Note on universalism and cultural relativism

Fernandez Souza^*
*Correspondence: Fernandez Souza, Department of Anthropology, Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Email:

Received: 07-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. GJSA-22-56203; Editor assigned: 09-Mar-2022, Pre QC No. GJSA-22-56203 (PQ); Reviewed: 23-Mar-2022, QC No. GJSA-22-56203; Revised: 28-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. GJSA-22-56203 (R); Published: 04-Apr-2022

Overview

Universalism

Universalism is defined as the principle that a given value, morality, theory, or treatment will be the same for all groups except culture, race, nationality, gender and other social identities. The program has been a philosophical concept in the fields of counselling, psychology, medicine, and many other social sciences. This basic teaching has laid a solid foundation for ideas, research, and practice within the counselling profession. In addition to being a core belief in counselling, universalism has also become one of the central philosophical concepts in interpreting cultural diversity.

Historically, the dominant view among counselling was that ideas and processes should be viewed as global considerations that require symbolic testing to test their authenticity, purpose, and effectiveness. Developmental theory exploring behavioural development and mental development and counselling theories such as ethics and Gestalt are just a few examples of theories aimed at addressing the concerns and realities of all people. Although attention to personal differences has always been a major factor in the counselling process, universal views among many of these ideas have not been challenged until scholars of various cultures have identified them as culturally sensitive and do not incorporate different world views. This amazing point of view suggests that it is possible to produce and fully comprehend all aspects of the mind, even a particular culture, from the point of view of the universe. Examples of this universal consideration include how we define what is “normal,” what “practical” advice is, and who the “good” client is. Another universal theory is the belief that all disturbances occur in all cultures and exist in the same ways.

Fields such as counselling, psychological testing, and evaluation have all dealt with the effects of universal consideration and bias that have led to discussions, sometimes controversial, about their effects on opinions, diagnoses, general groups, and general assessment. The profound effect of universalism on theory and practice can be ethnocentric, androcentric, and even counterproductive where complexity and diversity can be increasingly involved.

Cultural relativism

Cultural relativism is the ability to understand culture in its own terms and not to make decisions based on personal cultural values. The purpose of this is to develop an understanding of cultural practices that are generally not part of personal culture. Applying the concept of cultural relativity leads to the idea that no culture is superior to another culture compared to moral, legal, political, etc. systems. It is the idea that cultural norms and values derive their meaning within a particular social context. This is also based on the premise that there is no absolute standard of good or bad, so all decisions and judgments of right and wrong are determined by the individual in each society. The concept of cultural relativity also means that any view of ethics is subject to the individual’s perception within his or her particular culture. Overall, there is no right or wrong behaviour. With a fuller understanding of the term cultural relativism, it seeks to promote an understanding of cultural practices that are uncommon in other cultures such as eating insects, killing people or mutilating their genitals. There are two distinct categories of cultural relativity,

• Absolute: Everything that happens within a culture must and should not be questioned by outsiders. An extreme example of total cultural harmony would be the view of the Nazi party, which condoned the Holocaust.

• Critical: It creates questions about cultural practices about who receives them and why. Critical cultural relativism also recognizes power relations.