• HOME
  • About
  • Shop
  • Work With Me
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Nav Social Icons

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Shop
    • Budget Travel Bible
  • Destinations
    • North America
      • Canada
      • Haiti
      • United States
        • Arizona
        • Florida
        • Hawaii
        • Idaho
        • Illinois
        • Montana
        • Nevada
        • New York
        • Oregon
        • South Dakota
        • Utah
        • Washington
        • Wisconsin
        • Wyoming
        • National Parks
    • Europe
      • Faroe Islands
      • France
      • Iceland
      • Ireland
      • Italy
      • Norway
      • United Kingdom
    • Asia
      • Maldives
    • Oceania
      • Hawaii
      • French Polynesia
        • Bora Bora
        • Tahiti
    • Hotel Reviews
  • Travel Tips
    • Budget Travel Tips
    • Travel Hacking
    • All Travel Tips
  • Travel Essentials
    • Gift Guides
    • Packing Lists
  • Travel Photography
    • Camera Gear
    • Photography Tips
    • Photography Guides
  • Contact
  • Work With Me
  • Mobile Menu Widgets

    Search

    Let's be friends!

    Guilty as charged. Guilty as charged.
    Romanticizing my 5 hour flight in a tiny plane.✨ Romanticizing my 5 hour flight in a tiny plane.✨

This flight was actually so smooth. We had great weather, and — more importantly — WiFi.

You could say the flight ~flew~ by.

We spent about 5 hours flying from northeast Wisconsin to Cheyenne, Wyoming, for my uncle’s Air Force Change Of Command.

Would you fly cross country in a tiny plane? ✈️
    Testing his patience one vertical video at a time. Testing his patience one vertical video at a time.🫡
    10 non-negotiable USA national parks to visit this 10 non-negotiable USA national parks to visit this summer!

When I started visiting the national parks, I quickly realized that many national parks are seasonal. While the park entrances and overlooks may be open year-round, there are definitely better and worse times to visit some of them.

For example, if you try going to the mountains in fall through early spring, some of the hiking trails and roads will be closed due to snow.

On the flip side, if you try going to the desert in summer, you’ll be battling that fatal heat.

So, these are 10 of the best US national parks to visit in summer!

Share this with your road trip buddy to drop a subtle hint. 🚗

#usaroadtrip #usatravel #usroadtrip #roadtripusa #nationalparksusa
    He looked me dead in the eye and said, “Not arou He looked me dead in the eye and said, “Not around here partner… Not around here.”
Travel Blog

Indigo Sahara

Travel Reviews, Guides, Tips & Travel Hacking

  • Destinations
    • North America
      • Canada
      • Haiti
      • United States
        • Arizona
        • Florida
        • Hawaii
        • Idaho
        • Illinois
        • Montana
        • Nevada
        • New York
        • Oregon
        • South Dakota
        • Utah
        • Washington
        • Wisconsin
        • Wyoming
        • National Parks
    • Europe
      • Faroe Islands
      • France
      • Iceland
      • Ireland
      • Italy
      • Norway
      • United Kingdom
    • Asia
      • Maldives
    • Oceania
      • French Polynesia
        • Bora Bora
        • Tahiti
      • Hawaii
    • South America
    • Hotel Reviews
  • Travel Tips
    • Budget Travel Tips
    • Travel Hacking
    • All Travel Tips
  • Travel Essentials
    • All Travel Essentials
    • Packing Lists
    • Gift Guides
  • Travel Photography
    • Camera Gear
    • Photography Tips
    • Photography Guides

What Is Cultural Competence? (Definition And Overview)

By: Indigo Sahara, M.A. | Published: March 3, 2021 | Updated: February 4, 2024

What is cultural competence? Here's a definition and overview.

Cultural competence is a relatively new concept. Many academic fields, universities, non-profits and corporations tout the term, but what does it even mean? What is cultural competence?

In sum, cultural competence is the ability to communicate effectively with, empathize with and understand worldviews of people from other cultures based on one’s cross-cultural knowledge and own self-awareness.

What Is Cultural Competence? (Definition And Overview)

Okay, that’s a mouth full. Let’s break it down.

Cultural competence is:

  • The ability to communicate effectively with people from other cultures.
  • The ability to empathize with people from other cultures.
  • Understanding and accepting different worldviews.
  • Being knowledgeable about other cultures.
  • Being self-aware enough to differentiate your culture and respective worldview from other cultures and their respective worldviews.
The definition of cultural competence (quote)

Table of Contents

Toggle
  • Why Is Cultural Competence Important?
  • How Do You Know If You’re Culturally Competent?
  • Want To Learn More?

Why Is Cultural Competence Important?

Apart from the beautiful desire to become accepting, understanding and empathic toward other cultures, cultural competence is actually important in the everyday workplace, travel destination and home life, too.

In a continually globalizing world, every one of us will encounter an individual from another culture at some point in our life — if not every single day of our life.

This has not always been the case. Long before internet, smartphones and social media, different cultures were separated by geography, government and language.

With modern technology and globally expanding corporate efforts, people need to communicate cross-culturally everyday, which is rarely an easy task. People are afraid of change, and cross-cultural communication solicits a lot of openness to change. This cognitive dissonance usually results in team tension, dispute and immobility.

How Do You Know If You’re Culturally Competent?

