CH.10: communication and culture

Question 1

culture

Answer 1

system of beliefs, understandings, practices, and ways of interpreting experience that are shared by a number of people

Question 2

cultures vary on five dimensions

Answer 2

individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, masculinity/femininity, and long-term/short-term orientation

Question 3

individualism/collectivism

Answer 3

the extent to which members of a culture understand themselves as part of and connected to their families, groups, and cultures

Question 4

uncertainty avoidance

Answer 4

the extent to which people try to avoid ambiguity and vagueness

Question 5

power distance

Answer 5

the size of the gap between people with high and low power and the extent to which that gap is regarded as normal

Question 6

masculinity/femininity

Answer 6

the extent to which a culture values aggressiveness, competitiveness, looking out for yourself, and dominating others (masculine) vs gentleness, cooperation, taking care of others, and living in harmony with the natural world (feminine)

Question 7

long-term/short-term orientation

Answer 7

the extent to which members of a culture think about long term (history and future) vs short term (present)

Question 8

dynamic

Answer 8

cultures are dynamic - they evolve and change over time

Question 9

social communities / cocultures

Answer 9

groups of people who live within a dominant culture, yet also are members of another group that is not dominant in that culture; examples: gender, social class, race, ethnicity

Question 10

high-context communication style

Answer 10

indirect and undetailed communication favored in collectivist cultures and social communities

Question 11

low-context communication style

Answer 11

explicit, detailed, and precise communication favored by individualist cultures and social communities

Question 12

hate groups

Answer 12

collections of people that advocate and engage in hatred, aggression, or violence towards members of particular groups

Question 13

ethnocentrism

Answer 13

the use of one’s own culture and its practices as the standard for interpreting the values, beliefs, norms, and communication of other cultures

Question 14

cultural relativism

Answer 14

recognizes that cultures vary in how we think, act, and behave as well as what they believe and value

Question 15

resistance

Answer 15

a response to diversity in which we attack the cultural practices of others or proclaim that our own cultural traditions are superior

Question 16

assimilation

Answer 16

occurs when people give up their own ways and adopt those of the dominant culture

Question 17

tolerance

Answer 17

a response to diversity in which we accept the differences even though we may not approve of them or even understand them

Question 18

understanding

Answer 18

a response to diversity in which we assume that differences are rooted in cultural teachings and that no customs, traditions, or behaviors are intrinsically better than any others

Question 19

respect

Answer 19

a response to diversity in which we value others’ customs, traditions, and values, even if we don’t actively incorperate them in our lives

Question 20

participation

Answer 20

a response to diversity in which we incorporate some of the practices and values of other groups into our own lives

Question 21

multilingual

Answer 21

able to speak and think in multiple languages