A Cross-Cultural Research Essay

This essay is based on a cultural study that helps to research on the fundamental facts about the culture and cultural backgrounds of students and educators. The outcomes outlined in this essay are a result of a thorough research. I will first give an overview of the results of my own personal experiences that relate to my culture. My cultural background has been derived from my ethnicity. I have spent a lot of my childhood and student life in a society that consists of different ethnicities. In most cases, people in this society were grouped according to their ethnic backgrounds. The ethnic background of an individual gauged the level of respect and concern one would earn from other members of the society. Being a Kuwait American, it was quite tedious to mingle with members from other ethnicities.

On several occasions, my cultural background tended to conflict with one ascribed to me by other people. For instance, when it came to social studies in class, the educators always demeaned my cultural background. In addition, they tried to suggest that I alter my ethnicity. In was rather impossible. In case my cultural background was based on my sexual orientation, then that would have been easy to alter. However, this kind of conflict always made me feel inferior to others from superior ethnicities. It caused immense trauma since I was the only member of the class from this particular ethnicity.

There have been some fundamental events in my past life that enabled me form and develop my cultural identity. First, I tried to mingle with other members of my ethnicity within and out of the class environment. Others were friends from outside the schools I attended. It helped me realize that I still meant a lot though some people did not view me as such. In addition, I sought counseling that helped me accept myself and not try to be an imposter. As much as I tried to kill the feeling of being an outsider in school and in the society at large, I still had the task of dealing with the numerous conflicts that surrounded me every day (Davidov, 2012).

My family consists of my father, mother, sister, three boys, and a baby. There are some traditions that tend to govern my culture. They are traditions that were instilled in me by my own parents. In fact, the traditions that govern my cultural background are one of the main reasons why my ethnicity is largely despised. My family is well aware of these traditions. A significant role is played by these traditions. They serve as a basic defining factor for members of my ethnicity. There are particular ways in which members of my ethnicity should carry themselves in whichever environment. Failure to follow these traditions is like a breach of the ethnic laws.

For any Kuwait American child, it is instrumental that they are trained concerning their traditions from childhood. As such, I learned about the traditions of my ethnicity in a chain of training from my parents. The knowledge was slowly instilled in me from childhood to this point. Each level of growth has its own form of learning based on culture and traditions.

My cultural identity led to conflicts as I related with other individuals. It occurred since my cultural traditions differed immensely with other traditions. It brought a rift between and other members of other ethnical backgrounds since. Hence, making friends for me was largely difficult. Although it was not my wish to have these extreme experiences of being dejected by my age mates, I had to bear with them all the same. It even led to a negative fluctuation in my grades since even the educators forgot the basics of training learners. There was no difference between how the classmates and educators treated me. However, only a few of the members in the schools I attended considered me same as they were.

The socio-economic state of my family was rather middle- class. However, since my family had many members, both parents had to work harder to meet all our basic needs. For this reason, I could not get most of my personal effects. My father only considered clearing my school fees and the rest was left for me to fend for. For this reason, I had no choice but to study and live as my parents suggested right. It was unlike other students in the school and in my class who had the choice to do things the way they deemed right. Others suggested what they desired to their parents. I mostly preferred staying in school because there I would be free to do some of the things I would not be allowed to do at home by my strict parents.

My upbringing was immensely tough. There was a struggle on deciding whom to take to a boarding school. Moreover, I was restricted to only one religion by my parents. There was some kind of notion that people from other ethnicities and religions were irrelevant. For this reason, we were secluded from them. It is one of the main reasons for the difficulty of trying to mingle with students from other ethnicities. Finally, the main educational resources available to me were notebooks and other selected stationery. They are what my parents could afford. Luckily, the school I attended used to provide the learners with basic items. It helped immensely in reducing the finances for my financially strained parents.

After carrying out a similar research study on a randomly picked interviewee, she gave the following responses. The name of my interviewee is Rosa (not real name). She defined her culture based on her sexual orientation. Rosa has also had a series of experiences based on her cultural background. Sexual orientation has been an instrumental factor in the current lives of most people in the society. Rosa's cultural identity has conflicted severally with other ascribed to her by other people. For instance, someone once asked her to shift from that culture since it would deny her attractive opportunities in life. In most instances, employees deny people with certain sexual orientations chances in their companies. She says that she likes being a lesbian. She claims that this culture has helped her feel unique and it would be difficult for her to shift from this culture.

Rosa was however clear that she was not born with this kind of orientation. In addition, she gives some incidences that led her to identify herself with this culture. First, big boys in the street and in school immensely bullied her because of her small size. It always caused her to feel less of a person. Moreover, she started thinking that boys were more superior figures in the society. As such, she started acting like a boy. When I met her, her ID read Rosa, but she said that I should refer to her as Anderson. It gave her a feeling of that superiority she desired so much.

Her family consisted of a single mother and two younger brothers. They, especially her mother, were not for her sexual orientation. However, this did not make them seclude her in any way. The traditions of this orientation were also best known to her. During the interview, she could not open up to some of the facts concerning the traditions of her choice of culture. However, she made it clear that based on the reasons behind her choice of sexuality, she would not change for anything. She has also been able to learn more about her cultural identity through her mingles with other gay people within the society.

Repeatedly, Rosa had to deal with rejection from other members of the society because of her choice of sexuality. This seclusion went to extremes when she went to a society that did not approve of her sexuality. She would at times be sent off for this. However, she continues to stand firm in her choice. Her family is also wealthy. Her mother is a famous fashion designer in town. Her two brothers work in different vital departments in their mother's company. However, Rosa is inspired by her mother to develop her own fashion design store for men's wear.

Finally, it is fundamental to note the benefits of one sticking to their own cultural background. It is the best way of identifying yourself with other members from other cultures. Moreover, it is vital to note the traditions that go hand in hand with their cultures. It would help in evading irrelevancies. In conclusion, it is vital for family members to avoid controversies accept that one's culture. It is similar to the case of Rosa who cannot agree on certain issues with her own family.

References:

1. Davidov, E., Schmidt, P., Billiet, J. (2012). Cross-cultural analysis: Methods and applications. The UK: Taylor & Francis.