INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Question 1

culture

Answer 1

a complex, abstract, and pervasive matrix of socially developed assumptions that provide a framework for living, thinking, and behaving

Question 2

characteristics/nature of culture

Answer 2

learned, transmissible, dynamic, selective, interconnected, ethnocentric

Question 3

Intercultural communication

Answer 3

communication between members of distinct social groups

Question 4

social groups of intercultural communication

Answer 4

macro-cultural identities, speech communities

Question 5

Three types of culturally significant discourse

Answer 5

myths/narratives, social dramas, totemizing rituals

Question 6

Assumptions about cultural identities

Answer 6

• cultural identities vary in salience (importance, prominence)
• different facets of cultural identities can be salient at different times
• communication is intercultural when people interact based on group identity rather than individual identity

Question 7

face

Answer 7

the image of the self that people display in their conversations with others; metaphor for the boundaries people have in their relationships

Question 8

positive face

Answer 8

desire to be liked and admired by others

Question 9

negative face

Answer 9

desire to be autonomous and unconstrained

Question 10

facework

Answer 10

the actions taken to deal with the face needs of self and others

Question 11

three types of facework

Answer 11

tact facework, solidarity facework, approbation facework

Question 12

tact facework

Answer 12

protecting someone’s right to make their own decisions and actions, avoiding intrusion or imposition

Question 13

solidarity facework

Answer 13

showing support and establishing connection with others, emphasizing shared values or experiences

Question 14

approbation facework

Answer 14

minimizing criticism and emphasizing positive qualities, to maintain a person’s self-esteem

Question 15

Assumptions of face negotiation theory

Answer 15

• self identity is important in interpersonal interactions
• individuals negotiate their identities differently across cultures
• the management of conflict is mediated by face and culture
• certain acts threaten one’s projected self-image

Question 16

face threatening acts

Answer 16

attacks on our positive or negative face needs

Question 17

face saving

Answer 17

efforts to prevent events that impair one’s self-image or create embarrassment

Question 18

face restoration

Answer 18

efforts to repair face after it has already been damaged

Question 19

individualism

Answer 19

a cultural value that places emphasis on the individual over the group; self-face oriented

Question 20

collectivism

Answer 20

a cultural value that places emphasis on the group over the individual

Question 21

Five styles of conflict management as they relate to individualism and collectivism

Answer 21

1. obliging (accommodating)(collectivist)
2. compromising (bargaining) (collectivist)
3. avoiding (withdrawing)(collectivist)
4. integrating (problem solving) (individualistic)
5. dominating (competing) (individualistic)

Question 22

Assumptions of communication accommodation theory

Answer 22

1. similarities and dissimilarities in speech and behavior exist in all conversations
2. the manner in which we perceive another’s speech and behavior will determine how we evaluate a conversation
3. language and behaviors impart information about social status and group belonging
4. accommodation varies in its degree of appropriateness and norms guide the accommodation process

Question 23

Three ways to accommodate speech in conversation

Answer 23

convergence, divergence, over-accommodation

Question 24

convergence

Answer 24

adapting speech to become more similar to the other person

Question 25

divergence

Answer 25

adapting speech to emphasize differences from the other person

Question 26

over-accommodation

Answer 26

over-adjusting speech in a way that may come across as patronizing or inappropriate

Question 27

Three forms of over-accommodation

Answer 27

• Sensory overaccommodation: physical limitations (louder to old person)
• dependency overaccommodation: make someone feel inferior or dependent (assume less capable, oversimplify)
• intergroup overaccommodation: stereotyping based on group’s identity

Question 28

Motivations for communication accommodation

Answer 28

• desire for social approval
• need for distinctiveness (cultural collectivism, distressing interaction history, stereotypes, norms for treatment of groups, group solidarity/dependence)

Question 29

Assumptions of muted group theory

Answer 29

• women perceive the world differently than men
• division of labor leads women to different experiences and makes them responsible for different activities
• male dominated society suppresses the free expression of women’s alternative world view
• women must transform their own models to fit with the accepted male system of expression

Question 30

Four ways that women are silenced in society

Answer 30

• Ridicule: dismissing women’s speech as unimportant or trivial
• Ritual: social traditions that reinforce women’s subordinate roles, like taking a man’s last name in marriage
• Control: limiting women’s ability to speak or interrupting more often in conversations
• Harassment: using threats or unwanted attention to intimidate or silence women

Question 31

standpoint

Answer 31

a location shared by a group experiencing outsider status within the social structure that lends to a particular kind of sense-making to a person’s lived experience

Question 32

assumptions of standpoint theory

Answer 32

• our view of the world is shaped by our social location—our group memberships that shape our experience of the world and our ways of understanding it
• the vision of the dominant group structures social hierarchy
• the vision available to the oppressed group represents struggle and achievement
• the understanding of the oppressed makes visible the inhumanity of the existing relationships among groups and moves us toward a better and more just world

Question 33

Assumptions of co-cultural theory

Answer 33

• in a hierarchical culture, certain groups are favored over others and accrue power based on these preferences
• the “lived experiences” of under-represented groups are valuable and must be identified and embraced
• members of underrepresented groups share an “outsider” view of dominant culture
• individuals from marginalized groups select strategies for communicating with people from the dominant group

Question 34

Communication strategies of co-cultural groups and co-cultural communication orientations

Answer 34

Preferred outcomes: assimilation, accommodation, separation
communication approaches: nonassertive, assertive, aggressive

Question 35

Factors that influence communication choices for co-cultural groups

Answer 35

field of experience, perceived costs and rewards, capability, situation