Models in Intercultural

Effectiveness and Sensitivity

Presentation by
Janice Benton and Donna Grimes
Facilitated by Tina Baldera
Catholic Charities USA
Annual Meeting October 6, 2014
Workshop Focus
Examine Challenges and Effective Practices

2 Perspectives
- Workforce at Catholic Charities
- Service to Clients of Catholic Charities

Intercultural covers Culture and Disability


Prayer for Inclusion
Creator God, we are your people. We look to the future with
optimism and with faith in You, as we pursue our call to provide
justice and fullness of life for all people.

We pray that every man, woman and child may develop their
potential and meet You in themselves and in one another.

May we enjoy a totally welcoming community, with You as our
center, joined hand in hand with our sisters and brothers. We ask
this in Jesus' name.

Amen

Based on the Pastoral Statement of U.S. Catholic Bishops
on People with Disabilities, 1978

Life & Dignity of the Human Person
In the Catholic social vision, the human person is
central, the clearest reflection of God among us.
Each person possesses a basic dignity that comes
from God, not from any human quality or
accomplishment, not from race or gender, age or
economic status. The test of every institution or
policy is whether it enhances or threatens human
life and human dignity. We believe people are
more important than things.
- USCCB, A Century of Social Teaching, 4
Rights
People have a fundamental right to life and
to those things that make life truly human:
food, clothing, housing, health care,
education, security, social services and
employment.

USCCB, A Century of Social Teaching, 5


and Responsibilities
Corresponding to these rights are duties and
responsibilities to one another, to our
families, and to the larger society, to respect
the rights of others and to work for the
common good.

- USCCB, A Century of Social Teaching, 5


Disabilities
Disabilities are the normal,
anticipated outcomes of the risks,
stresses and strains of the living
process.
(NCPDMary Jane Owen)


One person in five has some form of
disabilityone family in every three
has a member with a disability.


Intercultural Competence is
Capacity to
Communicate

Work

Relate

across boundaries
People with [differences]are not looking for pity. They seek to
serve the community and to enjoy their full [citizenship] rights
as members of the [community].










- USCCB, Pastoral Statement on Persons with Disabilities, 1978

I want us to say YES
But how?
A Pastors Vision

What does it take to say Yes?
Identify fears that hold you back
Recognize the dignity of every person and treat them
with respect
Be aware of your mindset before approaching people
Maintain a balance between setting appropriate
boundaries and being present to an individual
Affirm and encouragenever give up on a person or
presume they cant accomplish a goal


People Who are Different
Experience
Barriers Physical and Attitudinal
Negative assumptions
Exceptionalism
Exclusion/Ridicule
High unemployment/High poverty rates
Threats to their very lives

Prejudice, Stereotyping & Discrimination

Stigma remains prevalent, and we must fight
throughout our lives to

Stay aliveappropriate health care & safety

Be bornPrenatal diagnosis

Live in the community with accessible housing &
services

Be accepted, valued, presumed competent

Not be asked prematurely to donate organs

Die a natural deaththreat posed by assisted suicide



In-Group and Out-Group Dynamics

Prejudice, Stereotyping, and
Discrimination

Ways We Judge the Other
Obstacles to Effective
Intercultural Relations
Ways We Judge the Other
We generalize about them

We demonize them

We see them as helpless children

We trivialize their painful differences

We make them invisible

Comparative U.S. Data on Adults
with/without Disabilities
Employment
19.3% with disabilities employed vs.
69.3% without disabilities employed

Unemployment
12.9% with disabilities vs.
6.1% without disabilities

Living in poverty
29.2% with disabilities vs.
3.6% without disabilities
Behavior/Action
Assumptions
Material Objects
Values
Attitudes
Beliefs
Thought Patterns
Concepts
Perceptions
Iceberg Concept of Culture

Collectivism vs. Individualism

Hierarchy vs. Equality

Low Tolerance vs. High Tolerance of Ambiguity

Gender Roles

Time Orientation

Gert Hofstedes Culture Consequences
Parameters of Cultures
Collectivism vs. Individualism

This is the most fundamental parameter for
understanding cultures; applies to how we
think about groups and individuals in the
groups whether the group or the individual
has priority in our thinking, our values, and
our behaviors.
Communications Styles
Individualist
Collectivist

