The Little Tokyo Service Center and Language Barrier Assessment

2291 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Cultural competence research paper

The field placement for my concentration year is at the Little Tokyo Service Center working with mono-lingual Korean seniors. 1st generation monolingual Asian American senior citizens often experience marginalization because of limited resources in addition to language barriers. As a result, monolingual Asian American seniors are constantly experiencing multiple barriers in society, because of the disenfranchisement of people of color. Delgado and Stefancic (2001) describe the stratification of the Eurocentric ideology and values that are embedded in the United States. Because of the values in American society, people are expected to acculturate towards western ideals. Consequently, many 1st generation monolingual Asian American seniors experience a lack of culturally competent social services in many communities in the United States (Ngo and Lee, 2007). Moreover, 1st generation monolingual Asian American seniors are reluctant in seeking for various social service programs in their community, because the services tends to be culturally incompetent. As a result, many Asian American citizens that are monolingual are likely to have difficulty applying for various social services to prevent poverty and destitution, and find appropriate services that cater towards their needs. The perception of Asian Americans is framed by the model minority myth, which are stereotypes perpetuated in the media to caricature Asian Americans as intelligent, successful, hard-working and without mental illnesses (Taylor and Stern 1997). Because of the belief of the model minority myth, this ideology causes many people in society to believe that Asian American seniors are well off, but in reality many monolingual Asian American seniors experience poverty a... ... middle of paper ... ...) Social Constructionism helps to identify many issues that are defined by roles and identities constructed in our society. As a result, I have been able to understand many underlying issues by using a narrative approach in deconstructing many social issues monolingual Asian American seniors are experiencing. For example, I have been able to analyze conflicts with diagnosis that are from the result of the discrepancies from language barriers, because many practitioners believe monolingual Asian American seniors have issues in regards to anger. However, the co-participant’s anger may be from the result of language barriers and improper assessments. Hence, using the frameworks of CRT/I and Social Constructionism have allowed me to understand that practitioners may assess monolingual Asian American seniors incompetently when not including their narratives and stories.

Show More
Related

  • Amy Tan's Summary

    255 Words  | 1 Pages

    The author demonstrates a personal example of how communication became a barrier because of the way Tan had to assist when her mother would speak. Tan would often have to relay the meaning of her mother’s message, because her mother’s “broken English” was difficult for others to comprehend. When Amy was younger, she remembers having to act as her mother on the phone, so that people on the other end would treat her mother with the respect she deserved. On one occasion, when her mother went to the doctor to get her CAT scan results on a benign brain tumor, her mother claimed that “the hospital did not apologize when they said they had lost the CAT scan and she had come for nothing” (Tan, 544 ). It was not until Tan had talked to the doctor that the medical staff seemed to care about any of her mother’s complications. Tan seems to come to the conclusion that a language barrier affects both sides. Not only does it affect Tan, but it also appears to affect the people around her. For instance, this happens when Tan changes her major from the stereotypical “Asian’s become doctors” to an English teacher. She eventually learns to write fiction and other writings that she was constantly told she would never be successful at.

    Read More

  • How Eric Liu Presents His Life As A Native Immigrant To Asian Americans?

    1475 Words  | 3 Pages

    In this article, Eric Liu presents his life as a native immigrant to an Asian American individual. He shares his experience through his reflection of ideas and emotions. Along with his story, it relates to the ideas of people’s journey from adolescence to adulthood. Eric’s inspirational experience is directed towards minority groups who try to adapt to the American culture and lifestyle. His parents emigrated from China to America, before he was born which he later became exposed to the freedom and diverse society. This results in beneficial effects for his individuality, career opportunities, and lifestyle. Although his parents have lived in a different culture than him, his life in America has made him assimilated into the American society

    Read More

  • Sterotypes and Misconceptions of Asian Americans

    709 Words  | 2 Pages

    In an April data report, experts from Pew Research Center, a nonprofit organization that conducts data based on social issues, public opinion and demographic changes, reported that “Asian-Americans are the highest-income, best-educated and fastest-growing racial group…they place more value than other Americans do on marriage, parenthood, hard work and career success.” It is biased claims like this are the reasons why Asians are encouraged to be further discriminated agains...

