Analysis of Multiculturalism - Assignment Example

Analysis Roll No: Teacher: 7th December 2008 Analysis For conducting research on the issue of Multiculturalism and change in culture in American society, two types of methodologies were opted which were quantitative methodology in terms of formation of a questionnaire and qualitative in terms of literature review and analysis. For the analysis of multiculturalism and change in culture in American society, both the quantitative and qualitative methodologies were employed to come up with a result that is convincing and influential. The sample population comprised of four ethnic groups that were Hispanics, Africans, Asians and Americans by birth or their parents were related to areas such as Mexico, Italy, South Africa, Sri Lanka and United States of America as a whole. I have provided the questionnaires to one hundred and fifty students who belonged to the ethnic groups that I have listed above. From them sixty nine were White American nationals by birth, twenty eight were African Americans, forty two were Hispanics and twelve were Asians. Results of the Questionnaire Questions Responses 1- Do you know about existence of multiple cultures in America? 2- How many cultures how you seen in America? 3- Is America culturally diversified? 4- Do you think that multiple cultures have affected America positively? 5- Are there any problems for people migrating towards America? 6- Do you think that America as a whole is affected by the presence of different cultures? 7- Do you think that multiple cultures have corrupted America’s unique culture? 8- What are the problems that come up because of people migrating towards America? 9- Are there any conflicts because of presence of people from different cultures? 10- Is America facing a problem concerning the management of accommodation and other facilities for immigrants from different cultures? 11- Are the people from different cultures receiving the same rights as Americans? 12- Do you think that America’s culture has changed as a whole? If yes what are the reasons and if no, comment . 13- Are there any racial conflicts because of multiple cultures? 14- In your opinion, what are the reasons of existence of multiple cultures in America? 15- How has multiculturalism affected America? 1- Out of one hundred and fifty students, all one hundred and fifty students were aware of the existence of multiple cultures in America as all of them responded “Yes” for this question. Not a single responded with “No”. 2- Fifty nine students reported that they have seen six cultures in America; forty three reported that they have seen five cultures in America and forty eight students informed that America contains four kinds of cultures. 3- All of the one hundred and fifty students responded in “Yes” as according to all of them, America is culturally diversified. 4- Eighty three students responded in “Yes” for this option as they considered the existence of multiple cultures in America as a positive aspect while sixty seven students considered the existence of multiple cultures as a negative aspect. 5- Eighty nine students responded with “Yes” as they think that immigrants face problems in their migration towards America while sixty students consider that immigrants face no problems in America. 6- Ninety two students reported that America as a whole is affected by the presence of different cultures as they responded in “Yes” while fifty eight students feel that America is not affected by presence of different cultures as they responded in “No”. 7- Fifty nine students feel that multiple cultures have corrupted America’s unique culture while ninety one students negated this opinion. 8- Problems highlighted by students are lack of accommodation facilities, health facilities, education facilities, equal rights and social welfare. 9- Sixty seven students consider that there are conflicts because of presence of different cultures while eighty three students negated the presence of any conflicts because of different cultures. 10- Eighty six students responded that America is facing problems concerning the management of accommodation and other facilities for immigrants from different cultures while sixty four negated this view. 11- Ninety two students responded in “Yes” because according to them, people from different cultures are getting equal rights while fifty eight students negated this view. 12- One hundred and nineteen students reported that America’s culture has changed as a whole. They indicated towards migration of people from different areas and different cultures for financial reasons. Thirty one students think that America’s culture is not changed as a whole. According to them, there are changes in the society but on the whole, American culture is still preserved. 13- Ninety six students reported that there are no racial conflicts because of multiple cultures while fifty four students reported that there are racial conflicts because of multiple cultures. 14- One hundred and twenty nine students reported that immigration can be considered as the only reason for the presence of multiple cultures in America while twenty one students reported that wars and migration of people are the reasons for the presence of multiple cultures in America. 15- Students responded for this question with multiple opinions. Some students felt that America is affected negatively because the government of America has financial concerns because of the immigrants. Students have also informed that multiculturalism have emerged various problems such as medical problems, social problems, educational problems, residential problems and many more. Other students regard multiculturalism as a positive phenomenon because it has enriched the American society as a whole. The results obtained from the questionnaires indicate that American society as a whole is affected because of presence of multiple cultures. The most common reason for the existence of multiculturalism in United States of America is informed to be migration of people from diverse societies. On one hand, existence of multiculturalism in American society is considered as beneficial for the society because after the amalgamation of multiple cultures, the society has become a globally rich society. America is considered as a melting pot in which, people from different cultures come and reside along with their cultures. America is affected because of the presence of these cultures from various societies. According to some respondents, there are also negative outcomes of multicultural society because American