Understanding Differences

Understanding Differences

So much of Communication is context; the context of the participants, the context of the situation, etc. The reading and activities below are optional but strongly encouraged. The workshops bring contextual differences to light and may help you communicate better with others. We will be completing the Power and Privilege workshop in a later lesson, but it is included here as well because it is part of the series.

Penn State's Division of Student Affairs has developed a number of online workshops that target important, challenging, and perhaps controversial aspects of communicating effectively with individuals, organizations, and communities.

Here are brief descriptions of these online workshops (some of which we will cover in a later lesson):

Credit: State Department
Photo by Freddie Everett,
Public Domain

Introduction to Power and Privilege 

This workshop focuses on the concepts of power and privilege and how they impact race and ethnic relations. The workshop includes activities that help you to explore your own identity and provide you with opportunities to reflect upon these complex issues. More importantly, how do these ideas impact our efforts as we communicate energy and sustainability issues as we work with individuals, organizations, and communities?

Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination

Credit: Gender Stereotypes
by Consuelo

This workshop focuses on understanding and increasing your awareness of a range of stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination, how they differ from each other, and how they influence each other. Rooted within cultural contexts, it is important to get a sense of how our own beliefs come into play as we work to get our messages across to others.

Introduction to the Isms

Credit: National Women’s Party
members protest before the
White House, 1917 by
AP Images from Mashable, 2021.

Learn about the concept of "isms" and more specifically about how racism, sexism, classism, and heterosexism affect communications and community relationships. Taken from the workshop: "...it is believed that our levels of success are a direct result of our dedication, discipline, and hard work." As we work with individuals, organizations, and communities, you begin to see how important it is to ask yourself the question of whether or not everyone actually has the same opportunities to succeed.