    Read More

  • Cultural Competency and Health Disparities

    2402 Words  | 5 Pages

    The United States’ population is currently rising exponentially and with growth comes demographic shifts. Some of the demographics shifts include the population growth of Hispanics, increase in senior citizens especially minority elderly, increase in number of residents who do not speak English, increase in foreign-born residents, population trends of people from different sexual orientation, and trends of people with disabilities (Perez & Luquis, 2009). As a public health practitioner, the only way to effectively eliminate health disparities among Americans, one must explore and embrace the demographic shifts of the United States population because differences exist among ethnic groups (Perez, 2009). We must be cognizant of the adverse health conditions for each population and the types of socioeconomic factors that affect them. Culture helps shape an individual’s health related beliefs, values, and behaviors. It is more than ethnicity and race; culture involves economic, political, religious, psychological, and biological aspects (Kleinman & Benson, 2006). All of these conditions take on an emotional tone and moral meaning for participants (Kleinman & Benson, 2006). As a health professional, it is one’s duty to have adequate knowledge and awareness of various cultures to effectively promote health behavior change. Cultural and linguistic competencies through cultural humility are two important aspects of working in the field of public health. Cultural competency is having a sense of understanding and respect for different cultural groups, while linguistic competency is the complete awareness of the language barriers that impact the health of individuals. These concepts are used to then work effectively work with various pop...

    Read More

  • Personal Narrative: Growing Up As An Asian American

    689 Words  | 2 Pages

    As a minority, coming from an international country to a foreign nation has been the most crucial decision that my family has concluded to live the possibility of the "American Dream". However, growing up as an Asian-American student wasn’t simple; I was faced with the challenge of malicious racial slurs, spiteful judgment, and unjustified condemnation that attacked my family's decision to come to America.

    Read More

  • Mental Health of the Asian-American Elderly

    1941 Words  | 4 Pages

    A number of scholarly works have been implicated in the elderly Asian American mental health. Normal ageing could be assumed differently from people with dementia from the Asian origin creating stigmatization, aggravating severe chronic mental illness (Liu, et al., 2008). Asian immigrants with difficulty in English have made them prone to difficulties in communication creating disparities in the health status specially the mental health (Mui, et al., 2007). Recent elderly Asian immigrants have been experiencing acculturation stress, involuntary resettlement, and barriers in stereotypical intergenerational solidarity (Ng & Northcott, 2010). Education and self-efficacy had positive correlations with health promotion and mental well-being in Asian immigrants (Sohng, Sohng, & Yeom, 2002).

    Read More

  • Model Minority

    932 Words  | 2 Pages

    According to the Pew Research Center data, recent trends shows that Asian Americans are the “the highest-income, best-educated and fastest-growing racial group in the United States” ("The Rise o...

    Read More

  • Internalized Oppression And The Culture Of Silence Analysis

    1292 Words  | 3 Pages

    Asian Americans, often referred to as the “model minority” are also affected negatively. In Keith Osajima’s article “Internalized Oppression and the Culture of Silence”, he focuses on how Asian Americans deal with their form of oppression. He noticed that many of them “were reluctant to take the risk of thinking critically about the inequities in society” (Osajima). He states that the typical quiet, well-behaved Asian American deals with what Erica Sherover Marcuse calls “internalized oppression”. Osajima asserts that internalized oppression “[leads] the oppressed people to believe that the solution to their problem is to become like or to be accepted by those in the dominant group” (Osajima). Therefore, Asian Americans have dealt with their oppression by: being good students, going to college, and getting well-paying jobs, like their white counterparts. This is where the phrase “model minority” comes in for Asian Americans. Because so many Asian Americans excel in school, the pressure to perform well is immense. Southeast Asians in particular “are not able to conform to this unrealistic expectation and in fact, have the highest high school dropout rates in the country” (C.N. Le). Osajima sums his argument up perfectly with his final sentence when he states that “the educational process can do more than reproduce a compliant work force, but can be a vehicle for liberation.” (Osajima). His strategies for allowing his classroom to serve as a site for liberation included cutting down on lecture time, encouraging students to take risks with their thinking, and assuring his students that their contributions would be respected and not be looked down upon. With encouragement and the use of these techniques, Asian Americans can begin to think critically about their role in society

