Skip to Main Content

Cultural Competencies

North Campus Cultural Competence Resource Center and Library

The North Campus Library and Tutoring Services is pleased to announce the availability of a new collection—The North Campus Cultural Competence Resource Center and Library. The North Campus Cultural Resource Center and Library is a part of the Northeast Florida Initiative for Nursing Workforce Diversity and is designed to promote awareness of diversity along many parameters. The collection fosters an understanding of diversity and inclusion theories, diversity in healthcare, and the unique issues affecting various affinity groups.  It also supports the development of the overarching cultural competence and literacy needed to be successful in an increasingly global society, a key goal at Florida State College at Jacksonville, which seeks to “inspire students to a lifetime commitment to continued learning, informed civic engagement, ethical leadership, cultural appreciation, social responsibility and multicultural awareness in an interconnected world.”

The collection is fully circulating and includes books and audiovisual materials.  It is located directly across from the Academic Success Center service desk inside the Library. We are excited about the potential uses of this collection by members of our academic community, especially those who are involved in North Campus’s many health-related programs. We invite you to stop by to peruse and check out materials from the collection.

For further information regarding the collection, please contact one of the following library liaisons: 
Mary Dumbleton: (904) 766-6715 or Youlanda Henry: (904) 766-6765

*Funding for the collection was provided through a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration, in support of the College's Northeast Florida Initiative for Nursing Workforce Diversity, and Florida State College at Jacksonville.

What is Cultural Competence?

Cultural competence is defined as "developing an awareness of one's own existence, sensations, thoughts, and environment without letting it have undue influence on those from other backgrounds; demonstrating knowledge and understanding of the client's culture; accepting and respecting cultural differences; adapting care to be congruent with the client's culture."

Purnell, LD, Paulanka BJ. Transcultural Health Care: A Culturally Competent Approach. Philadelphia, Pa: FA Davis; 1998:1-7

Cultural Competence Self-Assessment

Ask yourself the following questions to gauge your level of cultural competence.

  1. Fear and Resentment: "Do I resent or fear peers who believe and behave differently than I do, or do I carefully listen to, support, and respect diverse opinions?"
  2. Self Understanding: "Do I understand how my own cultural background and experiences have molded my thinking and behavior? How are these life themes different from those of my peers, colleagues, faculty, and administrators? How do I respond to these differences?"
  3. Contributions to the Whole: "How have my interactions with peers and faculty supported the learning environment?"
  4. Conflict Management: "How do I interact with diverse colleagues, peers, and faculty, and how do I manage conflict in and out of class? If a video camera were to record these interactions, what verbal and nonverbal behaviors would it capture?"
  5. Ethnocentrism: "Am I guilty of ethnocentrism, identifying and judging others from my own cultural perspective?"
  6. Emotional Cues and Clues: "How do I respond to emotionally charged situations, in and outside of class or clinical? How is my response similar/different from my diverse peers'?"
  7. Thoughtful Communication: "Do I consistently use assertive communication techniques (clear, concise, neutral statements) to describe personal beliefs and perspectives versus aggressive, emotional "you" statements? Do I consider how my behaviors will affect others, prior to speaking?"
  8. Exercising Allyship: "How do I respond and behave when witnessing cultural incompetence, incivility, and bullying in educational and clinical settings?"

Taken from: Smith, L. S. (2017). Cultural competence. Nursing, 47(10), 18-20.