Three Cultures: Guilt, Shame, and Fear

Bridge to God’s Word

Adapting to culture is a huge part of missionary life. There are many ways to define culture, and many overlapping cultural features. One aspect of culture that I find particularly interesting is how people respond when they have done something wrong. Three basic responses are guilt, shame, or fear. Missiologists have used these three responses to identify three cultural types that determine what is correct behavior and how to obtain resources. These are guilt/innocence, shame/honor, and fear/power. This podcast gives an overview of these three cultural types and how they are found in the Gospel.