The Billiken: Bringer of Good Luck and Cultural Competence

View/ Open
Issue Date
2012-01Author
Gomi, Sachiko
Canda, Edward R.
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, publisher version
Published Version
https://reflectionsnarrativesofprofessionalhelping.org/index.php/Reflections/article/view/499Rights
Copyright of Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping is the property of Cleveland State University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
In this narrative, the authors describe their exploration of the various cross-cultural meanings of the Billiken, a good luck figurine, which they use in classroom and professional trainings about cultural competence and spiritual sensitivity, both in Japan and the United States. The stories are based on their two diffèrent cultural vantage points and ongoing crosscultural interactions regarding the Billiken, which originated and gained much popularity in the United States and then made its way aroimd the world, including Japan. The stories revolve around how they encoimtered and reacted to the Billiken in two different cultural contexts, discovered their very different understandings, and pursued the meanings of the Billiken for enhanced mutual understanding. The authors explain lessons learned from their experiences for effective cross-cultural learning and for promoting cultural competence and spiritual sensitivity among social work students.
Collections
Citation
Gomi, S., & Canda, E. R. (2013). The Billiken: Bringer of good luck and cultural competence. Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, 18(1), 73–82. Retrieved from https://reflectionsnarrativesofprofessionalhelping.org/index.php/Reflections/article/view/499
Items in KU ScholarWorks are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.
We want to hear from you! Please share your stories about how Open Access to this item benefits YOU.