Understanding Your Cultural Identity: Using the Cultural Identity Scale
Are you aware of your cultural identity? How does your culture influence your decisions, beliefs, and values? Understanding one’s cultural identity is an essential step towards building empathy, respect, and tolerance for people who are different than us. The Cultural Identity Scale (CIS) is a reliable tool that helps individuals identify their cultural identity and develop a deeper understanding of their identity.
What is the Cultural Identity Scale?
The Cultural Identity Scale is a self-assessment tool that helps individuals explore and understand their cultural identity. The CIS was developed in 1995 by Bernard and Clara Golden, who worked with multicultural populations in the United States. The scale measures six dimensions of cultural identity: ethnic identity, linguistic identity, national identity, regional identity, religious identity, and racial identity. Each dimension is measured on a 6-point scale, ranging from “not at all” to “very much.”
Why is the Cultural Identity Scale important?
The Cultural Identity Scale provides individuals with a structured approach to explore and reflect on their cultural identity. It helps people understand how they perceive themselves in relation to their cultural background. This awareness can aid individuals in developing their cultural competence, which is a crucial skill in today’s globalized world. Moreover, the CIS can help people identify their biases and prejudices, enabling them to be more open-minded and inclusive.
How to use the Cultural Identity Scale?
The CIS is a self-administered questionnaire that can be filled out online or offline. The questionnaire consists of 24 items, four items per dimension. The questions are phrased in such a way that respondents can rate their level of cultural identity on a 6-point scale. Once the questionnaire is completed, respondents receive a score indicating their level of cultural identity for each dimension.
The results of the CIS can aid in formulating appropriate educational interventions to help individuals develop their cultural competency and understand how they relate to others from different cultural backgrounds. For example, if the results show that someone has a weak ethnic identity, an educational intervention can be designed to help the individual explore their cultural background and form a stronger identity.
Conclusion
The Cultural Identity Scale provides individuals with a valuable tool to reflect on their cultural identity. Understanding one’s cultural identity is crucial in developing empathy, respect, and tolerance for people who are different from us. The CIS can also help people identify their biases and prejudices which can be crucial in today’s globalized world. Using the CIS, individuals can develop their cultural competence and gain a deeper understanding of their self-identity in relation to their cultural background.
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