LECTURE 9 The Benefits and Challenges of Intercultural Communication

Transcription

1 Internatonal Extenson Currculum: Strengthenng Extenson s Capacty for Internatonal Engagement UNIT 7 LECTURE 9 The Benefts and Challenges of Intercultural Communcaton The era of global communcaton s here to stay. Wth the state-of-the-art technology we have today, we can no longer expect to lve our lves communcatng only wth people n our communtes. As a result, anyone who s not well-versed n effectvely communcatng wth people from a varety of cultures wll be at a great dsadvantage n the future. Your potental for success n lfe may well be boosted or lmted by how well you can communcate wth people from cultures dfferent from your own. In ths unt, we wll look at how effectve ntercultural communcaton allows us to dspel myths, break down stereotypes, foster more respect and acceptance, and buld more cooperatve relatonshps wth one another. No one s born automatcally knowng the best way to communcate wth people. We must learn to talk, read, and communcate n other ways by observng the people around us who teach through ther example and nstructon. If we have been taught to communcate openly and farly wth people of all cultures, ethnctes, and races, then ntercultural communcaton may seem to come "naturally." But many of us have not been taught to communcate wth people whose backgrounds are dfferent from our own. We need to acqure these sklls through our own attenton and study. Communcatng wth people from dfferent cultures can sometmes pose qute a challenge. Msunderstandngs and nadvertent offenses are commonplace. For example, problems can arse easly between employees, clentele, and admnstrators when one or more people dsregard, or are not aware of, some of the dfferences n cultural communcaton styles. But how can ths be mproved n your organzaton? Improvng cross-cultural communcaton n your organzaton can be challengng for several reasons. Frst, many of us spend more of our tme wth others who share our own culture, race, and/or ethncty. We tend to feel most comfortable and safe when we are wth people smlar to ourselves. As we form groups based on smlartes, we may unntentonally create barrers and exclude people who are dfferent from us. People from dfferent groups may feel lke "outsders" and be hestant to approach. Materals may be reproduced n electronc or prnt form for use n educatonal or tranng actvtes. Authors should be credted for ther work n all nstances. All other reproducton or use of materals requres pror electronc or wrtten permsson by contactng cameronselby@purdue.edu

2 Internatonal Extenson Currculum: Strengthenng Extenson s Capacty for Internatonal Engagement Second, breakng out of our homogeneous groups takes effort. The more accustomed we are to beng wth people whom we perceve to be lke us, the more effort t takes to reach out to others whom we perceve to be dfferent from us. Once dvsons are establshed along cultural, ethnc, and racal lnes, t takes a great deal of courage and determnaton to communcate across these lnes. We may encounter feelngs of dscomfort as we reach out to others, or we may fear that others from wthn our group wll dsapprove of ncludng outsders. Wthout a strong commtment to overcomng dfferences, we may gve up when obstacles to communcaton arse. Thrd, we may be afrad that we wll have a negatve experence wth the very people we are tryng to reach out to. We may fear that our efforts to understand and be understood wll be rejected, or that we wll offend someone or be offended. If we have had negatve experences wth a member of another cultural, racal, or ethnc group n the past, we may generalze our fears, assumng that we wll always experence dffculty n communcatng wth ndvduals of that group. We may be unwllng to examne our part n communcaton barrers, nstead blamng all communcaton dffcultes on the other party. At some pont, however, f we truly desre to reach out to people, we must set asde our fears, gve people the beneft of the doubt, take responsblty for our own part n communcaton struggles, and share ourselves wth others. The rsks of communcatng across cultures are real; there s always the possblty that we wll not be understood n the way we ntend. But the potental benefts of tryng to reach across cultural boundares are well worth the effort and the rsks of not tryng are great. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. What do you beleve are the prmary reasons people of dfferent cultures, races, and ethnctes mscommuncate and msnterpret wth one another? 2. What s the role of practce n learnng ntercultural communcaton sklls? 3. How can good ntercultural sklls help you n your future? 4. How dd your parents or guardans learn about people of dfferent cultures? (You may wsh to ntervew them to fnd out.) 5. How have you learned to communcate wth people of other cultures? 6. What do you thnk s the greatest challenge to ntercultural communcaton n your organzaton? Materals may be reproduced n electronc or prnt form for use n educatonal or tranng actvtes. Authors should be credted for ther work n all nstances. All other reproducton or use of materals requres pror electronc or wrtten permsson by contactng cameronselby@purdue.edu

