Chapter11

Copyright (c) Allyn & Bacon 2008

Chapter 11: Intercultural Communication

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Culture

A group of people who through a process of learning are able to share perceptions of the world which influences their beliefs, values, norms, and rules, which eventually affect behavior (Wrench, 2001, p.12).


The Nature of Culture

Group of People

Shared Perceptions of the World

Influence Beliefs, Values, Norms, and Rules

Affect Behavior


Co-Culture

Cultural groups not necessarily below or suppressed by the larger culture, but exists inside of a larger culture.


Types of Co-Cultures

Ethnic Co-Cultures (All the hyphenated groups) Racial Co-Cultures (Groups people are assigned to by skin coloring) Gay, Bisexual, Lesbian, & Trans (GBLT) Co-Cultures Religious Co-Cultures Geographical Co-Cultures (Midwesterners, Southerners, Appalachians, etc…)


The Cultural Context of

Communication


Intracultural Communication

Communication between individuals within the same culture.


Intercultural Communication

Communication between members of two co-cultures within a larger culture, particularly when the co-culture differences as seen as quite substantial.


Cross Cultural Communication

Comparisons of communication behaviors across different cultures and the study of specific communication issues on a comparative basis in two or more cultures.


International Communication

Communication between individuals from different countries often the communication between governmental representatives of different countries.


Interethnic Communication

Communication between members of more than one ethnic subculture.


Interracial Communication

Communication between individuals from different racial backgrounds.


Cultural Communication Apprehension


Intercultural Communication Apprehension (pp. 390-391)

High Scores are over 30

+ related to CA

- related to Assertiveness & Responsiveness

- related to Tolerance for Disagreement

- related to Willingness to Communicate

Not related to an individual’s temperament


Interethnic Communication Apprehension

High Scores are over 30

+ related to CA

- related to Assertiveness & Responsiveness

- related to Tolerance for Disagreement

- related to Willingness to Communicate

Not related to an individual’s temperament

+ related to Intercultural CA


Religious Communication Apprehension

+ related to CA- related to Assertiveness & Responsiveness- related to Tolerance for Disagreement- related to Willingness to CommunicateNot related to an individual’s temperament+ related to Intercultural & Interethnic CA+ related to receiver apprehension+ related to religious maturity- related to religious fundamentalism


Ethnocentrism

Ethnos (nation)

Kentron (center)

The view of one’s culture as the center of the universe.


Favorable Aspects of Ethnocentrism

Maintain integrity of a culture in face of external threats.

Creates a cultural identity.

Makes people more likely to go along with cultural rules and norms.

Foundation for patriotism.


Unfavorable Aspects of

Ethnocentrism


Culture Shock

Generalized trauma affecting Generalized trauma affecting individuals in a new and different individuals in a new and different culture. culture.

- - Kalerv Oberg (anthropologist)Kalerv Oberg (anthropologist)


Causes ofCauses ofCulture ShockCulture Shock

The Loss of Familiar Signs & The Loss of Familiar Signs & SignalsSignals

The collapse of normal interpersonal The collapse of normal interpersonal

interactioninteraction A Danger to Our Personal UnityA Danger to Our Personal Unity


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101) Preliminary2) Spectator3) Participant4) Shock5) Adaptation

6) Preliminary7) Spectator8) Participant9) Shock10) Adaptation

W Theory of Culture

Shock


Stereotyping

A generalization about a group based on our perception that a group of people from a culture or co-culture share one or several common characteristics.


Three Types of Stereotypes

Over-estimating the differences between groups.

Under-estimate differences among people from another culture.

We tend to selectively perceive what our stereotype causes us to expect to perceive (despite evidence to the contrary).


Prejudice

A priori judgments based on stereotypes (Gordon Allport, 1954)


Homonegativity (p. 396)

+ related to ethnocentrism+ related to Intercultural & Interethnic CA- related to Tolerance for Disagreement+ related to Verbal & Physical AggressionNot related to temperamentNot related to CA or Religious CA+ related to religious fundamentalism+ related to hypergender ideology

High scores are over 20.


Ethnocentrism (pp. 394-395)Not related to temperament+ related to assertiveness- related to responsiveness+ related to sexism- related to tolerance for disagreement- related to willingness to communicate+ related to patriotism+ related to conservative ideals+ related to verbal and physical aggression+ related to dogmatisim, moralism, authoritarianism, nationalism, and narcissism

High scores are over 35.


DeVito’s (1994) 5 Steps of

Ethnocentrism


Equality

Level of ethnocentrism where people notice diversity between themselves and others, but see other peoples’ customs and ways of thinking and behaving to be equal to their own.


Sensitivity

Level of ethnocentrism where people want to understand where individuals in other cultures are “coming from” and decrease the differences between themselves and others if possible.


Indifference

Level of ethnocentrism where people don’t care about people from other cultures and prefer to communicate only with people like themselves.


Avoidance

Level of ethnocentrism where people actively avoid and limit communication with people from other cultures to the maximum extent possible.


Disparagement

Level of ethnocentrism where people have no value for, nor do they respect, the cultures of other people and are often openly and actively hostile towards individuals who belong to other cultures.


Improving Intercultural Communication

Recognize your own ethnocentrism.

Avoid derogating anyone else’s culture.

Demonstrate Respect for the other person and his or her culture.

Be empathic.

Develop a higher tolerance for ambiguity.

Reduce the level of evaluation in your messages.


Improving Intercultural Communication (continued)

Be exceptionally careful in interaction management.

Be sensitive to relational and social needs.

Do not assume that nonverbal messages are pancultural.

Be sensitive to both differences and similarities.

Work to build better stereotypes.

Never forget that meanings are in people, not in cultures.

Chapter11

Education

Transcript of Chapter11