You will know that you are culturally competent when you:

  • Can describe your own outlook on life in detail.
  • Understand how your genes and environment affect this outlook.
  • Are able to find many solutions to a single problem and don’t always rely on black-and-white thinking.
  • Are aware that people process thoughts, emotions and experiences differently than you.
  • Understand that the ways in which you think, behave, are persuaded, communicate and relate to others are predominantly results of your cultural upbringing.
  • Aren’t afraid of opinions and beliefs that are different from your own.
  • Have a positive attitude about people from other cultures.
  • Consider yourself knowledgeable about, accepting of and compassionate toward people from other cultures.
  • Are able to communicate effectively with people from other cultures, even with language barriers.
  • Know and accept the differences between high and low context cultures, task and relationship orientation, individualism and collectivism, inductive and deductive reasoning, etc.

If you aren’t 100% sure if every one of these bullet points applies to you, then you probably have some more work to do. But, there is no need to be discouraged!

Cultural competence is a lifelong journey. It requires extra emotional, social and cognitive attention, and it is not something that can be learned overnight.

According to the National Center of Cultural Competence at Georgetown University (NCCC), there are six stages to cultural competence: cultural

  • destructiveness,
  • incapacity,
  • blindness,
  • pre-competence,
  • competency and
  • proficiency.

However, despite the lengthy learning, cultural competence can be learned.

Whether you’re a travel journalist like me, a third-world-country foreign aid worker or a first-world suburban homebody, this skill can indeed be acquired at any age.

What Is Cultural Competence? (Definition And Overview)

Want To Learn More?

As an avid traveler who has studied cultural competencies extensively (MA in global leadership and pastoral counseling; BA in Spanish and journalism) as well as implemented them over the course of my entire life (read my story here), I love to help other people begin their journey toward cultural competence.

Here are some resources to give you a jumpstart:

  • 5 Personal Benefits Of Cultural Competence
  • How About We Stop Using The Term ‘Attention Seeker’?
  • What Does The Bible Say About Face Covering? Contextualization In Ministry
  • Erin Meyer’s Culture Mapping Tools

Also, subscribe to my email list to join a community of like-minded global citizens. You can always email me with specific questions and curiosities, too, at [email protected].

What is cultural competence? And why is it important?
What you should know about cultural competence (brief definition and overview)

Did you find this post helpful? Save it to Pinterest by tapping on any photo above!

By: Indigo Sahara, M.A.

About Indigo Sahara, M.A.

Indigo Sahara, M.A., is the founder and CEO of the Indigo Sahara travel blog. Since earning her master's degree in global leadership, she has traveled to more than 20 countries. Now, her goal is to make travel accessible to all by teaching others how to travel on a budget. She writes world travel guides and travel hacking tips weekly.

you’ll also love

christmas traditions around the world28 Christmas Traditions Around The World You Can Do At Home
bible restWhat Does The Bible Say About Vacation?
5 Benefits of Cultural Competence in Everyday Life

Get exclusive content.

Stay up-to-date & receive the latest travel guides and tips right to your inbox.

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. Culture Shock During COVID-19: How Culture Shock Affects Us In 2021 says:
    June 2, 2021 at 3:45 pm

    […] an avid traveler who has lived abroad various times and actually studied both cultural competence and culture shock academically, it seems clear to me that we are very much experiencing this […]

    Reply
  2. How To Travel More In 2022 says:
    July 20, 2022 at 4:43 pm

    […] your communication skills, your overall quality of life and more. In fact, traveling and the cultural competence that comes alongside has numerous benefits in everyday […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Next Post >

Valentine’s Day Getaway 2022: A COVID-safe itinerary

Primary Sidebar

Meet Indigo

Meet Indigo
hello!

I'm Indigo, a 25-year-old full-time travel blogger who's on a mission to make travel accessible to all.

Read More

Let's Be Social

get exclusive content

Search The Blog

Pinterest

Facebook

Indigo Sahara

Catch Up On The Lastest Posts

Follow On Instagram

@indigosahara

Guilty as charged. Guilty as charged.
Romanticizing my 5 hour flight in a tiny plane.✨ Romanticizing my 5 hour flight in a tiny plane.✨

This flight was actually so smooth. We had great weather, and — more importantly — WiFi.

You could say the flight ~flew~ by.

We spent about 5 hours flying from northeast Wisconsin to Cheyenne, Wyoming, for my uncle’s Air Force Change Of Command.

Would you fly cross country in a tiny plane? ✈️
Testing his patience one vertical video at a time. Testing his patience one vertical video at a time.🫡
10 non-negotiable USA national parks to visit this 10 non-negotiable USA national parks to visit this summer!

When I started visiting the national parks, I quickly realized that many national parks are seasonal. While the park entrances and overlooks may be open year-round, there are definitely better and worse times to visit some of them.

For example, if you try going to the mountains in fall through early spring, some of the hiking trails and roads will be closed due to snow.

On the flip side, if you try going to the desert in summer, you’ll be battling that fatal heat.

So, these are 10 of the best US national parks to visit in summer!

Share this with your road trip buddy to drop a subtle hint. 🚗

#usaroadtrip #usatravel #usroadtrip #roadtripusa #nationalparksusa
He looked me dead in the eye and said, “Not arou He looked me dead in the eye and said, “Not around here partner… Not around here.”

Footer

Blog

  • Destinations
  • Travel Tips
  • Travel Essentials
  • Travel Photography
  • Camera Gear

Info

  • Home
  • About
  • Shop
  • Contact
  • Work With Me
  • Portfolio
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Refund And Returns Policy

stay in the know

Copyright Indigo Sahara © 2025 · Theme by 17th Avenue

We use cookies to provide you with a great user experience. By using our website, you accept our use of cookies.Accept