12IntCultCommLI

A Look Back at Culture

• Big C vs. Little c

  • Big C: Refers to achievements in culture such as history, geography, institutions, literature, art, and music.

  • Little c: Relates to behavior culture, encompassing beliefs, perceptions, language, and behaviors. (Tomalin & Stempleski, 1993)

Challenges in Intercultural Communication

• Difficulties in Effective Communication

  • Limited shared knowledge about facts, people, and places.

  • Expectations based on native cultural assumptions.

  • Basic human concepts may have different meanings and values.

  • Inferences made about motivations behind behaviors.

  • Lack of flexibility and tolerance for ambiguity.

  • Tendency to generalize and judge other cultures.

• Understanding Cultural Dimensions

  • Language is a tool for communication; it also represents perception and thinking (Bennett, 1997).

English as a Lingua Franca

• English serves as a means of communication among diverse cultures, dissociating from traditional geographic locations.

• It is now an international language for research, business, and industry (Kramsch 1998).

From Native Speaker to Intercultural Speaker

• High proficiency alone is insufficient for effective intercultural communication.

• Intercultural Speaker: A person with knowledge of multiple cultures, capable of engaging with diverse populations (Byram, 1998).

Identities and Cultural Learning

• Definition of Identity: A person's sense of self comprised of personal and social identities.

  • Personal Identities: Attributes, relationships, and autobiographical narratives.

  • Social Identities: Membership in groups such as nations, ethnicities, genders, religions, generational cohorts, and occupational groups.

• Cultural Intersection: Individuals occupy unique cultural positions influenced by intersecting identities and historical experiences (Barrett et al, 2014).

• Culture Learning: Acquiring culture-specific and culture-general knowledge for effective communication (Lange and Paige, 2003).

• Acculturation: The adjustment process to non-native cultural patterns, influenced by personal background and exposure to the target culture.

  • Stages of cultural adaptation range from ethnocentrism to full adjustment, with potential culture shock (Brown 1986; Black and Mendenhall 1991).

Intercultural Communication Competence

• Definition: Navigating verbal, non-verbal, cognitive, and affective interactions between cultures.

• Cultural Mediation: Creating bridges of understanding between different cultures (Bochner, 1981).

• Intercultural Competence: Effectiveness in cross-cultural situations, combining attitudes, knowledge, understanding, and skills (Bennett and Bennett, 2004).

  • Ability to respect and understand different cultural affiliations and establish constructive relationships.