Cultural Sensitivity and the Filipino
Each culture has its hot buttons. Filipinos have been described as tolerant, friendly, warm, and hospitable, specially by foreigners. I believe this is an apt description of Filipinos at their best -- but touch a hot button, like calling them a nation of servants, mail-order brides, or joke about their medical education and you will see a collective reaction and even an official response from the Philippine embassy. There have been poor souls who bore the brunt of Filipino cyberhate after being falsely accused of writing anti-Filipino blogs or an entry on Facebook implying that Filipinos deserve suffering calamities for their sins.
Some say these hot buttons are wired deep. Count three centuries of being called Indios by the Spanish, and then fifty more years of Japanese and American colonialism. When you are subjugated, you bite your tongue when you hear your subjugators' insults and find other ways of getting back at them. One of them is through humor. You make fun of them behind their backs, or you pique them until they get mad and you laugh at their fuming and blood-red faces. This is probably where “pikon-talo” comes from. And this is also probably why Filipinos can be self-critical, as in mentioning the hot buttons above, but don’t necessarily welcome the same comments from foreigners.
There is a reason why politics and religion are off-limits for expat discussion with locals. Indeed talking to Filipinos about their traits can be a minefield for foreigners. But I have found that seeking these views can sometimes give a different lens by which these cultural sensitivities can be seen. Of course some ways of giving these views are more acceptable than others.
One former colleague at work, a Brit, once described Filipinos as intellectually American, spiritually Spanish, and emotionally Asian. I found this view interesting and enlightening on how foreigners can be easily misled by the seemingly western openness of Filipinos when sharing their views but surprised at how quickly they take things personally when their views are criticized in public. Some may say this is a sign of immaturity but maybe this is the Asian deep within his heart. Filipinos have been compared to Thais and Indonesians in their conflict-avoidance and face-saving behaviors. I heard one country head of a multinational, an American, say that Filipinos are among the smartest, most hardworking people in the world, that what sometimes keeps them from being the best is their lack of conflict-resolution skills. Of course this is a western perspective, and one can imagine a Japanese executive similarly describing an American manager working for the first time in Japan. But it is true that many Asians, including Filipinos, are at a loss when initially faced with direct confrontation in a western cultural setting.
Many times, consciously or subconsciously, Filipinos resort to humor when faced with conflict situations. However, when they feel they are being pushed to the wall, they will react in kind too. I guess this is true with anybody regardless of culture – there are universal hot buttons and insults in any culture. What is important is to know when the line has been crossed between a simple cultural divide, such as a joke or intellectual debate being seen as an affront, and a real personal attack.
The Filipinos of today are very different from our parent's generation, and our children are growing up to be different too. It is probably a good thing as each new generation is more world-aware, and is more equipped with tools to manage conflict situations. Some of the generalizations above may no longer apply to many. Maybe some old hot buttons have disappeared, but some will remain and there will be new ones. That’s just how culture works.
Some say these hot buttons are wired deep. Count three centuries of being called Indios by the Spanish, and then fifty more years of Japanese and American colonialism. When you are subjugated, you bite your tongue when you hear your subjugators' insults and find other ways of getting back at them. One of them is through humor. You make fun of them behind their backs, or you pique them until they get mad and you laugh at their fuming and blood-red faces. This is probably where “pikon-talo” comes from. And this is also probably why Filipinos can be self-critical, as in mentioning the hot buttons above, but don’t necessarily welcome the same comments from foreigners.
There is a reason why politics and religion are off-limits for expat discussion with locals. Indeed talking to Filipinos about their traits can be a minefield for foreigners. But I have found that seeking these views can sometimes give a different lens by which these cultural sensitivities can be seen. Of course some ways of giving these views are more acceptable than others.
One former colleague at work, a Brit, once described Filipinos as intellectually American, spiritually Spanish, and emotionally Asian. I found this view interesting and enlightening on how foreigners can be easily misled by the seemingly western openness of Filipinos when sharing their views but surprised at how quickly they take things personally when their views are criticized in public. Some may say this is a sign of immaturity but maybe this is the Asian deep within his heart. Filipinos have been compared to Thais and Indonesians in their conflict-avoidance and face-saving behaviors. I heard one country head of a multinational, an American, say that Filipinos are among the smartest, most hardworking people in the world, that what sometimes keeps them from being the best is their lack of conflict-resolution skills. Of course this is a western perspective, and one can imagine a Japanese executive similarly describing an American manager working for the first time in Japan. But it is true that many Asians, including Filipinos, are at a loss when initially faced with direct confrontation in a western cultural setting.
Many times, consciously or subconsciously, Filipinos resort to humor when faced with conflict situations. However, when they feel they are being pushed to the wall, they will react in kind too. I guess this is true with anybody regardless of culture – there are universal hot buttons and insults in any culture. What is important is to know when the line has been crossed between a simple cultural divide, such as a joke or intellectual debate being seen as an affront, and a real personal attack.
The Filipinos of today are very different from our parent's generation, and our children are growing up to be different too. It is probably a good thing as each new generation is more world-aware, and is more equipped with tools to manage conflict situations. Some of the generalizations above may no longer apply to many. Maybe some old hot buttons have disappeared, but some will remain and there will be new ones. That’s just how culture works.
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