Instructions
For this task, imagine that you were asked to write an article for a university newspaper on the topic of multicultural psychology.
Conduct an extended interview (45-60 minutes) with a person who identifies him/herself as coming from a completely different cultural, religious, ethnic, racial, or class background than you.
Include only enough identifying information about the person to locate him/her within a diverse group. Do not include specific information such as the person’s real name, location, or anything else that would allow your instructor to identify the individual. Assure the person you are interviewing that his or her identity will not be revealed and that he or she can stop the interview at any time.
Utilize the questions in your interview:
- What does the word culture mean to you?
- How much does your family influence your important life choices, such as education, career, marital choice, religious, or spiritual perspective?
- What would you say is, from your perspective, the most commonly held misconception about people of your culture?
- Have you ever experienced racism or prejudice? If so, in what form?
- In your opinion, what can be done to eliminate racism and prejudice?
- Have you ever felt that people make mental health judgments about you or others in your culture, based on cultural misunderstandings?
- If there is one concept you could explain to other people about your group, to help them understand and deal with your group better, what would that be?
In your article, intersperse important information you have learned in the class with comments from the person you interviewed. Include an introduction to the topic of multiculturalism and a conclusion that ties together the course concepts with the information you have gathered through the interview. Be sure to mention whether the information gleaned in the interview did or did not concur with your studies. When the information differs from what you would have expected based on your readings, note this, and discuss any possible reasons.
Conclude with suggestions you gained from the interview regarding how we can better understand multicultural diversity in general, and the particular diverse group represented by this person in particular.
Length: 8-10 pages