Professional Communication: Cultural Sensitivity - Essay Example

?Professional Communication: Cultural Sensitivity By The article “Culturally Sensitive Research Approaches: An African-American Perspective. Educational Researcher” was written by Tillman Linda, and published in the year 2002 in the volume 31, number 9 of the journal called “Educational Researcher.” This journal article mainly addresses an important issue regarding the African Americans in the process of qualitative research. Tillman advances a valid argument in this article. She mainly argues that it is important for all researchers engaged in qualitative research, which involves African Americans, to put into consideration various aspects of ethics and cultural competence when dealing with the cultural group during the research process. In order to ensure that all researchers consider this issue, Tillman proposes a theoretical framework, which promotes cultural sensitivity, and which researchers studying African Americans can utilize to guide their research process. I chose to focus on African Americans, because this is one of the special groups of people in the United States. African Americans have a history, and today, their history is a major factor that contributes to how this cultural group perceives the world and the people around them today. In addition, the African Americans are considered a minority group in the United States. Most minority groups are faced with various issues regarding racism and segregation. Therefore, like other minority groups, the majority group in the United States have most of the times misunderstood the African Americans, including misunderstanding how and why they do certain things. For this reason, there has been a case of different stereotypes, which people link to African Americans. Stereotypes are basically assumptions, which outsiders hold about a specific cultural group, and most of the times, these assumptions are not valid. Therefore, it is important to focus on African Americans with regard to this topic, as these influence the professional communication in healthcare. For instance, a white healthcare practitioner might receive an African American patient, with whom an encounter will ensue. Therefore, given the misunderstandings that surround African Americans, it is possible for the healthcare practitioner to experience communication problems in his or her encounter with the African American patient. This could specifically arise due to a case of cultural insensitivity exhibited by the healthcare practitioner towards the African American, and more so, this could be done unknowingly. In the journal article, Tillman mainly aims at contributing to the larger debate, which focuses on the need for culturally sensitive approaches in qualitative research. According to Tillman (2002), in order to utilize culturally sensitive approaches in qualitative research, it is paramount that the various aspects of qualitative research, including data collection and data interpretation should be based on the cultural standpoints of both the researcher and he respondent. Therefore, a major argument of Tillman in this article is that the cultural standpoint of both the researcher and respondent should act as the main framework through which the research process is conducted. With regard to the African American culture, Tillman argues that since African Americans are a minority group in the United States, there is dire need that the framework a researcher utilizes in studying them in qualitative research be conceptual and expanded. The research framework used to study African Americans should also be wide enough to capture and draw on their experiences and history. Tillman (2002) also notes that a culturally sensitive research approach considers and captures the two significant aspects of ethnicity and position culture, and makes these to be core to the research process. Theoretical framework that Tillman (2012) proposes to be used for qualitative studies involving African Americans has distinct characteristics, which are aimed at promoting cultural sensitivity in the research process. First, the culturally sensitive approaches used in qualitative research involving African Americans should draw on research methods that have a cultural orientation. In addition, these approaches should be based on a wide knowledge base, which is culturally specific. Furthermore, there should be no inclination to theoretical dominance, as far as knowledge on African American culture is concerned. Tillman also argues that the approach should involve a kind of data interpretation that is sensitive to the culture of African Americans. Finally, the theory and practice employed in the research should be culturally informed. Overall, Tillman argues that a researcher should aim at maintaining the cultural integrity of African Americans during the research process. Here, the factors of same-race and cross-race perspectives, as well as insider and outsider views in research come into play. Tillman also opposes any kind of research practices, which will marginalize African Americans. Additionally, Tillman calls for honest interpretation of the data findings involving African Americans. Finally, the theory developed after the research should show a clear connection between honest perspectives of the respondents and the cultural understanding of the study phenomenon. The arguments presented by Tillman (2002) can apply to practice situations in healthcare. In this case, therefore, the healthcare providers ought to be culturally sensitive when dealing with various patients. A healthcare provider must be aware of their cultural biases and prejudices, as well as stereotypes they hold about other cultures, different from theirs. A healthcare provider must also be aware of his or her own culture. This is important, as it will promote cultural relativity in healthcare practice. The healthcare provider will therefore, not impose his or her cultural values on the patient. When encountering an African American patient, a healthcare provider should consider various cultural factors, including language, cultural values and norms, as well as personal space (McNeil et al 2002). For instance, with regard to language, a healthcare provider must understand the fact that most African Americans speak informal English, which includes different dialect such as “Black English” and “Gullah,” and different slangs (McNeil et al 2002). Therefore, a healthcare provider should not assume that African Americans use this as their main language, and therefore cannot communicate in the main English language. There is a possibility of a healthcare provider, who encounters African Americans using formal English, to consider them as illiterate, unintelligent, or uneducated. Instead, the healthcare provider should ensure effective communication, which includes reading non-verbal cues of the patient. Additionally, a healthcare provider should consider the cultural norms of African American patients. For instance, it would be inappropriate for a young healthcare provider to address an elderly African American female patient using their first name, as this is considered disrespectful, and might lead to a misunderstanding between the patient and healthcare provider (Galanti, 2012). In conclusion, this essay has focused on Tillman’s 2002 article titled “Culturally Sensitive Research Approaches: An African-American Perspective. Educational Researcher,” in which she proposes a culturally sensitive approach to qualitative research involving African Americans. The main argument is that there is need for a culture-based framework in conducting a research on African Americans. This is mainly because of the fact that they are a minority group, thus various race-related issues might result, if the research is not culturally sensitive. Nonetheless, this knowledge can be applied to various situations in healthcare, especially in the encounters between an African American patient and the healthcare provider. Therefore, it is crucial for a healthcare provider to have an understanding of the culture of African Americans, and interact with the patient, based on the patient’s cultural norms and values. This will exhibit professionalism in healthcare, as the healthcare provider will be considered culturally sensitive, thus promoting effective communication in his or her encounter with the patient. References Galanti, G. (2012). Cultural Sensitivity: A Pocket Guide for Health Care Professionals. New York: Joint Commission Resources. McNeil, J. et al (2002). BESAFE: A Cultural Competency Model for African Americans. Retrieved from http://www.aetcnmc.org/documents/BESAFE_AfrAmr.pdf Tillman, L. (2002). Culturally Sensitive Research Approaches: An African-American Perspective. Educational Researcher, Vol. 31, No. 9, pp. 3–12. Retrieved from http://legacy.aera.net/uploadedFiles/Journals_and_Publications/Journals/Educational_Researcher/3109/3109_Tillman.pdf Read More