government is unable to control a lot many problems such as unequal provision of living facilities such as accommodation, education, food, health and other facilities. The results from literature review as a form of qualitative study indicate towards multiculturalism as wholly affecting American society. According to some critics, multiculturalism is a beneficial aspect for America while others negate this opinion by claiming that multiculturalism is taking away the original culture of America. People from different cultural backgrounds do not leave their cultures behind but bring them with them and try to make use of their culture in American society. Immigration is changing America and no one can deny this fact. Peter Brimelow considers that America’s cultural values are being affected negatively because of the foreign invaders in form of immigrants while on the other hand, John Isbister informs that cultural diversity is beneficial for America because it will help America in being a Plural and also that the immigrants do not affect the American economy and earning to considerable extent (Brimelow 1995; Isbister 1996). Samuel Huntington also regards the Hispanic immigrants as a threat for America as because of their arrival, there are chances of multiple cultures and languages (Huntington 2004). America is a multicultural society, it was a multicultural society and it will remain a multicultural society (Isbister 1996). America is considered a land of opportunities where people assemble to find their fortune. There are many immigrants from different parts of the world and they bring their own cultures with them. Because of promise of equal rights and financial support, the immigrants are encouraged to stay and prosper with their own culture. The fact cannot be denied that because of people from different ethnic groups and different cultures, America is becoming a country that has not only one culture but many cultures as there are Hispanics, Asians, Africans and many more people from other lands. With immigrants from different parts of the world, the white Americans that were the original settlers of America seem to be denounced by the new settlers on the basis of racism and ethnicity. According to Huntington, the immigrants who are affecting the cultural identity of America to a great extent are Latino Americans, Mexicans or Hispanics because their inflow towards America is of a considerable extent (Huntington 2004). With entrance of people from different cultures, America will have not one nation but many nations in one land. Peter Brimelow informs that immigrants have affected not only the social life but also the culture of the country (Brimelow 1995). America is not as it was before. John Isbister regards this opinion of Brimelow as a racist one because he regards that previously, America had a dominant ethnic group of White Americans, whose dominance is reduced because of people from different cultures and the people who are against immigration want to continue the White dominance on America (Isbister 1996). Huntington informs that Hispanic people emphasize over the use of bilingual speaking because they are not ready to leave their language at all. Huntington also informs that with the passage of time, there will be a new language introduced in America that will be called Spanglish as it will be a mixed form of English and Spanish. He emphasizes that America has not one language but two languages and gives example of George Bush who delivered a speech in Spanish as well as in English. Immigrants are also stuck to their own cultures and feel flexible with their language (Huntington 2004). Therefore, it is quite clear that with the passage of time, there are a lot many changes in American culture, traditions, language, religion and other aspects because of the immigrants from multiple cultures and lands. Immigrants are not settling themselves but are settling their cultures, their traditions, their religions and their languages in American setting due to which, the American culture is affected deeply. Works cited Adler, P. A. Observational Techniques, Handbook of Qualitative Research. London: N. K. Denzin and Y. S. Lincoln, 1994: 377-392. Auster, Lawrence. "How the Multicultural Ideology Captured America," The Social Contract, Spring 2004. Brimelow, Peter. Alien Nation: Common Sense about America’s Immigration Disaster. Random House, 1995. Huntington, Samuel P. The Hispanic Challenge. Foreign Policy, 2004. Isbister, John. The Immigration Debate: Remaking America. Kumarian Press, 1996. Fraga, Luid, R and Gary M. Segura. “Culture Clash? Contesting Notions of American Identity and the Effects of Latin American Immigration.” Perspectives. Vol. 4. No. 2. June 2006. 8 October 2008. Mbakogu, Ifeyinwa Annastasia. “Is There Really a Relationship between Culture and Development?” Anthropologist. Vol. 6. No.1. 37-43. 2004. 8 October 2008. Patton, M. Q. Qualitative Evaluation and Research Methods, Newbury Park CA: Sage Publications, 1990. Robbin, Alice. We The People: One Nation, a Multicultural Society. Library Trends 49 (1) (2000): Ethnic Diversity in Library and Information Science: 6-48. Roessner, David. "Quantitative and Qualitative Methods and Measures in the Evaluation of Research," Research Evaluation 8 (2) (2000). Appendix Questionnaire Name: Age: Sex: Cultural Identity: Questions Responses 1- Do you know about existence of multiple cultures in America? Yes/No 2- How many cultures how you seen in America? 3- Is America culturally diversified? Yes/No 4- Do you think that multiple cultures have affected America positively? Yes/No 5- Are there any problems for people migrating towards America? Yes/No 6- Do you think that America as a whole is affected by the presence of different cultures? Yes/No 7- Do you think that multiple cultures have corrupted America’s unique culture? Yes/No 8- What are the problems that come up because of people migrating towards America? 9- Are there any conflicts because of presence of people from different cultures? Yes/No 10- Is America facing a problem concerning the management of accommodation and other facilities for immigrants from different cultures? Yes/No 11- Are the people from different cultures receiving the same rights as Americans? Yes/No 12- Do you think that America’s culture has changed as a whole? If yes what are the reasons and if no, comment. Yes/No 13- Are there any racial conflicts because of multiple cultures? Yes/No 14- In your opinion, what are the reasons of existence of multiple cultures in America? 15- How has multiculturalism affected America? Read More