stereotypes
• oversimplified attitudes we have toward others
• a generalization about what people are like, without regard

to individual attributes.
E.g. Brazilians are good at football.
Blond-haired girls are not smart.
Asian Americans as highly intelligent, diligent and good at

math.
Features of stereotypes
• Stereotypes can be positive or negative.
• Stereotypes help people make sense of the world through

categorization – mental process of grouping things, attributes, etc.
• Stereotypes are often based on ‘kernel of truth’; e.g. Latin

Americans are viewed as having a flexible view of time.
• Strategy: People can use their emotional energy to override their

stereotypes and individuate the others – think of them as
individuals rather than as group members.
Prejudice
• is an attitude in which we are hostile towards another
person because of the group that person belongs.
• a negative attitude and feeling toward an individual

based solely on one’s membership in a particular
social group (Allport, 1954; Brown, 2010)
• formed without any experience with that person or

group.
E.g. Anti-American attitudes

Discrimination
• Discrimination is ‘prejudice in action’.
• Discrimination refers to the different treatment of (groups of) individuals based

on some ascribed or perceived trait.
• E.g. negative, hostile, and injurious treatment of members of rejected groups.
• E.g. You dislike Chinese people because you think many are not honest -> prejudice
and, for this reason you do not select a Chinese woman for a job even though the person is
qualified -> discrimination.
Ethnocentrism
• perception that in which ‘one’s own group is the center
of everything, and all others are scaled with reference
to it’.
• a belief in the inferiority of other groups
• Ethnocentrism can be manifested in the names, e.g.

names of tribes: the original people, the best people,
the real people
Xenophobia
• the fear of people who are different from us.
e.g. Express distrust or disgust toward perceived outsiders.
Avoid interacting with perceived outsiders.

Racism
• Racism: refers to the belief in the superiority of one race over the
other.
• Racism generally includes:
 negative emotional reactions to members of the other racial group
racial discrimination against individuals (APA, 2022).

Levels of racism: 4 levels • Institutional racism occurs
within institutions and
• Internalized racism occurs systems of power.
within individuals  refers to the unfair policies and
 similar to prejudice; e.g., beliefs discriminatory practices of
about superiority of white particular institutions (schools,
people over black people. workplaces, etc.) to people of
 E.g. Anglo-saxon Australians color
think of Australians from other  E.g. no dogs and Chinese
origins as inferior. allowed
• Interpersonal racism occurs

• Structural racism occurs among
between individuals.
 Individuals interact with others and their institutions and across society.
personal racial beliefs affect their public  the history, culture, ideology and interactions of
interactions. institutions and policies that privilege white
 E.g. arms-length racism: one might be people and disadvantage people of color.
openly friendly toward people of another  E.g. In one country, black people do not have
group, but prefer to keep them at arm’s decent access to healthcare compared to the
length. White
Practice: Examples of racism
When a white person can take their misinformation and stereotypes towards another group and
perform an act of harassment, exclusion, marginalization, discrimination, hate or violence they are
interpersonal racism
committing an act of _____________________________.
4.9% ethnic pay gap between white medical consultants and medical consultants of colour in one
Institutional racism
organisation _____________________________.
In one healthcare centre, large numbers of health workers of colour reported being “bullied and
institutional racism
shamed” into seeing patients, despite having no PPE _____________________________.
Internalised racism
A person hates someone because of their skin colour _____________________________.
A society does not allow black people to occupy leading positions in the Government
Structural racism
_____________________________.
What is this kind of intolerance?
Case: Lena phones a holiday company to book a holiday cottage for the first week in June.
They say it is available to let. She explains she has borderline personality disorder. The
company then says that she cannot rent the cottage. On the same day her friend Zelda, who
does not have any mental health problems, phones the same company and is allowed to
book the cottage for the first week in June. The holiday company has refused a service to
Lena because of her mental health problem.
discrimination
Watch the video
How are the four concepts (stereotypes, prejudice, discrimination, racism) illustrated in the
video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzkFoetp-_M&ab_channel=TED
THANK YOU See you next week
Don’t forget your homework (Read chapter 8)

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Intercultural

• He had a degree from Harvard Law school.

• His father is Kenyan.

• He spent part of his childhood in Indonesia.

• He was the 44th President of the United States.

All these questions involve identity, in one way or another.

Personal identities Social identity

• Identities involve categorization

• We group people into in-groups and out-

Identities are complex issues.

• Identity is created through

• Identities are not fixed; they are

• Identities can be political.

2. Fashion as an example of identity.

3. Music taste as an example of identity.

5. Why is identity a complex issue?

• Set off bombs and took away many

Appreciation: the attitude and action of not only accepting a group’s

• a generalization about what people are like, without regard

E.g. Brazilians are good at football.

Blond-haired girls are not smart.

Asian Americans as highly intelligent, diligent and good at

• Stereotypes help people make sense of the world through

• Stereotypes are often based on ‘kernel of truth’; e.g. Latin

• Strategy: People can use their emotional energy to override their

• a negative attitude and feeling toward an individual

• formed without any experience with that person or

E.g. Anti-American attitudes

• Discrimination refers to the different treatment of (groups of) individuals based

• E.g. negative, hostile, and injurious treatment of members of rejected groups.

• a belief in the inferiority of other groups

• Ethnocentrism can be manifested in the names, e.g.

e.g. Express distrust or disgust toward perceived outsiders.

Avoid interacting with perceived outsiders.

• Racism generally includes:

 negative emotional reactions to members of the other racial group

racial discrimination against individuals (APA, 2022).

• Interpersonal racism occurs

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