Is parenting cultural?
GET TO 100% TO EARN YOUR COURSE BADGE 0% BADGES
One of the reasons why you chose to become an au pair is to experience the American way of life. You will be exposed to American culture every day of being an au pair. You will be able to taste a different food, celebrate American holidays and experience the way American children are raised. As you are adjusting to a new culture, you might find some things to be funny or strange. Try to learn more about them by asking questions and finding out why things are the way they are, why people behave the way they do. As a participant of a cultural exchange program, you should bring a certain level of open-mindedness and the desire to learn more about the culture you will live in. Be curious. We promise it will be an enriching experience.
What is culture?
“Culture is the set of attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors shared by a group of people, but different for each individual, communicated from one generation to the next.” David Matsumoto, expert in the field of culture and emotions
As we grow up, the values and cultural beliefs that we develop stay with us for the rest of our lives. There are many things influencing us and shaping us as a person while we grow up. Those things can be family, friends or teachers, social class or religion, education or travel experiences, our race or mother tongue.
These cultural beliefs and values makes us see life in a certain way and consider certain things to be most important. Culture is always part of our identity. So it is only natural that we will pass down some of those beliefs and values to our children.
So, of course, there are some collective ideas about how to raise children in the USA; some aspects of parenting are very cultural.
As you learn how American kids are raised and to better understand why this might be different to the way children are brought up in your country, here are some buzzwords for you to look at – something to get you started thinking about the values that shape American culture. Remember that the USA is a melting pot of many ethnic groups and that some values might not be true for everyone.