Lesson 1: Overview of Cross-Cultural Communication PDF

LESSON I: Overview of Cross- Cultural Communication Prepared by: Princess S. Fernando, MDevCom Learning objectives: At the end of the lesson, you should be able to: 1. define cross-cultural communication; 2. explain the concepts of culture; 3. identify cultural values and barrie...

LESSON I: Overview of Cross- Cultural Communication Prepared by: Princess S. Fernando, MDevCom Learning objectives: At the end of the lesson, you should be able to: 1. define cross-cultural communication; 2. explain the concepts of culture; 3. identify cultural values and barriers; 4. describe different dimensions of culture; and 5. analyze the importance of cross-cultural communication to development communication.  Let’s play Charades! Communication plays a vital role in our daily life. Imagine a life without communication, what do you think will happen? Communicating with other somehow is too difficult to achieve if we do not know what is it that we want to communicate, what more if we are ought to communicate with other people who have different cultural backgrounds, beliefs, perspectives and values? Are we going to survive communicating without even knowing how it must be done? What is Communication?  According to Merriam Webster (2019) that “communication is a process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or there is an exchange of information in between. Wood (2003) defined communication as a systematic process in which people interact with and through symbols to create and interpret meanings. She discussed that it is important to know that communication is a process. What is Culture? Culture is known to be the patterns of behavior and thinking that people living in social groups learn, create, and share (Bodley, 2003). Culture is: - learned - symbolic - shared - All-Encompassing It is also the way of life of a group of people--the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that they accept, generally without thinking about them, and that are passed along by communication and imitation from one generation to the next (Hofstede, 1997).  Levels of Culture - National culture: cultural features shared by citizens of the same nation - International culture: cultural traditions that extend beyond national boundaries Borrowing, diffusion, migration, colonialism, multinational organizations, communication technology, media…Religions, the World Cup, Olympics - Subcultures: identifiable cultural patterns existing within a larger culture Fundamental Concepts of Culture 1. Society is made up of people, groups, networks, institutions, organizations and systems. These aspects of society may include local, national, regional and international patterns of relationships and organization. 2. Culture refers to the shared knowledge, attitudes and behaviours that give each society its coherence, identity and distinctive way of life. It is demonstrated by the beliefs, customs, values, norms, rules, laws, governance, arts, technologies and artefacts that people generate and use as they interpret meaning from their world and solve present and future problems. 3. Environment Every society is located in a particular physical setting and interacts with its environment. The attitudes and values that people have in regard to their environment greatly affect interactions between persons, society, culture and the environment. Unique culture is also generated from the interactions with the immediate environment. 4. Person Every person is a unique individual who develops in a social and environmental setting in which he or she is influenced by, and interacts with, other persons and groups. Aside from that, communication, the sharing of values and beliefs, and cooperation are major interactions. 5. Time Every person, society, culture and environment is located in a period of time and is changing with time. Time can be examined as past, present and future. Our perceptions of time are drawn from past events and these influence our ideas about the present. Key Concepts of Culture Culture is manifested at different layers of depth; o Observable artifacts; o Values; and o Basic underlying assumptions. Culture affects behaviour and interpretations of behaviour; Culture can be differentiated from both universal human nature and unique individual personality; Key Concepts of Culture Culture influences biological processes; Culture is associated with social groups; Culture is both an individual construct and a social construct; Culture is always both socially and psychologically distributed in a group, and so the delineation of a culture’s features will always be fuzzy; Key Concepts of Culture Culture has both universal (etic) and distinctive (emic) elements; Culture is learned; Culture is subject to gradual change; The various parts of a culture are all, to some degree, interrelated; and Culture is a descriptive not an evaluative concept. Culture has both universal (etic) and distinctive (emic) elements; Culture is learned; Culture is subject to gradual change; INADEQUATE CONCEPTIONS OF CULTURE Culture is homogenous; Culture is a thing; Culture is uniformly distributed among members of a group; An individual possesses a single culture; Culture is custom; and Culture is timeless. CAUSES OF CULTURAL BARRIERS Language; Signs and symbols (semantics); Stereotyping and prejudices; Behavior and beliefs; Ethnocentrism; and Religion. Dimensions of Culture Dimensions of Culture Dimensions of Culture Dimensions of Culture Dimensions of Culture Dimensions of Culture Dimensions of Culture  What is Cross- Cultural Communication?  Cross-cultural is known to be dealing with or offering comparison between two or more different cultures or cultural areas (Retrieved last August 02, 2019 from: https://theshortener.com/hik). This is a way of knowing where other people are coming from and why do they respond different from the usual reaction we human beings are expecting.  Cross-cultural is known to be dealing with or offering comparison between two or more different cultures or cultural areas (Retrieved last August 02, 2019 from: https://theshortener.com/hik). This is a way of knowing where other people are coming from and why do they respond different from the usual reaction we human beings are expecting. Importance of CCC Cross-cultural communication involves a much deeper understanding of those who are from cultures that are different than ours. We must educate ourselves on how people from different cultures speak, communicate with one another and perceive the world around them. Lesson 1 - Activity In-class individual paper: Understand your own culture at various levels (3 layers of ‘culture’) - why you think, feel, act and interact the way you do. Write at least one page about your cultural identity, applying the knowledge you have learned in class today. Lesson 1 – Lab Activity Group presentation instructions (due next Christianity class): - World religions 20 min each group x 4 Islam groups + Q&A Hinduism - Contents structure Buddhism - History - God/spiritual leader(s) - Presentation 20 - Main principles and beliefs - Discussion 20 - Influence on culture - Q&A 10 - Examples of cultural practices that reflect -------------------------- the influence of culture 50 pts. - Sensitivity issues in communication Thank you for listening!