ANNIE AARUP JENSEN, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, LEARNING AND PHILOSOPHY KIRSTEN JÆGER DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE AND GLOBAL STUDIES AALBORG UNIVERSITY The Status of Cultural Knowledge in Nursing Education

sub-projectTalking Culture Project framework: Cultural Intelligence, sub-projectTalking Culture Participants: Copenhagen Business School, Aalborg University, national and international corporate and institutional partners Sub-project Talking Culture: Research project, aiming at investigating the discursive constructions of culture, cultural difference and intercultural encounters pertaining to organizational and professional practice (multicultural for- profit organizations and public institutions (healthcare sector, nursing education))

Interview study on the importance of ‘culture knowledge (intercultural understanding; cultural awareness) “Cultural knowledge is necessary as preparation to function in an globalized, multicultural working context” However, too much emphasis on cultural knowledge may lead to a neglect of core qualifications in nursing education Is cultural knowledge at odds with nursing professionalism or an instrument of further professional development?  The question cannot be answered within the disciplinary boundaries of ICC research  It requires an interdisciplinary approach combining intercultural studies and studies of the professions

Intercultural communication research Pays little attention to professional identities Has little understanding of professional implications of intercultural communication issues/problems; lacks professional insight on a detailed level Views intercultural communication problems as related to (national)cultural identities, secondarily to organizational identities ‘cultural knowledge’ (knowledge of the culturally different; cultural self-reflection etc.) conducive to efficient intercultural interaction Professionals’ research on ICC ->”transcultural nursing” (has been criticized for ‘inherent culturalism’)

“Respondents’ self-perceived low cultural expertise and uncertainty made them uncomfortable as professionals, and some felt that the quality of care for patients was being affected as a result. This was further enmeshed with professionals’ concerns about the lack of rapport they felt able to achieve with patients because of perceived lack of shared cultural background, language, or values. They felt less able to use, or trust, empathy as part of their approach.” (Kai et al. 2007: 1770)

ICC Due to the lack of professional insight, ICC researchers’ results and recommendations cannot address profession-related problems in detail or in depth, but remain relatively general and unspecific. It is always a good idea “to raise one’s cultural self awareness; to be aware of personal and organizational discourse; and first and foremost: to be a culturally reflective person, critically reflecting on one’s own cultural biases and always embracing difference with an open mind”.

Nurses’ perception of ethnic minority patients – a professional issue Data: Discourse analysis of all articles on ethnic minority patients from 2000 to 2008  Challenges due to language problems and diverging cultural expectations (non-compliance issues, perceptions of disease and health diverging from Western (Danish) health knowledge, non- adherence to hospital routines) are seen as professional problems – as obstacles to adequate professional action  Dysfunctional professional / client (nurse/patient) relationships (for example lacking recognition of nurses’ professional authority) are seen as a threat to professionalism (Jæger & Jensen 2009; Kai et al. 2007)  Do perceived problems indicate ‘racism in disguise’ or ‘sound professional judgment’?

Potential gains from applying a studies of the professions approach Possible to understand different views on the importance of cultural knowledge as articulations of different professionalization strategies (not as nursing educators’ sufficient/insufficient recognition of the ‘objectively existing cultural knowledge need’ in nursing education) Contribute to the development of a ‘common ground’ on which precarious issues involving both professional concerns and cultural and linguistic considerations can be discussed and understood