Understanding Ethnocentrism

• The first step to dealing with ethnocentrism is understanding what it is and where it comes from. In cultural anthropology, ethnocentrism is described as believing that your own culture is better than another culture because of certain customs, practices or lifestyles typical of those from other cultures. Ethnocentric people may make sweeping judgments about people based on these beliefs and may even use them to make decisions about jobs or friendships.
  
  

Relation to Prejudice

• It is important to know that ethnocentrism can lead to prejudice, which can be damaging in many cases. Prejudice is essentially a pre-judgment about something or someone, before you get to know them well enough to make an informed judgment. In ethnocentrism, these judgments are made usually based on stereotypes or a single, isolated incident with someone of a different culture. In mild cases, prejudice can cause people to intentionally avoid interaction with people of other cultures, and in extreme cases it can lead to violence.
  
  

Ethnocentrism in Yourself

• If you believe you may be ethnocentric, you have already taken a step in the right direction by admitting it. Your next task is to target the reason why. It may be that you are simply uncomfortable with things you are not familiar with. It may also be that you had a negative experience with someone of another culture. In either case, you may resolve your ethnocentrism by researching the culture and understanding its beliefs and why some people might act the way they do. Remember, you can accept a belief, even if you do not choose to embrace it. Tolerance and acceptance do not have to include practice of the custom.
  
  

Ethnocentrism by Others

• If you feel that you are the target of prejudice due to ethnocentrism, you can take steps to resolve this as well. First, establish that the person you believe is prejudiced is not violent or aggressive. If this is the case, avoid further interaction and inform a figure of authority. If you believe the ethnocentrism is less threatening then that, you may find it helpful to inform the person a bit about yourself and your culture, and apologize for potentially offending the person. If they don't accept, they aren't worth your time anyway. A good person will generally be able to accept this and will learn from the experience.