    Read More

  • Asian American Stereotypes Essay

    1453 Words  | 3 Pages

    As an Asian American, I have several points to discuss in terms of stereotypes. Through a variety of media, Asian Americans are portrayed by socially constructed stereotypes that are either positive or negative to our community. By explaining the definition of a stereotype and listing three specific ones identified, these points reflect our cultural values. These stereotypes include the concept of model minority, the insinuation that Asians are highly skilled at mathematics, and assumptions of our food ways. In each stereotype, I integrate my own experiences to provide a deeper depth of meaning that will allow one to evaluate whether these stereotypes do mirror our society’s customs.

    Read More

  • Portrayal of Asian Americans in the Media

    3279 Words  | 7 Pages

    I also researched instances of counter actions taken by Asian Americans to protest against these negative images. My research also has examples of Asians that have succeeded in breaking through the racial barriers in the media. The results show that even though racial stereotyping still exists in various forms of mass media, there are signs that show noticeable improvement in allowing a more balanced image of Asian Americans. Statement of the Problem There are close to 12 million Asian Americans living in the United States (U.S. Asian, 2000). Asian Americans are considered one of the fastest growing minorities (Pimentel, 2001).

    Read More

  • Asian American Representation In Hollywood

    868 Words  | 2 Pages

    Media often exaggerate the characteristics of Asian and Asian Americans. Stereotypes in film maintain common ones like Asians who are masters of martial arts a...

    Read More

  • Researching the Asian American Culture

    1635 Words  | 4 Pages

    However, Asians are rapidly becoming a greater force in American culture as the proportion of educated Asian-Americans rises. Despite small numbers, they begin to have more and more influence in the business and professional worlds as well as academics. They are an interesting group, however, caught between two extremely different cultures as they seek to strike a balance between the ideals of their parents and the world they live in.

    Read More

  • Understanding My Social Location and Experiences

    1769 Words  | 4 Pages

    Before I analyze how my social location has influenced my experiences, I need to talk about my family’s demographic characteristics in comparison to our community and the larger U.S. society: In my hometown, Asians make up the third largest racial group (23%). Whites make up 51.3% and H...

    Read More

  • Unraveling Stereotypes: Asian Americans in Media

    1316 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...o “limit Asian Americans’ career opportunities.” In mainstream media, Asian Americans are often overrepresented in number-crunching professions that require minimal language proficiency (e.g., engineering and sciences), but underrepresented in social science and humanities fields that entail superb language and interpersonal communication skills.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Ronald Takaki's The Harmful Myth Of Asian Superiority

    1597 Words  | 4 Pages

    We’ve all heard it said that Asian Americans are good at math; anything involving science, technology, and medicine. They study all the time, work really hard, and live a version of the American dream many of us never thought to dream of. And of course, we know these stereotypes are dangerous and often untrue, but perhaps we still find ourselves buying into them. Ronald Takaki”, the ethnic studies expert, writes about the idea that Asian Americans are more successful than any other American minority group in his article “The Harmful Myth of Asian Superiority. Takaki refutes this idea by strategically, and somewhat effectively, using reason, statistics, and word choice to show that Asian Americans still face some of the same hardships and barriers

    Read More

More about The Little Tokyo Service Center and Language Barrier Assessment

Open Document