A nurse resigns from a position in a hospital to accept a job in a community setting. After starting the new job, the nurse feels helpless and confused, wondering if this was the right career choice. Which of the following terms best describes how the nurse is feeling?

Question

a. Cultural conflict
b. Cultural relativism
c. Culture shock
d. Culture brokering

Answer 1

ANS: C
Culture shock can happen to individuals within their own culture when they are having experi-ences such as starting a new job or career. Culture shock is brought on by anxiety from losing fa-miliar signs and symbols of social interaction. Feelings associated with culture shock are help-lessness, discomfort, and disorientation. Cultural conflict is a perceived threat that may arise from a misunderstanding of expectations when nurses are unable to respond appropriately to an-other individual's cultural practice because of unfamiliarity with the practice. Cultural relativism recognizes that clients have different approaches to health, and that each culture should be judged on its own merit and not on the nurse's personal beliefs. Culture brokering is advocating, mediating, negotiating, and intervening between the client's culture and the biomedical health care culture on behalf of clients.