Stereotypes In Intercultural Communication

As this course has recognized, intercultural communication skills are invaluable in today’s diverse world. Especially here in the United States, where we can be considered a “melting pot” of various cultures, these skills can increase efficiency in the workplace and allow for resolutions to be made in times of intercultural conflict. The remainder of this text will focus in the concepts of stereotyping and ethnocentrism, examples of how a certain cultural group is represented by the media, media stereotypes versus cultural value orientations, and how such stereotyping can impact communication between individuals of different cultural groups.

Stereotyping Versus Ethnocentrism Stereotyping involves members of one social or ethnic group assigning

The United States media definitely does not have any shortage of representations of the Hispanic culture. One of these representations is that Hispanic women are always maids, housekeepers, or janitors. In fact, Hispanic actress Guadalupe Moreno has reportedly been cast as a maid and mom approximately 150 times (Benedetti, 2013). Two of these films include “The Goonies” and “As Good as it Gets.” Moreno told the New York Times that even if she spoke perfect English, she wouldn’t get the part. She said, “it’s their continued perspective of who we are,” referencing Hollywood’s view of Hispanics. In addition to this, prime-time television also has been known to stereotype Hispanic women as maids and housekeepers. Some of these examples include Shelley Morrison in “Will & Grace” and Lillian Hurst in “Dharma & Greg” (Benedetti, 2013). A much more recent example of this representation of the Hispanic culture is the Lifetime show “Devious Maids.” This is a comedy/drama/mystery series produced by Marc Cherry and ABC studios that follows the lives of a few maids who work for some of the most wealthy and powerful families in their area. This show features five Hispanic actresses (Ana Ortiz, Dania Ramirez, Roselyn Sanchez, Edy Ganem, and Judy Reyes.) and has stirred up a significant amount of controversy. Hispanic community members have called this series a “wasted opportunity” debunk stereotypes, as it only seems

Additionally, Hispanic immigrants were described as criminals, drug dealers, and rapists by Donald Trump during his presidential campaign. Given these stereotypes, assumptions can be drawn that the Hispanic culture is made up of people who are meant to serve others through manual labor and people who bring crime and harm to others. Two value dimensions will be discussed to further examine the Hispanic culture and how it is related or unrelated to these stereotypes. The first value dimension to be discussed is masculinity verses femininity. Masculinity versus femininity represents a cultures desire for achievement, assertiveness, and material success (“Country Comparison,” 2018). In this dimension, Mexico receives a score of 69, which means that it is a generally masculine society. This means that members of the Hispanic culture are driven for success, are decisive, and place an emphasis on equality. When looking specifically at the stereotype that Hispanic women are seen as maids, moms, and housekeepers, this doesn’t seem to line up. Why would women who come from a culture that emphasizes assertiveness and material success be destined to serve others by maintaining their homes and doing work that most would consider to be very menial? Given that this value dimension for the Hispanic culture and the stereotype