In Milton J. Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity, the defense stage occurs when individuals realize cultural differences exist but preserve their own cultural views. People in this stage may denigrate another culture, uplift their own culture as superior, or, if living in a community outside their own, uplift that particular community as superior.

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The model has two aspects:
* The first part of the continuum has three stages of decreasing levels of ethnocentrism 
- (Denial, Defense, Minimization) 
* The second has three stages of increasing ethnorelativism 
- (Acceptance, Adaptation, Integration).

Two Aspects of Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity

- People who claim they are "color blind"
- People at this level minimize the differences and continue to interact within their own culture,
- Living with the assumption that their behaviors  are shared by others. 
- No awareness of their own cultures has occurred yet

The Third Stage of the Bennett's Model, Minimization

- Represents a critical change from ethnocentrism to the first stage of ethnorelativism. 
- People recognize that others have different values and world views
- People begin to accept and respect different behaviors and communication styles


The Fourth Stage of the Bennett's Model, Acceptance

- In the process of becoming a part of a given cultural context
* This stage has two subphases: 
- Contextual Evaluation : in which people can evaluate a phenomenon from another perspective or within the cultural context; 
- Constructive Marginality:  in which people see outside of themselves continuously and stand outside of all cultural frameworks.

The Sixth Stage of the Bennett's Model, Integration



In Milton J. Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity, the denial stage represents a lack of knowledge of cultural differences. Individuals in this stage behave according to their own worldviews, which they assume are the only worldviews that exist.

Denial Stage of Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity

In Milton J. Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity, the adaptation stage reflects the behavioral changes that occur when individuals are able to act in an ethnorelative way. At this fifth stage, people can change their processing of reality, appropriately modify their behaviors, and think or act from another cultural perspective.

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