Essay On My Cultural Identity

Everyone has a unique identity and culture they align with. In particular, my cultural identity is that I am Korean American. I was born in America, but grew up in South Korea until I was six. The rest of my childhood was here in America but I would visit South Korea nearly every summer. So I identify as a Korean American. While growing up between two cultures, I struggled a lot because I would often be confused about how to behave and mainly about where I belong. Sometimes I agreed with more with American values like independence and vice versa. This would create problems between my family and me. Regarding religion, my mother is Catholic like the rest of her family and my father identifies as Catholic as well but was not a church person like …show more content…
But I have come to a general agreement between the two. Basically, these two cultures have influenced my experiences, attitudes, and values throughout my life. I would say my experiences would differ from other people because of my cultures. Specifically during school I would be stereotyped due to my culture. Although I spoke English very well and dressed accordingly, there were times when students would ridicule me for being Asian. For instance, they would slant their eyes with their fingers and speak gibberish in an accent saying that I don’t belong there. It was very depressing and frustrated me. I spoke English and tried very hard to fit in, but it seems that no matter what I could not fit in. Nonetheless, I did have good friends who helped me through this and accepted me for me. I never quite belonged into either just American or Korean culture. Even among other Korean Americans, I did not fit because usually they were more American or more Korean. For instance, they didn’t speak any Korean and were totally raised as an American. When I tried to speak Korean to them, although they were Korean themselves they would tell me speak English because this is America. It really surprised me because even though they don’t speak Korean or very little, they dismissed their Korean heritage. Moreover, there were other Korean Americans not in those categories as well but they had their own culture made. Because of this, …show more content…
It is important to know these because understanding and being aware of these stereotypes can build rapport with your client. The client may become more inclined to trust you if they feel like you understand their situation. Another strength is that I know how my cultural heritage affects the definitions of abnormality and counseling. (Rinehart, 2016). For example, there is a big stigma in Korea regarding mental illness. Even if a person is experiencing mental problems getting treatment is difficult due to this stigma. Moreover, if your mental illness is known to others, you may be ostracized and talked down upon. It would damage your family reputation because any problem with your child is a reflection of their parents. On the other hand, there are some limitations with my cultural identity. First, I am limited to my own culture. Although I may learn about other culture stigmas, stereotypes, stigmas, etc. there will always be some cultural barrier obstructing me from truly understanding. Second, as stated before, I am not religious. For those with faith, I may not have the experience nor faith to understand their perspectives. If their illness correlated with an illness of my expertise, I would be able to help them, but without some education and learning I would not have their faith. Moreover, certain myths or legends related to their myths. This might be difficult to