Intercultural Communication- Defintional

Intercultural communication is defined as communication involving members of different cultures. These can be cultures defined in terms of racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic differences. The differences between groups are not always recognized. A culture is, “a way of life developed and shared by a group of people and passed down from generation to generation (312).” A culture is a make-up of a variety of special components- religious and political systems, customs, language, clothing, tools, art, etc. It is important to remember that not all members of a culture will share these special components. Cultures also transform and flourish over time. Culture is learned and not innate. This is why a person’s culture may change as he or she experiences the world around them. Knowing a culture and its values allows us to predict individual behavior with more ease. As people enter our culture, we tend to feel vulnerable because they question what we accept as true. Vast differences in culture usually form when people have had little to no contact with citizens from other ways of life. Differences among cultures happen are found gradually over a range of space.
There are three major approached when it comes to studying culture. The first is a Social Science approach. This approach is traditional and is built on the methods used in psychology and sociology. It states that, “behavior can be observed, measured, and predicted (314).” Our communication is seen as being influenced by our culture, and a lot of work goes into comparing cultures. The second is an Interpretive Approach. Its methods are from the studies of anthropology and linguistics. There is emphasis placed on the experience of the individual, and the research is qualitative. To perform research, people use field studies and personal observation. The goal is to understand the behavior- not to predict the actions. The last is the Critical approach. This approach is concerned with creating change. To do this, it examines the power relationships in each culture. Contexts include social, political, economic, and historical. This approach all focuses on social relations rather than individual. The approach utilizes texts and cultural products to produce change.
The mass migration of people, whether voluntary or involuntary, has created a century of displacement. Diaspora is a Greek term meaning scattering, though many dictionaries define is as a, “dispersal of people from their homeland (315).” There are four elements of this unique term. One is that the scattering of people usually includes at least two destinations. The people have a relationship to an actual or imagined homeland. The third element is that the people posses a self awareness of their distinctiveness. The last element is that this Diaspora must occur over at least two generations. Scholars study these movements because they are concerned with the, “way diasporic populations form bonds and maintain a sense of identity and community around the world (316).” Mass migration and the development of electronic media have influenced the way we view this movement.
Throughout the recent years there has been a gigantic increase in intercultural communication. For instance, one-third of New York City’s population is made from immigrants. The constant uses of technological innovations have brought together new and old cultures. People sometimes belong to a culture within a larger culture. This concept is defined as a co-culture. This means that we can associate ourselves with a large culture and a smaller culture at the same time.
There are several ways in which cultures vary. Cultures have differing ideas on individualism and collectivism. Individualism is, “the tendency of people in a given culture to value ‘individual identity over group identity, individual rights over group rights, and individual achievements over group concerns’ (Ting-Toomey and Chung).” On the other hand, collectivism is the tendency of the culture to value the group over the individual. In an individualist culture, emphasis is place on individual goals and they tend to communicate directly. Also within this culture there are many smaller groups (family, church, etc.) that have a small influence over behavior. In a collectivist culture the people avoid direct contact and they are concerned with the desires of the whole group. Example individualist cultures include the United States and France, whereas example collectivistic cultures include Mexico and Japan. High and low context cultures differ in the way that their information is coded. High context cultures are better at understanding non verbal behaviors and they assume other cultures will be able to do the same thing with ease. A high context culture speaks less and listens more. Examples of high context cultures would be China and Japan. A low context culture, “stresses direct and explicit communication (320).” They look closely at verbal messages. Some low context cultures include the United States and Canada. It is important that we see that not all members of an individualist society are individualists and so on and so forth. Power distances deals with the degree people of a culture accept authority of hierarchy as a natural part of their customs. This means that they expect some other people to be in higher power. Power distance can be seen in some degree in every culture. There is a parallel with gender in some cultures. A masculine culture values things such as work, strength, competition, and assertiveness. A feminine culture values traits such as affection, nurturing, compassion, and interpersonal relationships. Uncertainty avoidance is a measure of the amount people of a certain culture attempt to avoid uncertainty or vagueness about others. High uncertainty avoidance cultures include Belgium, Greece, and Spain. These cultures include people who embrace a large amount of information- they prefer rules. Cultures that are low in uncertainty avoidance include Canada and the United States. These cultures are more open to change.
There are many different principles and problems in intercultural communication. Even though technology is growing, it cannot allow many people over hundreds of cultures to communicate. The communication between different cultures has created more misunderstanding. The communication process uses a shared code system. This system has two aspects- verbal and non verbal. Without a shared code system, communication becomes impossible. Our own beliefs and behaviors establish the basis for different assumptions. Two people from different cultures might both place a meaning on one single behavior. There is a level of knowing and acceptance in intercultural communication. There are two components- knowing and acceptance. It’s not so much what you know, but more so how you accept differences. If we refuse to consider other norms and judge a culture by our own, effective communication will not take place. Effective communication can only take place if we adopt, “a shared code system, acknowledge differences in beliefs and behaviors, and learn to be tolerant of the beliefs and behaviors of others (323).” Differences in languages can be so much deeper than translation vagueness. There are deeper meanings placed on individual words. Theses associations can be lost because they are rooted in the culture of the language. Even if you translate a sentence perfectly, you still cannot account for culture-based linguistic styles. Often when we talk to people in a different culture we overlook nonverbal messages. A nod doesn’t always mean yes. These non verbal indicators can be quite complex. Vocal cues can also be problematic. The expression of emotion also varies from culture to culture. A way that we use to understand each other is called synchrony. This is the sharing of rhythms. When people speak they develop a pattern of rhythm, and during a beat or stress, a speaker will reveal important information. This is hard to use when talking to a person from a different culture because these non verbal and speech patterns vary.
