Intercultural Communication for Everyday Life

The combination has the advantage bringing into ones hand a somewhat integrated presentation, guidance and a direction without the leakage and serendipity of online meanderings. (Diversophy.com, 1 November 2014)

John R. Baldwin is Professor of Communication at Illinois State University. Robin R. Means Coleman is Associate Professor in the Departments of Communication Studies and Afroamerican and African Studies at the University of Michigan. Alberto Gonzlez is Professor of Communication at Bowling Green State University. Suchitra Shenoy-Packer is Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at DePaul University.

Preface xi Acknowledgements xv About the website xvi Walk through xvii Part One Foundations 1 1 A rationale for studying intercultural communication: Why should we know about other cultures? 3 Building a rationale: Why do we need to know about intercultural communication? 5 The personal growth motive 5 The social responsibility motive 6 The economic motive 8 The cross-cultural travel motive 10 The media motive 13 Challenges of studying intercultural communication 15 The history and focus of intercultural communication: Where did we come from? 16 Summary 19 Key terms 19 Discussion questions 20 Action points 20 For more information 20 2 Action, ethics, and research: How can I make a difference? 24 Muslim veils in French schools: How can we determine right from wrong in intercultural situations? 26 Ethics and morality 27 Determining a universal ethical stance 28 Ethical relativism 29 Not in our town: What is the role of intercultural communication in civic engagement? 30 Political and civic engagement 31 Defending civic and political engagement among college students 32 Doing civic engagement 34 How can we do responsible cultural research? 35 Assumptions that guide cultural research 36 Approaches to studying culture and communication 36 Differences of focus in culture-and communication studies 41 Summary 42 Key terms 43 Discussion questions 43 Action points 44 For more information 44 3 Origins: Where does our culture come from? 47 The relationship between communication and culture: How do they inform each other? 49 Defining communication 49 The relationship between communication and culture 51 Defining culture: How can we define cultureand what are the implications of our definition? 52 Aspects and elements of culture: What is culture like? 55 Aspects of culture 55 Characteristics of culture 56 A model of interaction: How can we best understand intercultural and intergroup communication? 61 Summary 63 Key terms 64 Discussion questions 64 Action points 65 For more information 65 Part Two Elements 69 4 Subjective culture: What is the base upon which cultural communication is built? 71 Basic building blocks of culture: What are the most important things to know? 72 Cultural values: What are some useful frameworks for understanding culture? 75 High- and low-context cultures 76 Hofstedes cultural dimensions 77 Culture-specific (emic) approaches 81 World view: What are the beliefs at the center of our world? 84 Summary 87 Key terms 87 Discussion questions 88 Action points 88 For more information 89 5 Identity: Struggle, resistance, and solidarity: How can I think about my identity and that of others? 91 An introduction to identity: Who am I, really? 92 Identity and communication: How do we communicate our identities? 95 Social identity theory and stages of identity development 95 Identity is created through communication 95 You are what you eat: Food as an example of identity 96 Identity and politics: How can our identities be political? 97 Identity politics 98 Punk rock and identity politics: A case study in brief 98 Ideology, the KKK, and subtle White power 100 Hegemony: National-regional and sexual orientation power plays 102 Identity in intercultural communication: What are some problematic ways to think about the identities of other groups? 103 Orientalism 103 The symbolic annihilation of race 105 Identity, solidarity, and civic action: Can I make a difference? 108 Summary 109 Key terms 110 Discussion questions 110 Action points 111 For more information 111 6 Intoleranceacceptanceappreciation: How can we make the world a more tolerant place? 114 Framing the problem: Where can we recognize intolerance? 116 Terms: What are some different types of intolerance? 116 Debates: Where does racism lie, and who can be racist? 123 Looking