INDH1006 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Didgeridoo, World View, Health Professional
26 May 2018
School
Course
Professor
Notes 4 – Australia’s Indigenous People
Learning outcomes
Culture, world views, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander diversity and health status
Culture
Culture is a complex concept and there is no universally accepted definition – culture can mean
different things to different people. However, from a sociological perspective, culture is the sum of
different influencing factors including the following:
• Personal beliefs – communal beliefs
• Individual human behaviour – collective human behaviour (specified groups)
• Personal attitudes and values – collective human behaviour (specified group)
o Social norms
o Traditions
o Language
o Policies
• Personal spirituality – collective spirituality (specified group). Culture is not static; it is
constantly changing. The world in which we live moves at a fast pace. Different cultures have
different values and philosophies and different ways of knowing. there can be difficulty
There are external components to culture, which can be observed (e.g. language, clothing, specific
items, specific behaviours) and internal components that cannot be readily observed (e.g.
interpretation is the meaning people attach to external components – e.g. didgeridoo).
Culture is created through experience; it is an ongoing dynamic process. It is not just about seeing the
‘tip’ of the cultural identity ‘iceberg’ of food, dress, music, language and art. The values, attitudes and
ideologies which underpin our decisions and choices in these respects are more significant.
Care needs to be taken that the superficiality (or the decoration) of culture is not given more credibility
than the deeper aspects of culture. In fact, superficial definitions of culture are often used as a way of
dismissing modern and contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people identity. This can
lead to the belief that because a lot of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people no longer ‘live in the
bush’, have dark skin, and a whole range of other visible aspects of culture, then they are not ‘real’
(see Taylor (2001) for a more in depth discussion.
World view
World view is personal as well as collective – it is a cultural construction of a person’s/group’s current
reality. The concept of ‘World view’ is closely linked to culture – values, beliefs, philosophies,
experiences and social structure. These vary from group to group.
Your world view impacts every intervention. Cultural competence requires you to be consciously aware
of the ways in which the invisible cultural elements can influence your relationship with others and the
workplace environment. If we want to understand people of other cultures and their behaviours, it is
important to understand their values, attitudes, perceptions and beliefs. In order to understand others’
values, it is important to identify your own. A culturally safe environment can accommodate cultural
diversity (Taylor & Guerin, 2010).
1. Explain what is meant by culture.
2. Compare and contrast the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in terms of
culture, language, country and experiences.
3. Explain what is meant by different 'World Views' in examining your own world view and how it
might be similar or different to someone else's 'World View'.
4. Describe what terms of reference or framework may uphold Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander people's beliefs, ideas, ways of working, and, the values and connections of culture,
kinship, gender, country and Aboriginal society.
5. Discuss the statistics relating to social determinants and Aboriginal health status.
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Document Summary
Islander people"s beliefs, ideas, ways of working, and, the values and connections of culture, kinship, gender, country and aboriginal society: discuss the statistics relating to social determinants and aboriginal health status. Culture, world views, aboriginal and torres strait islander diversity and health status. Culture is a complex concept and there is no universally accepted definition culture can mean different things to different people. However, from a sociological perspective, culture is the sum of different influencing factors including the following: personal beliefs communal beliefs. Individual human behaviour collective human behaviour (specified groups: personal attitudes and values collective human behaviour (specified group, social norms, traditions, language, policies, personal spirituality collective spirituality (specified group). Culture is not static; it is constantly changing. The world in which we live moves at a fast pace. Different cultures have different values and philosophies and different ways of knowing. there can be difficulty. Culture is created through experience; it is an ongoing dynamic process.