In a culture, norms are set in place so that people develop rules of what is to be expected from each individual. A culture develops and gives these rules. Understanding these norms helps us deal with conflict. To deal with conflict, cultures will integrate, or compromise, dominate, avoid, neglect, express emotion through facial expression, and seek third party help. People with a strong cultural identity usually integrate and comprise more than those with a weak ethnic idea. Two variables distinguish the way members of a culture view interpersonal and family conflict- expressivity and privacy and individualism. Many cultures place less value on individual self-disclosure. In some high context cultures, for example, the, “direct expression of conflict is also considered inappropriate (328).” In America, we place emphasis on autonomy and we ask friends for advice on our problems. The Americans, the Africans, and the Japanese stress cooperation, affiliation, and dependence in their cultures. Roles are sets of norms that are used in different groups. An instance of this would be the differing roles of men and women. Interracial marriages have been on the rise in recent years. Sometimes the similarities between these two cultures can form a basis of attraction. It is true that these two cultures may have different definitions of marital roles.
We find it difficult to except the behaviors and norms of a different culture when they are not the same as our own. Our values help us what we deem to be right, good, important, or beautiful. Two scholars proposed one single universal principle (protonorm) that underlies all systematic ethics. This is the sacredness of life. This basic idea relates to our three master norms or core values. These core values consist of respect for human dignity, truth telling, and nonviolence. As we consider how those of a different culture adapt to a new culture we must understand that some beliefs and values improve their ability to live in another country. Those cultures that focus on compassion for others have created a harmony in their new home.
In is imperative that we move toward a great intercultural understanding and tolerance. Even though our technological world is growing, divisions between people of differing cultures are growing at a faster rate. These differences can also be found within the same country. Ethnocentrism, “is the tendency to judge the values, customs, behaviors, or other aspects of another culture in terms of those that our own cultural group regards are desirable or idea (333).” We will be ethnocentric about our own country or religion and this is not always a negative thing- it can be seen as patriotic. Countries that seem to be strongly ethnocentric include Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In order to “remove the tinted lenses” or our own culture, we must acknowledge the fact that ethnocentrism is universal. Reading the international news helps us fight our skewed world views. We tend to form stereotypes of others quickly. If we do not communicate with the other cultures personally, we cannot dismiss stereotypes. Stereotypes guide what is called defensive projections which is seeing our own unwelcomed traits in other people. The mass media seems to contribute to the development of stereotypes significantly. Now, the media industry seems to put ethnically diverse men and women in leading roles. This attempts to naturalize the differences between different ethnicities. Video games have created a disturbing trend of racial stereotyping. In order to no succumb to stereotypes, we should view the media with critical and analytical motives. We usually act on information we believe is true- this is why creating biases is so dangerous. Unfortunately, these problems will not be going away any time soon. Our mental images of fear are based on ethnic stereotypes. After the September 11th attacks, Americans began to stereotype Arab Americans. These people became the targets of hate crimes even though we know little to none about Arab culture. We can improve person perception by, “awareness that our perceptions can be inaccurate and empathy, sensitivity, or responsiveness (339).” The internet seems to be used for group polarization. Group polarization is this idea that after people discuss ideas, they are likely to be pulled strongly towards one side of the spectrum. The internet can be a dangerous source for misinformation. Online hate groups can support violence against different groups. On the other hand, the internet has the power to bring so many people together.
So that the people of the world may communicate more effectively, we need to promote greater harmony and tolerance. Intergroup contact will be optimal if there is, “equal status between groups, authority support, shared goals, and intergroup cooperation (341).” If these groups stop competing with each other, we will see a decrease in prejudice. Thomas Pettigrew also asserts that we need to add in the factor of friendship. We should feel familiar and friendly. Studying intergroup relations will cut down prejudice and point out variables that increase social inclusion. For instance, many people want to talk about race but they do not know how. Variables include appreciating difference, engaging the self, critical self reflection, and alliance building. We must become a citizen of the world- a “cosmopolitan.” This makes us understand that we have a responsibility to every human and that we can learn from our differences.
Although travel has been made more affordable and easier, people still tend to stay in their own groups and subgroups. All those people who read the newspaper and magazines, and watch the television understand that the world has become larger. Student exchange programs allow people to live within a culture and adapt some of that culture’s norms. Our whole world is interdependent and is affected by political, economic, and social change. Because communications, banking, and manufacturing have become international, our economies all seem to be tied together. Some international organizations “help to increase productivity and raise standards of living by providing such services as literacy training, education in modern agricultural methods, and help in turning local craft production into profitable cottage industries (345).” Some of our intercultural exchange can lead to cultural homogenization. This is the inclination for one culture to become like another. Some aspects of one culture will eliminate weak aspects of another. Though, this idea is not always true. A culture can take an idea and put their spin on it. For example, the McDonald’s in India serves veggie burgers. Our awareness that we are different can actually help us communicate with others. Some people believe that viewing images of human suffering can make us drawn to change. Others though, believe that the more we view these images, the more we desensitize ourselves. We must have diversity within our community. In order to communicate effectively with those of different cultures, we must be committed, mindful, and unconditionally accepting. We must be concerned for ourselves and others, we must be understanding, ethical, and most importantly, we must be peaceful.
Bibliography:
Tubbs, Stewart, & Moss, Sylvia (1974). Human Communication. New York, New York: McGraw-Hill .