Interpersonal Communication at its finest

Evaluating Intercultural Behavior

Singapore prides itself in being a nation that has managed to achieve cultural harmony, and rightfully so. Our society’s food, language, and activities are all results of cultures mixing. However, I believe that Singapore’s society is still learning what it means to have cultural understanding of each other. What we have now is cultural tolerance and selective cultural harmony. My current perception of Singapore’s society is that people of different cultures are living geographically together, but perhaps socially separate lives. Certain elements of a culture that appeal to us are shared, a prime example being food. However, we tend to avoid issues that are disagreed upon, sometimes to the extent of us becoming indifferent or ignorant about it.

Understanding another culture goes beyond pictures and hearsay. It is a genuine effort to accept something that may be a stark contrast to what one is familiar with. This requires one to spend time with people from that culture, and realize that one’s culture is not the absolute, sole method to live. For example, the Bangladeshi construction workers, who currently construct our university’s new buildings, are people that we see everyday. However, I did not know much about them, apart from the stereotypes; such as them being less wealthy, uneducated, and even a potential nuisance to society. It was only until 2013’s haze period, did I notice that these were the only few people still working hard in the bad weather. This compelled a few friends and I to go to the construction sites and hand out free drinks to them.

There is always a strong fear of the unknown. What language do they speak? How should I greet them? Will they think I am weird? These are some of the questions we fretted over while preparing to go to the sites. It took much courage for us to start conversations, but once we did, we realized that they are not that different from any of us. We may have different practices and beliefs, but at the very core, all of us are humans.

One of the most impressionable culture differences was that males do not sit beside females, unless they are married. We discovered it when a female friend unknowingly sat beside a male worker to converse. Instead of judging or scolding, the worker politely stood up and moved while explaining the situation. This is how I envision society should accept and understand other cultures; not just through educational media, but through sensitive communication and graciousness for one another.