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American Culture vs. Australian Culture

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American Culture vs. Australian Culture
American Culture vs. Australian Culture
HMD 259- Assignment 1
Lauren Lightfoot

Lauren Lightfoot
HMD 259
Assignment 1

When asked to compare American culture to a country of my choice, I selected Australia. I’ve never visited the country but I have friends that live there and they often question American norms as they differ greatly in Australia. Upon typing the phrase into my search engine, some very interesting links popped up, revealing some strange but valid distinctions between these cultures.
Australians don’t have a large army. In fact, most Australian officials don’t even consider it a real army. Both countries speak English but English pronunciation is quite different in Australia, as they tend to have a higher pitched voice. Australians are very educated and most complete higher learning education. Minimum wage in Australia is triple what America requires ("Yahoo! Answers"). These are just a few examples, but there are three others I found most interesting.
The first that I found was the lack of racial divide that is demonstrated in Australia. Although there are some objections whether they be to the left or right, Australian culture doesn’t hold much weight to race as America does. According to the site www.sciforums.com, Australians only acknowledge a grey area, which eliminates the separation between races. Australians are also less likely to use ethnic labels like African, Chinese, or Indian. If anything this may create some positive energy in the workplace and HR director could feel confident that the employee isn’t making racially derogatory statements or acting in such a manner. This protects the establishment from having any claims that violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the requirements of the EEOC.
Politician John Langmore stated, "Americans maintain their sense of being God's own country with a manifest destiny to lead the world to freedom and democracy. Australia has no global ambitions, and those related to the region are



References: "Australia vs US Culture.." 25 2008. vBulletin Solutions, Inc. , Online Posting to Australia vs US Culture.. Web. 24 Oct. 2012. <http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?76781-Australia-vs-US-Culture>. "The United States vs Australia Convict eyes on the Land of Liberty." Convict Creations. Com The hidden story of Australia 's missing links. N.p.. Web. 24 Oct 2012. "What are some main differences between Australian and American cultures?." 01 2007. Yahoo! Inc., Online Posting to Yahoo! Answers. Web. 24 Oct. 2012. <http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080501113934AA5RF52>.

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