1. Intercultural Communication
Chapter 7

2. Intercultural Communication
Culture:
“A unique combination of rituals, religious beliefs, ways of thinking, and ways of behaving that unify a group of people” (p. 170).
Intercultural Communication:
“The exchange of information between individuals why are unalike culturally” (p. 168)

3. Describe your Culture What do you celebrate every year?
What is acceptable behavior?
What is unacceptable behavior?
What is expected of you in situations?
Any other things that you can think of?
Share your ideas with your group.

4. Intercultural Communication
Culture
Co-cultures
Differ in some small way
: dress, religion, values, etc.

5. Questions: What are some overarching cultural systems?
Within these systems, are there any co-cultures that are apparent?
In what ways are they different?

6. Intercultural Communication
Ethnocentrism:
“Belief that your own group or culture is superior to all other groups or cultures” (p. 172).
Consequences of ethnocentricity:
Everyone else is wrong.
Rejection of others beliefs.
Ignorance.
Stereotyping

7. Activity: 1) List some stereotypes of your culture?
2) Share these ideas with your group.
3) What surprises you?

8. Cultural Dimensions Individualism – Collectivism
Low Context – High Context
Uncertainty Accepting – Rejecting
Implicit Rule – Explicit Rule
M-Time – P-Time

9. Individualism vs Collectivism
Individualistic: “Value individual freedom, choice, uniqueness, and independence”
USA, Australia, England, Netherlands, New Zealand, Canada, Italy
Collectivistic: “Value the group over the individual”
Columbia, Venezuela, Peru, Pakistan, Thailand, Singapore, Chile, Hong Kong

10. Low Context vs High Context
Low Context – Understanding within the message. “Face value”
Germany, Scandanavia, USA
High Context – Minimal information is in the message. “Programmed”
Japan, Arabic, Latin America

11. Uncertainty Accepting vs Rejecting
Uncertainty Accepting: “Tolerate ambiguity, uncertainty, and diversity” (p. 176) ; take risks, are flexible
USA, England, Denmark, Sweden, Singapore, Hog Kong (1980)
Uncertainty Rejecting: “Have difficulty with ambiguity, uncertainty, and diversity” (p. 176)
Japan, France, Spain, Greece, Portugal

12. Implicit Rule vs Explicit Rule
Implicit Rule: “Information and cultural rules are implied and already known to the participants” (p. 176)
Middle East, Africa, and Latin America
Explicit Rule: Has “explicit information, policies, procedures, and expectations” (p. 176)
Europe, USA

13. M-Time vs P-Time
M-Time: “Compartmentalizes time to meet personal needs, separates task and social dimensions, and points to the future” (p. 177)
Canada, USA, N. Europe
P-Time: View of “time as contextually based and relationally oriented” (p. 177)
Latin America, Middle East, Asian, French, African

14. United States & Japan Rate your culture today…
Individualistic Collectivistic
Low Context High Context
Uncertainty Accepting Rejecting
Implicit Rule Explicit Rule
M-time P-time
In what ways are they different? The same?

15. QUESTIONS???