Culture General Guidebook
Globally Applicable Concepts and Skills for Military Professionals
Kerry Fosher, PhD; and Lauren Mackenzie, PhD
with contributing authors Erika Tarzi, Kristin Post, Eric Gauldin, and Gregory Marshall
DOI: 10.56686/9798986259543
ABOUT THE BOOK
Current and future operating environments require forces that are as prepared as possible to deal with a multitude of complexities, not least of which are the people within those operating environments and a need to understand them. At the core of understanding people is culture, and developing competence in the art of understanding people through culture requires a deliberate and persistent effort. This guidebook represents an important step in adopting a methodical approach to culture in operations and describes an evolutionary approach to understanding the human dimension. The concepts and skills presented here under the umbrella of culture general provide a pragmatic toolkit to prepare servicemembers for global employment through the deliberate application of culture general knowledge and skills to specific cultures and regions. The concepts and skills presented in the guidebook are general in nature, and applicable in many, if not most, intercultural interactions. This guidebook serves as a good baseline for military personnel to develop the cognitive, metacognitive, and behavioral skills they need in an increasingly complex national security environment.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword
Preface to the New Edition
Preface to the Original Edition: Why Focus on Culture General?
Acknowledgments
Acronyms and Abbreviations
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Culture General in Context: The Learning Domains in DOD’s Cultural Capability
Region-specific Knowledge
Culture-specific Knowledge
Language and Communication
Culture General
Cross-cultural Competence
What Is Culture?
A Note on Service Frameworks
Rules of the Road
CHAPTER 2: CULTURE GENERAL CONCEPTS
Concepts for Thinking Systematically about Culture
Holism: Building Situational Awareness with a Holistic Perspective
Variation and Change
Variation
Change
Culture General Concepts for Understanding Behavior
Interaction with the Environment
Overview
Getting, Sharing, and Saving Resources: Subsistence and Exchange
Overview
Digging Deeper
Corruption
Reciprocity—Connecting Exchange and Social Relationships
Generalized Reciprocity (what goes around comes around)
Balanced Reciprocity (you scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours)
Division of Labor
Resources—Distribution, Access, and Ownership
Organizing and Interacting: Relationships, Roles, and Identity
Overview
Digging Deeper
Groups and Networks
Identity
Race and Ethnicity
Group Membership
Organizations
Tribes
Cohesion: Ritual, Narrative, and Symbol
Mobilization
Answering Questions: Beliefs, Logic, Questioning, and Investigation
Overview
Digging Deeper
Questioning and Investigating
How People Use Beliefs and Logic
Influencing: Power and Making Decisions
Overview
Digging Deeper
Contract and Personal Trust
Social Control and Managing Conflict
Overview
Communicating: Information Flow, Sources, and Trust
Overview
Staying Well and Dealing with Illness: Health, Nutrition, and Wellbeing
Overview
Learning and Teaching
Overview
Expressing Ideas and Identity: Arts, Literature, Media, and Performance
Overview
Having Fun: Leisure, Play, and Humor
Overview
Digging Deeper
Leisure and Work: Are They Two Different Things?
Conclusion
CHAPTER 3: CULTURE GENERAL SKILLS
Observation
Discussion
Key Points
Interpreting the Cultural Landscape
Common Pitfalls
Suspending Judgment
Discussion
Self-regulation
Discussion
Perspective-taking
Discussion
Intercultural Communication Skills
Discussion
Key Points
Skill 1: Leveraging Communication Styles
Skill 2: Employing Effective Interaction Management Skills
Skill 3: Practicing Active Listening
Skill 4: Managing Paralanguage Use and Perception
Skill 5: Decoding Nonverbal Messages
Preparing for Interaction
When Things Go South—Trouble Recovery
POCESAD
Building Rapport
Discussion
Key Points
Face
Revisiting Perspective-taking, Suspending Judgment, and Self-regulation
Nonverbal Expression of Rapport
Revisiting the Concept of Identity
Identifying and Managing Culture Shock
Discussion
Key Points
Causes of Culture Shock
Value Conflicts
Uncertainty
Unmet Expectations
Recognizing Culture Shock
Dealing with Culture Shock
Accept Things You Do Not Like
Suspend Judgment, Maintain Tact and Bearing, Take Alternative Perspectives
Reframe Your Problems
Take Control
Relax
Talk
Working with an Interpreter
Discussion
Key Points
Unique Considerations when Involving an Interpreter in Your Interactions
Planning
Planning Questions
Rehearsing
Contact and Engage
Debrief and Check for Understanding.
Conclusion
Appendix A: Select References
Appendix B: Additional Resources, Annotated
Appendix C: Teaching Tools
Appendix D: Historical and Contemporary Relations between Social Science and the Military