> On Mon, 20 Apr 1998, Eva Ekeblad wrote:
> > What on earth does Diversity mean in a US context??
> Gordon Wells wrote:
> ... Might it be more appropriate to think of multiple processes of
> diverging and converging in
> activities and settings on different scales?
I agree with Gordon. I can't say anything about the US.
But although Eva have restricted the problem of Diversity in such a
context, it is my opinion that it would be very much appropriate to
make a cross cultural comparison with other Pan-American cultures,
which include Latin American, Caribbean, and many others.
In some of these cultures, the diversity "issue" have followed a
partially different path in their development. For example, but
without generalizing, the degree in which such cultures are considered
"Collectivistic", in relation to "Individualistic", differ.
When a scale such as that is applied uniformly to a certain
population, in generally, it does not respect the particular
situations. For example, in Brazil, following Roberto da Matta, it can
be said that the same individual, who can be very conservative and
collectivist at home, when at the street, is acts individualistic.
This case briefly illustrates Gordon's statement about different
scales, and
how they are inter wined.
Luiz