Skip to main content

Event to Teach Importance of Intercultural Awareness

Talk on June 11 will touch on combating implicit associations and understanding cultures

As Duke’s international community continues to grow, two departments are uniting to encourage positive discussions of intercultural awareness.

On June 11, the Office of Institutional Equity and International House will host a collaborative event on intercultural awareness as a culmination of the semester long International House’s 50th anniversary theme of “connecting the community, learning together and growing the future.”

Read More

During the event, Janet Bennett, executive director and co-founder of the Intercultural Communication Institute in Portland, Oregon, will present “Combating Implicit Associations in our Community Circles.” The talk will touch on different ways intercultural communication is shown through body language, speech and technology. The talk is from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Duke’s School of Nursing auditorium.

janet bennett
Janet Bennett

“One of the things that happens when people of different cultures come together are problems with communication,” said Bennett, who is also director for a master’s degree program in intercultural relations at Portland State University. “It is very necessary that Duke, as a diverse community, should be knowledgeable of the different cultural communication styles that are necessary to learn one another.”

For example, what is taught as polite in one culture may not be interpreted as polite in another, Bennett said. She added that judgments are shaped by different communication styles, which are based off individual experiences and upbringings. Differences may occur in many arenas, including the Internet, where one person might assume shy or aggressive behavior without understanding the communication habits of the person with which they’re interacting, she said.

“Duke is so diverse that regardless of where we find ourselves on campus, or whether it is in the Medical Center, we are bound to engage with people who are culturally different,” said Seun Bello Olamosu, associate director for intercultural development at outreach International House. “Duke is high in diversity and if we are going to be appropriate and effective as a community, it’s important that we address it.”

The International House’s mission is to provide educational services and advocacy to the international population of Duke, so hosting this intercultural event is part of informing the Duke community on understanding the cultural differences amongst one another.

“It is important that we develop and learn intercultural sensitivity, what’s involved in developing intercultural sensitivity or competence, and what kind of interventions a university can make to help its community become more sensitive to race, culture and gender,” Bennett said. “Duke’s diverse community should be able to understand the relations between faculty, staff and students and their communication patterns.”