Michael Sylvester wrote:
> Back when there was an emergence of Black,Hispanic and Asian
> studies,there was an insistence that the best fit faculty
> personnel to conduct those courses and departments should be
> representative of the targeted populations. Hence a white
> professor teaching Black History or Black Psychology would come
> under scrutiny.
Fair enough--assuming that only Professors of White European descent are
permitted to teach _European_ history, English literature, etc.
Or is it only discrimination if _Whites_ teach it?
> With the growing trend in establishing Cross-Cultural Psychology
> courses,I personally feel that this issue is relevant.
>
> Cross-Culltural Psychology is not using a Eurocentric paradigm
> and trying to find its' equivalence in other cultures. As a matter
> of fact, CC Psy is about 80% culture and about 20% basic psychology.
Then it should be called "Cultural Studies," not "Psychology" in the first
place.
> And even within the comparative cultural aspects,distinction should
> be made between the indigenous aspects and parallel similarities
> interculturally. The leading dudes and dudettes in CC Psy come from
> a variety of academic disciplines. Most are Eurpeans and Asians and
> possess a Global personality outlook and apply research methodology
> leaning towards non-parametric statistical analysis.
You mean Americans aren't among the leading "dudes and dudettes" in the
discipline (btw, do you allow your students to call you "Dude?" as you do
other professionals in the field?)? You state that most are "Europeans and
Asians" who "possess a Global personality outlook" (whatever that is)--does
that mean that you believe American scholars to be ethnocentric?
> Hence a true Cross-cultural Psychologist should express a passion
> for the integrity of other cultures.
I would far rather s/he express a passion for SCIENCE instead!
> This individual should place more emphasis on "validity" than on
> the "reliability" aspects of concepts and should question the rules
> of standardization.
Which, of course, gives us the "Quija Board" school of science, but . . .
> In my opinion, profs who originally ome from other cultures
> should be on the vanguard of this CC Psy movement because they may
> be at an advantage in comparing and contrasting the cultural
> variables.
On that basis, criminals should be at the vanguard of the Criminal Justice
field, as they are at an advantage in comparing and contrasting legal and
criminal behavior.
How about focusing on academic QUALIFICATIONS to teach the subject instead
of the race/ethnicity of the teacher instead? If you only focus on
ethnicity, in what way do you differ from the racist who insists that only
"Whites" can teach about our culture, since it is based on WASP values?
> They may also represent modes of adjustment:
> integration,assimilation,integration and
> separation-which could give insight into levels
> of factors that affect inter and intra cultural
> movements.
And which has nothing to do with psychology at all, of course--all of these
are SOCIOLOGICAL concepts (and, yes, I _am_ sure--I _teach_ Minority
Studies, despite the "failing" of being white).
> Unfortunately, most profs that I have met from other countries
> seem more interested in propagating the Eurocentric Psychology
> paradigm, especially those born in Cuba and the Middle East.
Why would Cubans and Middle Easterners want to propagate a European model?
That makes no sense at all.
> Of course,I realize this may represent a mode of adjustment in
> the host country and interestingly enough,this could be asset
> in providing the necessary insights for CC Psy understanding.
In other words, having instructors who are ethnic minorities and hold a
rigid world view is better for the students than to have White professors
who are well versed in the subject and take a non-biased one?
Odd values, Michael, even for you.
> Stay tuned.
I tuned in, turned on, and dropped out in the sixties--it's a bit late to
start that all over again.
Rick Adams
--
Rick Adams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Department of Social Sciences
Jackson Community College
2111 Emmons Rd.
Jackson, MI 49201
