Foundations of Intercultural Communication

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 communication is the awareness it raises of our own cultural identity and background. This is also one of the least obvious reasons. Peter Adler (1975), a noted social psychologist, observes  that the study of intercultural communication begins as a journey into another culture and reality and ends as a journey into one’s own culture.

We gain insights into intercultural experiences overseas. When Judith was teaching high school in Algeria, a Muslim country in North Africa, she realized something about her religious identity as a Protestant. December 25 came and went, and she taught classes with no mention of Christmas. Judith had never thought about how special the celebration of Christmas was or how important the holiday was to her. She then recognized on a personal level the uniqueness of this particular cultural practice. Erla, a graduate student from Iceland, notes the increased knowledge and appreciation she’s gained concerning her home country:

Living in another country widens your horizon. You look at your country from a different

point of view. We have learned not to expect everything to be the same as “at

home,” but if we happen to find something that reminds us of home, we really appreciate

it and it makes us very happy. Ultimately we are all very thankful that we had

the opportunity to live in another country.

However, it is important to recognize that intercultural learning is not always easy or comfortable. Sometimes, intercultural encounters make us aware of our own ethnocentrism—a tendency to think that our own culture is superior to other cultures.

This means that we assume, subconsciously, that the way we do things is the only way. For example, when Tom first visited France he was surprised to discover that shoppers are expected to greet shopkeepers when entering a small store. Or that French people sometimes ate horsemeat, snails, and very fragrant cheeses. Sometimes, Americans think that these foods shouldn’t be eaten. This attitude that foods we eat are somehow normal and that people shouldn’t eat these other foods is a kind of ethnocentrism. To be surprised or even taken aback by unfamiliar customs is not unexpected; however, a refusal to expand your cultural horizons or to acknowledge the legitimacy of cultural practices different from your own can lead to intergroup misunderstandings and conflicts. What you learn depends on your social and economic position in society. Self-awareness through intercultural contact for someone from a racial or minority group may mean learning to be wary and not surprised at subtle slights by members of the dominant majority—and reminders of their place in society. For example, a Chinese American colleague is sometimes approached at professional meetings by white communication professors who ask her to take their drink order.

If you are white and middle class, intercultural learning may mean an enhanced awareness of your privilege. White friends tell us that they became more aware of their racial privilege after George Floyd was killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis.

In the midst of the nationwide protests, the legal protections afforded the police came into view. They suddenly realized the myriad of ways that police (and other social institutions) are protected and empowered by laws, court cases, and more that create an unequal field that helps and hurts us in different ways. Self-awareness, then, that comes through intercultural learning may involve an increased awareness of being caught up in political, economic, and historical systems— not of our own making.

REFERENCES

Adler, P. S. (1975). The transition experience: An alternative

view of culture shock. Journal of Humanistic Psychology,

15, 13–23.

Ahmad, N. (2020). Peacebuilding mechanisms in Pakhtun

Tribal Society of Pakistan: A cultural perspective. Dissertation,

Department of Sociology, University of Peshawar.

Alcoff, L. (1991/1992). The problem of speaking for others.

Cultural Critique, 20, 5–32.

Alexander, B. K., Arasaratnam, L. A., Durham, A.,

Flores, L., Leeds-Hurwitz, W., Mendoza, S. L., &

Halualani, R. (2014). Identifying key intercultural

urgencies, issues, and challenges in today’s world:

Connecting our scholarship to dynamic contexts and

historical moments. Journal of International & Intercultural

Communication, 7(1), 38–67.

Allam, L. (2020, January 5). For First Nations people the

bushfires bring a particular grief, burning what

makes us who we are. Theguardian.com. Retrieved

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