3 Internatonal Extenson Currculum: Strengthenng Extenson s Capacty for Internatonal Engagement UNIT 7 LECTURE 10 KEY ISSUES IN INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION Effectve communcaton s key n developng strong and postve relatonshps wth people. Unfortunately, t s not easy and t requres consstent attenton, energy, and sklls. Communcaton wth someone who s culturally dfferent from you can be challengng. The followng key ssues n effectve ntercultural communcaton are mportant to consder as you meet and communcate wth people of dfferent cultures. There are some basc dfferences n the ways people of dfferent cultures communcate, such as through the dfferent use of words, voce ptch, and nonverbal (body language). Wthn each culture, there are ndvdual dfferences n the way people communcate. In communcatng wth someone of a dfferent culture, t s mportant to make sure you consder the person's cultural background. You need to be flexble n your communcaton style f you want to relate postvely to people of dfferent cultures. There are lmts to how much someone should try to shft hs or her communcaton style to be lke someone who s culturally dfferent. Openness, carng, and mutual respect for the dgnty of ndvduals are essental qualtes for effectve communcaton, regardless of cultural dfferences. There are great advantages throughout your lfe to beng knowledgeable, respectful, and open toward others who are culturally dfferent from you. Materals may be reproduced n electronc or prnt form for use n educatonal or tranng actvtes. Authors should be credted for ther work n all nstances. All other reproducton or use of materals requres pror electronc or wrtten permsson by contactng cameronselby@purdue.edu

4 Internatonal Extenson Currculum: Strengthenng Extenson s Capacty for Internatonal Engagement UNIT 7 EXERCISE 8A Intercultural Communcaton Styles Objectve: To help partcpants apprecate the fact that ther own communcaton styles, though ndvdual, are nfluenced by culture. To recognze the dffculty of havng to communcate n a settng n whch the rules are unfamlar. Tme: 45 mnutes Materals: Exercse 8A (nstructons should be cut nto strps) for each Procedure: Debrefng: partcpant Flpchart and marker 1. Make enough copes of Exercse 8A and cut so each partcpant receves one nstructon, A, B, C or D. 2. After gvng each partcpant one strp, nstruct partcpants not to share ther rules wth anyone. 3. Ask partcpants to par up, preferably all A's should be talkng to B's and C's talkng to D's. (If possble have them par up wth someone they don't know.) 4. Ask the pars to talk to each other for two mnutes, carefully followng the nstructons they receved. Ther task s to fnd out two new thngs about ther partner. 1. Ask partcpants f they found the exercse easy and solct ther frst reactons to the assgnment. 2. Lst ther responses on the flpchart. 3. Have one partcpant from each group (A,B,C,D) read hs/her rules aloud to the group. As the rules are read, lst the followng communcaton ssues on the flpchart: a. Eye contact and the showng of emoton b. Dstance and gestures Materals may be reproduced n electronc or prnt form for use n educatonal or tranng actvtes. Authors should be credted for ther work n all nstances. All other reproducton or use of materals requres pror electronc or wrtten permsson by contactng cameronselby@purdue.edu

5 Internatonal Extenson Currculum: Strengthenng Extenson s Capacty for Internatonal Engagement Facltator's Notes: c. Loudness and nterruptons; ntatng conversaton and personal questons d. Softness and no nterruptons; not ntatng conversaton or askng questons 4. Ask how the partcpants nterpreted the behavor of ther partners durng the exercse. (For example, the person whose partner looked away felt that hs/her partner couldn't be trusted, wasn't nterested, or perhaps was bored.) It s mportant to recognze that there s a "manstream" Amercan communcaton style and that many dfferent cultures brng wth them ther own rules and communcaton styles whch are dfferent. The more a person understands dfferences n communcaton styles, the better communcaton can become. You may also suggest that matchng styles can further postve communcaton across cultures. Materals may be reproduced n electronc or prnt form for use n educatonal or tranng actvtes. Authors should be credted for ther work n all nstances. All other reproducton or use of materals requres pror electronc or wrtten permsson by contactng cameronselby@purdue.edu

6 Internatonal Extenson Currculum: Strengthenng Extenson s Capacty for Internatonal Engagement EXERCISE 8B Intercultural Communcaton The followng nstructons should be photocoped and cut nto strps. Enough copes should be made so that each partcpant can be gven one strp. Group A Instructons Avod eye-contact when speakng to your partner. Do not show any emoton or react to your partner when he/she s speakng. Group B Instructons Stand about sx nches closer to your partner than you normally would. Use gestures often when you are speakng. Group C Instructons Speak louder than you normally would and nterrupt your partner farly frequently. Intate conversaton by askng a lot of questons (ncludng personal ones). Group D Instructons Speak softer than you normally would and don't nterrupt your partner. Don't ntate conversaton or ask questons. Adapted from 50 Actvtes/or Dversty Tranng by Jonamay Lambert and Selma Myers. HRD Press, 1994 Materals may be reproduced n electronc or prnt form for use n educatonal or tranng actvtes. Authors should be credted for ther work n all nstances. All other reproducton or use of materals requres pror electronc or wrtten permsson by contactng cameronselby@purdue.edu