Reflective Essay: Exploring Cultural Interactions and Personal Values

This reflective essay explores the nature of the author's interactions with people from different cultural backgrounds, highlighting their cordial and curious approach. The essay identifies personal strengths, such as resilience and optimism, which enhance multicultural counseling relationships, while acknowledging sensitivity as a limitation. It delves into strongly held values and beliefs rooted in the author's Christian faith and the belief that events happen for a reason, shaped by family culture. The essay concludes by examining how these attitudes and values influence the author's behavior towards others in multicultural settings, emphasizing open-mindedness, respect, and a protective stance against prejudice. The author draws upon personal experiences and the understanding that all people are essentially the same, regardless of cultural differences, to inform their approach to multicultural interactions. The essay is supported by a bibliography of relevant academic sources.

Running head: REFLECTIVE ESSAY
Reflective Essay
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1REFLECTIVE ESSAY
1. Nature of Interaction with People who are Different from Me
My interactions with people who are different from me are always cordial in nature. I
try to foster friendly relationships with people who stand out in the crowd and with people
who are from a cultural background that is different from my own. I was quite a loner in my
childhood and because my family members were controlling for the most part, I was seldom
allowed to do things to my liking, always living according to the dictates of other people. I
know what it is like to be different, given that I have rarely got anything in common with my
parents or other family members, and have been told so more than once on my face. I am
reclusive and introverted and I like my own company. In school too I used to be the odd one
out, not one to open up too easily to other people. When I see people from a different culture
or gender come my way, I try to get to know them better. I am naturally curious as a person
and I believe that it is only when you interact with people from other cultures that you truly
begin to discover your own. I take part in cultural festivals that I am invited to attend by
friends and associates who belong to different cultural backgrounds, as this gives me an
opportunity to learn a lot more about them and their ways of life.
2. Perceived Personal Strengths and Limitations that can enhance or Limit
Multicultural Counseling Relationship
Some of my greatest personal strengths are the fact that I am capable of enduring a lot
of pain and agony, and that I am resilient by nature. I don’t let my challenges get me down
and am always one to bounce back from a situation of crisis. I try to look at the positive in
every situation even when I am deeply disturbed and take a lot of pride in the way that I have
handled all my relationships until date, some of which were quite abusive in nature. My
personal strength of optimism and the ability to survive a crisis situation can definitely
enhance multicultural counseling relationship. I understand that people who hail from

2REFLECTIVE ESSAY
culturally diverse backgrounds and who are living in a country foreign from their own, are
likely to face a lot of negative behavior being directed towards them due to the fact that they
are different from the majority. I can counsel my friends who are culturally different from
me, to survive all odds and not to take the negative too seriously, so that they can survive the
crisis situation and come out of it stronger. My personal limitation is the fact that I get hurt
too easily. I am sensitive about what other people have to say to me and at times I do break
down and let my tears show. I don’t believe this limitation of mine will come in the way of
multicultural interactions, given that it is quite okay to be sensitive and emotional.
3. Strongly Held Values and Beliefs that were Developed based on my Own Culture
Some of the strongly held values and beliefs of mine that I developed on the basis of my
own cultural background is the belief in God and the belief that everything that happens in
life happens for a reason. I belong to the Christian faith and although I am not particularly
close to my parents or to the rest of my family members, many of whom are quite controlling
in nature, the respect and love for God is something that has been inculcated in me right from
my very childhood. I have been praying regularly before going to bed ever since I was a
child, and I derive a lot of comfort from acts of worship although I have to say that I am not
too religious or spiritual either. The fact that I have seen both the good and the bad in life in
my years growing up has led me to believe that most of what happens in life happens for a
reason and that God has a plan for all of us. My faith in God and in life has been instilled in
me by my family members and the family culture of prayer and worship that I have been
raised in, and I don’t regret this for even a bit.
4. How my Attitudes and Values can influence my Behavior towards Others who
are Different from me in a Multicultural Setting

3REFLECTIVE ESSAY
My attitudes and values of being positive in my outlook towards others and towards life
in general, my ability to bounce back from a crisis, my faith in God and in the notion that
everything that happens, happens for a reason has lead me to adopt an open minded and
positive approach to people who are culturally different from me. I do understand very
well, those who belong to a cultural background that is different from my own are still
creatures of God, and that we are all essentially the same within. As a result, I endeavor to
treat with respect and dignity, people who are religiously and culturally different from
me, getting them to shed their inhibitions in a foreign land and express themselves more. I
have seen people suffer from racist attacks and in all of these situations the attacks have
felt quite personal for me. I could relate to the agony that the person who is at the
receiving end of the attack was going through, in spite of not belonging to the same
cultural background, and I try my best to protect my friends who belong to ethnic
minorities from racist jeers and attacks by white supremacists. My values and my faith in
God have led me to be protective and careful about my treatment of people from
culturally different backgrounds, making me inclusive and open minded in my views
towards them.

4REFLECTIVE ESSAY
Bibliography
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