Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Intercultural Adjustment Problems Of Costa Rican Students In The United States, Patricia Gonzalez

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to determine the adjustment problems Costa Ricans face while living and studying in the United States. The main concern of this thesis is to identify the intercultural communication problems that arise fundamentally from differences in value systems.

Cultural Value Differences In Arguments Between Presidents Ronald Reagan And Oscar Arias, Juan Carlos Flores

Dissertations and Theses

Costa Rica embodies many of the characteristics which the United States would like to foster in Central America and elsewhere. In recent years, however, misunderstandings have often been present in the development of relations between both nations, and leaders. These differences have been particularly visible between Presidents Reagan and Arias when carrying out their foreign policies towards Central America.

Recent developments in warfare, social and political unrest and economic crises in the region added to the emergence of a Central American political leadership--independent of U.S. decision making-have increased international misunderstandings between both political speakers. These misunderstandings are shown by Reagan …

Awareness Of Biculturalism In Families Of Intercultural Marriage, Eleesabeth Carol-Therese Vieira

Dissertations and Theses

The overall purpose of this preliminary study is to generate more information in the area of intercultural marriage. The specific objectives of the study are to explore the extent to which families of intercultural marriage are aware of the issues of biculturalism that are discussed as significant in the literature; the extent to which partners of intercultural marriage discuss these issues with one another or with their children; the extent to which the family members' subjective reports of "awareness" are consistent.

U.S.-Soviet Interchange : An Examination Of The Underlying Assumptions Of U.S. Peace Organizations Sponsoring Contact With Soviet Citizens, Hyla Rosenberg

Dissertations and Theses

The research focus of this study was upon U.S. peace organizations which sponsor face-to-face contact with Soviet citizens. Nine U.S. peace organizations were included in the study, the names of which were acquired through a publication produced by the Institute for Soviet-American Relations. The researcher contacted approximately 28 organizations either by telephone or mail, requesting that organizational literature (program descriptions, newsletters, brochures, pamphlets) be sent to the researcher for the purpose of conducting a rhetorical analysis of such literature.

Making Sense Of America : A Phenomenological Analysis Of Chinese Nationals' Interactions In The U.S., Donna Marie Ecelroy

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis systematically explores the interactive experiences of Chinese students and scholars in the U.S. Specifically, the research asks: How do Chinese students and scholars (from the People's Republic of China) interpret their interactions in the U.S., and how do their interpretations change over their tenure in the U.S.?

Research on general issues of cultural experience and adjustment is reviewed. Further, meta-theoretical issues in the study of cultural experience and adaptation are addressed. These issues provide a background for both the phenomenological grounding of this study and the qualitative approach used for data collection and analysis.

Cultural Relativism In Intercultural Communication Theory : A Descriptive And Heuristic Study, Ellen Linnea Trygstad

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this descriptive study was to determine how the concept of "cultural relativism" is used in the current literature pertaining to intercultural communication. This concept is central to much of the work being done on face-to-face intercultural communication, but a preliminary review of that literature indicated ambiguity and lack of concurrence among authors' views regarding the concept. This research was designed to describe the range of authors' views on cultural relativism as well as to provide some historical and critical perspective regarding "cultural relativism."