Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

Publication Date

Spring 4-12-2019

Abstract

Becoming Biculturally Competent

an Autoethnographic Journey of a Güera Woman

Bernadette Hall-Cuarón

ABSTRACT

This dissertation represents a personalized account of my lived experiences and analytically describes the autoethnographic and qualitative processes of bicultural development and bicultural competency. My autoethnographic study advocates that cultural self-reflection allows for an accurate determination of one’s cultural-self and more importantly provides an instrumental passageway to cultural awareness, bicultural awareness, and proposedly bicultural competency.

Through the implementation of this qualitative research method, I explored my role as the subject, researcher, and narrator of this autoethnographic examination. This bicultural autoethnography necessitated attending to the details of genuine and truthful personal reflection, self-analysis, and self-evaluation through the use of the narrative and the components of bicultural competency.

Peering through my Hispanic cultural lens, and my Anglo cultural lens, I have documented a portion of my lived experiences through reflecting, interpreting, and analyzing a collection of epic events that significantly impacted my life academically, culturally, personally, and professionally.

The theoretical elements used for this study are reciprocal determinism, bicultural competency, grounded theory, and narrative analysis. There also was a brief consideration of information avoidance for cultural value preservation. This study synthesized my life story vignettes, my Anglo and Hispanic cultural perspectives of randomly selected cultural artifacts, and familial interviews culminating in epiphanies and heart-warming bicultural life analysis.

Keywords: Anglo, autoethnography, bicultural, bicultural competency, culture, Hispanic

Keywords

Anglo, autoethnography, bicultural, bicultural competency, culture, Hispanic

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

Degree Name

Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies

First Committee Member (Chair)

Dr. Pisarn Chamcharatsri

Second Committee Member

Dr. Kathryn Watkins

Third Committee Member

Dr. Penny Pence

Fourth Committee Member

Dr. Carolyn Hushman

Download

Share

COinS