One of these things doesn't belong...

Which one of these doesn't belong?

A - Axe

B - Shovel

C - Log

D - Saw

My coworker Martial came into my office this week and wrote this problem on my white board.

I chose log. The others are tools, log is not.

Martial told me that he chose shovel. The other three tell a story about cutting wood, they have a relationship to one another.

"You see, you, as an American, are trained to think in terms of categories. I as a Frenchman, was trained to think in terms of relationships and stories. Look, I bet Carlos will think the same as me. Carlos! Come in here!"

Carlos, from Colombia, came in to my office, "shovel."

"But I bet that the other Katie will choose the same as you."

Katie came in, "log"

So, I changed my fb status quickly and set up an unofficial experiment, with the problem posted. All day long messages came in, responses came from around the US, and the world. From people born in the US, Asia, Africa, and Latin American countries. Men and women responded, teens and people in their fifties.

Nineteen people said "shovel;" twenty-three said "log."

There were white North Americans who said, "shovel."

There were non-white and Internationals who said, "log."

Women were more likely to say "shovel" than men.

People with graduate degrees or who are currently in graduate school were more likely to say "log" than those who are not.

Everyone in the US who would identify him or herself as "Latino" chose "shovel" but of the 3 Spanish people [from Spain] interviewed, two said "log" and one said "shovel."

We've been talking about schema in my Culture and Ministry class at Bethel. Our eyes take in 10 million bits of information per second, and our brain is incapable of processing that much. So, as we mature, we develop schema, or frameworks to help us sort through that information. Depending on the family and the culture and environment that we grow up in, we develop different frameworks in order to survive in that setting.

We run into problems when we assume that the people we are interacting with are using the same schema or frameworks as we are.

Now, here's my affirmation for you. Whether you've chosen log or shovel, you're not a bad person. If you chose log, it doesn't mean that you don't value relationships. If you chose shovel, it doesn't mean that you can't think critically.

It is inappropriate to take a deficit approach to culture, whether we're judging the majority culture or a minority culture. The schema that any of us have developed to survive in our environments are good and helpful things. The challenge is not to feel bad about how you think, but to be aware of your schema and the schema of others.