Intercultural Communication

People have always traveled from their homelands, but with the increasing technological ease of travel, people are moving much more than ever before. Sojourners, business travelers, tourists, immigrants, and refugees have very different reasons for traveling. These people are waiting for international arrivals at the Atlanta airport. How might reasons for traveling shape intercultural experiences? (Mark Spowart/Alamy Stock Photo) People leave their countries for many reasons, including wars and famine (Iraq, South Sudan, and Syria). In addition, millions of global nomads are roaming around the world as transnational corporate or government employees, guest workers, refugees, tourists, or study-abroad students, like Bakari (see Figure 8-1). And there are also millions of internal migrations—where people move from one place to another within national boundaries—often for the same reasons: for better economic opportunities or because of war or famine. Perhaps you can look at your own fami

 There are many different types of conflict, and we may manage these types in different ways. Communication scholar Mark Cole (1996) conducted interviews with Japanese students about their views on conflict and found most of the same general categories as those identified in the United States. These categories include the following: ▪▪Affective conflict occurs when individuals become aware that their feelings and emotions are incompatible. For example, suppose someone finds that his or her romantic love for a close friend is not reciprocated. The disagreement over their different levels of affection causes conflict. ▪▪A conflict of interest describes a situation in which people have incompatible preferences for a course of action or plan to pursue. For example, one student described an ongoing conflict with an ex-girlfriend: “The conflicts always seem to be a jealousy issue or a controlling issue, where even though we are not going out anymore, both of us still try to control the other

The need to understand intercultural conflict seems more important now than ever. One thing we can be sure of is that conflict is inevitable. Conflicts are happening all around the world, as they always have, and at many different levels: interpersonal, social, national, and international. For example, at the interpersonal level, friends or romantic partners may disagree about their relationship between themselves or with friends and family. Interpersonal conflicts can be intergenerational. You may disagree with your parents about where to attend college, or what you spend your money on, or where to live in the summer. These conflicts can have varying outcomes. Intergenerational conflicts can occur in the workplace. For example, experts say that Baby Boomers, Generation Y, and Millennials have different characteristics and sets of work-life values that can clash. While Boomers tend to be work-obsessed, Millennials are demanding flexible schedules that allow them to pursue an active lif

Communication is tough. It’s tough making yourself clear whether it’s your best friend, your brother, boss, teacher, child, or spouse. There are so many ways to communicate and each person has their own preferences. Layer on different languages and cultural context cues, and you will often find that communication is more complex than you were expecting. When we break down how people communicate in the intercultural world, we have two categories: verbal communication and non-verbal communication. These categories transcend cultural preferences and are an accurate way to categorize communication. Within these two main categories, there are multiple sub-topics that we use to compare different facets of communication. Verbal Verbal communication encompasses all forms of communication where you use words and language. It’s easy to assume that verbal communication is only comprised of words, but there is a great deal more than just what is spoken.   One of the ways verbal communication can b

Why is intercultural communication important for business? We need to work with customers, partners and perhaps even employees that live in other countries. And here in Canada, multiculturalism is increasing rapidly! We need to recognize that our workforce is changing to one of more diverse cultures. The business world is becoming more interconnected. Those that resist or deny may find disadvantage in: • Recruiting & retaining skilled employees • Attracting new customers and/or keeping existing customers • Securing high value suppliers & other partners in the value chain On the other hand, those organizations that are proactive to implement a diversity strategy will have an advantage in the above. But how can we implement a diversity strategy unless we can improv intercultural communication? What is holding us back? • As we often focus only on the language aspect, we miss key aspects of communication. • At a deeper level, we may have very different context in how we perceive &a

Intercultural Communication This Blog will expose you to the variety of approaches we use to study intercultural communication. We also weave into the text our personal stories to make theory come alive. By linking theory and practice, we hope to give a fuller picture of intercultural communication than either one alone could offer. We bring many intercultural communication experiences to the text. As you read, you will learn not only about both of us as individuals but also about our views on intercultural communication. Don’t be overwhelmed by the seeming complexity of intercultural communication. Not knowing everything that you would like to know is very much a part of this process. Why is it important to focus on intercultural communication and to strive to become better at this complex pattern of interaction? We can think of at least seven reasons; perhaps you can add more. THE SELF-AWARENESS IMPERATIVE One of the most important reasons for studying intercultural communica