Equality

Language code - verbal

Context low

Direct
Yes means yes






Hierarchy

More body language

High context

Indirect
Yes can be yes or no
Collectivist Decision-Making

Establish and maintain harmony and good relations

Elders/status speak first; young members may not
speak at all and will not contradict

Group caucus used to raise issues, questions and
make decisions

Spokesperson speaks for group so decision is group
voice
Individualist Decision-Making

Plan purpose and agenda

Time-bound

Clear rules of order or process of participation

Everyone is encouraged to speak

Open discussion and debate

Decision is made
Intercultural
Competencies
Six Stages of
Intercultural Sensitivity
Denial

Defense

Minimization

Acceptance

Adaptation

Integration

- Milton Bennett, Toward Ethnorelativism: A
Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensibility

The Mutual Invitation Method
(Eric Law)
R: take RESPONSIBILITY for what you say and feel, and speak with
words others can hear and understand.
E: use EMPATHETIC listening, not just words but also feelings being
expressed, non-verbal language including silence.
S: be SENSITIVE to differences in communication styles.
P: PONDER what you hear and feel before you speak.
E: EXAMINE your own assumptions and perceptions.
C: keep CONFIDENTIALITY.
T: TRUST the process because we are NOT here to debate who is right or
wrong but to experience true dialog.
RESPECTFUL COMMUNICATION GUIDELINE
Communicate Effectively
Speak directly to the individual
Listen attentively
Offer assistance, and follow instructions
(including accepting a possible decline of
your offer)

The 10 Commandments of
Communicating
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpPhQl4seqk

Everyone has something to contribute.

When we value and include
everyones gifts, our communities
are greatly enriched.
Diversity Resources - Publications
Building Intercultural Competence for Ministers (BICM), Washington
DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2012.

Brothers and Sisters to Us: U.S. Bishops Pastoral Letter on Racism
in Our Day, Washington DC: USCCB, 1979

What We Have Seen and Heard: A Pastoral Letter on
Evangelization from the Black Bishops of the United States.
Washington DC: USCCB, 1984

Zinn, Howard. A Peoples History of the United States: 1492
Present. New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2005.

Disability Resources - Videos
Ministry Foundations: Disability in Parish Life DVD
60-minute training video produced by the National Catholic Partnership on Disability (NCPD),
available for purchase at www.ncpd.org

NCPD YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/NCPDChannel/featured?view_as=public

Ten Commandments of Communicating With People With Disabilities
26-minute video with accompanying downloadable resources.
Preview at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpPhQl4seqk
Order from: http://www.disabilitytraining.com/product-
info.php?Ten_Commandments_of_Communicating_With_People_With_Disabilities_DVD-
pid111.html

The Truth About Disability Part 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ4JOomkyNI

The Truth About Disability Part 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBFwGSCxLq4
Disability Resources - Publications
Ministry Foundations: Disability in Parish Life Presenter Guide
National Catholic Partnership on Disability (NCPD), available for purchase at
www.ncpd.org

Pastoral Statement of U.S. Catholic Bishops on Persons with Disabilities,
USCCB, 1978, available for download at www.ncpd.org

A Loving Justice: The Moral and Legal Responsibilities of the U.S. Catholic
Church under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Janice L. Benton, editor,
NCPD, 1995. Purchase from www.ncpd.org/resources.

The Theological Voice of Wolf Wolfensberger, William C. Gaventa and David L.
Coulter, MD, editors, Haworth Pastoral Press, 2001; co-published
simultaneously as Journal of Religion, Disability & Health, Volume 4, Numbers
2/3 2001.

Resources - Websites
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the
Church
http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/cultural-diversity/

National Catholic Partnership on Disability (NCPD)
www.ncpd.org

NCPD YouTube Channel
www.youtube.com/user/NCPDChannel/featured?view_as=public

U.S. federal government website for information on disability programs and services
nationwide.
www.Disability.gov

Mathematica Center for Studying Disability Policy
www.disabilitypolicyresearch.org/disability-research-consortium/mission

Resources Disability Statistic Sources

www.dol.gov/odep/topics/DisabilityEmploymentStatisti
cs.htm (U.S. Department of Labor)

www.disabilitystatistics.org

www.disabilitycompendium.org