Today’s military service gives new recruits along with seasoned veterans a crash course in culture. According to the text I am using for Organizational Leadership 410 it defines culture as “a distinctly human means of adapting to circumstances and transmitting this coping skill and knowledge to subsequent generations” (Moran, 2014). Learning to understand and manage relations with other cultures is paramount in each service member being able to carry out their duties and responsibilities. In this case culture does not simply pertain to the overseas or foreign relations that they have to deal with but also relations with those in their own ranks. According to a recent study conducted that was approved by DEOMI Institutional Review Board a heavy importance was placed on the value of cultural understanding and the state of the military today. It was stated that “cultural competence is a vital component of many missions in today’s military. Cultural competence enables one to further a mission, save resources, and save lives. Conversely, a lack of cultural competence may bring about challenges to mission completion, requirement for more resources, waste of resources, and destruction of lives” (Svec,2014).
When someone joins an organization today they must be aware of certain cultures, beliefs, and in some cases even opinions that they are going to encounter in their day to day dealings with people. The United States Armed Forces do this by ensuring that each and every service member receives ample amounts of training. Training that depends on the atmosphere or environment the individual finds themselves in. During the Vietnam War the military saw fit to ensure that Soldiers, Airman, Sailors and Marines that were stationed in the country received culture awareness training. This stemmed from a myriad of factors nut number one being that it was a very unpopular war and the need to understand the culture and people of their surrounding might ease some of the tensions in the region. This training also stemmed not only from Vietnam and the war that they were currently engaged in but other areas of the world where liberty incidents from American service members brought unwanted attention to their leadership (Abbe & Gouge, 2012). Not knowing or understanding the values or beliefs of those that a military force may be liberating or defending could have the opposite affect that humanitarian forces are in place for in the first place.
Another component that the military is embracing in their teaching is cultural heritage recognition. Most if not all months of the calendar year there is a cultural heritage recognition that involves people from those backgrounds taking part in preparation of meals, making educational presentations, and in some cases productions of culturally accurate song and dance in order to broaden knowledge of their cultural heritages. These cultural recognition time periods include Asian Pacific, Hispanic, Caribbean, and African American cultures among others that all get recognized during certain times.
In conclusion there are many different aspects of culture that need to be recognized within organizations in order to operate smoothly. However, it is safe to state that not all cultures or all beliefs, views or opinions are going to be recognized but focusing on certain views within the bounds of the situations that the organization is involved will benefit the organization and it stakeholders tremendously.
References:
Abbe, A., & Gouge, M. (2012). Cultural training for military personnel: Revisiting the vietnam era. Military Review, 92(4), 9-17.
Moran, R. T., Abramson, N. R., Moran, S. V., & Harris, P. R. (2014). Managing cultural differences (Ninth ed.). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
Svec, L. (2014). Cultural heritage training in the US military. Springerplus, 3(1), 1-10. doi:10.1186/2193-1801-3-126
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