The Perception of Characteristics, Behaviors, Cultures And Traditions Toward Own and Other Ethnic Groups (Published)
Malaysia is a country famously known for its multiple unique cultural and ethnic diversities, particularly in Sabah and Sarawak. The state of Sabah consists of 35 ethnics and 215 sub-ethnics and each ethnicity can be identified by language, dialect or culture. Despite the diversity of culture, customs and beliefs, respectively, Sabah is generally perceived and reported by the mass media to still be able to stand as a harmonious state without the presence of the issues that may affect national unity. However, if there is an attitude of stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination among ethnic, it may seriously affect the solidarity between people in Sabah. Thus, this study aims to explore the concept of stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination among ethnic groups in Sabah by studying on how certain ethnic groups perceive their own ethnicity and of other ethnic groups. The respondents of this study are from 36 members of ethnic association which representing four groups of different ethnics in Sabah, Malaysia: Kadazandusun, Bajau, Chinese and Murut. These four groups of ethnic are the major ethnic groups in Sabah, Malaysia. This study is a qualitative study that using in-dept interview and focus group discussion method to collect the data. The results were discussed further in the text.
Keywords: Discrimination, Ethnic, Perception, Prejudice, Stereotype