International and Intercultural Communication Commons^™

Cross Border Community Research, Opportunities And Challenges: Case Study Analyses, Paulette Meikle, Stephen King

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

In the context of a global knowledge economy, this paper underscores the need for cross border social and community research and suggests several critical procedures necessary for successful implementation of such research projects. Using data derived from diverse sources it describes the importance of cross border knowledge sharing, and critical procedures that enlarge the perimeter of traditional teaching and learning experiences. It further describes the advantages of implementing a combination of in-class instruction and field-based activities in international settings. A discussion of the constraints and benefits of conducting social and community-based fieldwork in politically stable developing countries follows.

Cross Border Community Research, Opportunities And Challenges: Case Study Analyses, Paulette Meikle, Stephen A. King

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

In the context of a global knowledge economy, this paper underscores the need for cross border social and community research and suggests several critical procedures necessary for successful implementation of such research projects. Using data derived from diverse sources it describes the importance of cross border knowledge sharing, and critical procedures that enlarge the perimeter of traditional teaching and learning experiences. It further describes the advantages of implementing a combination of in-class instruction and field-based activities in international settings. A discussion of the constraints and benefits of conducting social and community-based fieldwork in politically stable developing countries follows.

The Effect Of Advertising-Focused, Short-Term Study Abroad Programs On Students’ Worldviews, Frauke Hachtmann

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

Global employers in the advertising industry are increasingly interested in hiring students with intercultural communication skills and cultural experience. While the benefits of long-term study abroad programs are well documented, this study focuses on advertising-specific, short-term study abroad programs. The purpose was to explore the effectiveness of such programs on students’ worldviews using a mixed methods design. The results show that students displayed lower levels of ethnocentrism after participating in short-term, advertising-focused study abroad programs. In addition, five qualitative themes emerged: an awareness of and appreciation for the out-group, an increased awareness of the in-group, the importance of communication, a …

Exploring The Relationship Between Facebook, Face-To-Face And Intercultural Communication, Rebecca Schaefer

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

My Capstone Experience/Thesis project seeks to explore and examine the effects of Facebook on communication between American and international students. The use of social media as a means to communicate with others is increasing at an amazing rate. Facebook has become my generation’s favorite way to communicate with friends and family and “to Facebook” has unofficially become a verb that many college students will use. While social media, such as Facebook and Linked-In, may encourage American college students to communicate with international students beyond the classroom and campus, it seems that Facebook is on the way to becoming a substitute …

(Re)Conceptualizing Intercultural Communication In A Networked Society, Damien S. Pfister, Jordan Soliz

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

We offer four theses about how intercultural communication is altered in a digitally networked era. Digital media shape intercultural communication by (1) producing new public fora capable of (2) hosting rich, multimodal ‘‘spaces’’ of contact on (3) a scale of many-to-many communication that (4) challenges traditional modes of representation

The Performance Of Intercultural Communication: China's "New Face" And The 2008 Beijing Olympics, Patrick Shaou-Whea Dodge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores Chinese communication practices. I focus on the performance of intercultural communication and how the "New Face" of China was performed to the world and in day-to-day intercultural communication encounters during the 2008 Olympics. I analyze the Olympic Volunteer Training Manual as performative text as well as interviewed Beijing Olympic volunteers about their encounters with international visitors. Specifically, I discuss why the Olympics were a crucial moment for China to unveil its "New Face" to the world, what the "New Face" of China entails, and the reasons why China is in need of a new image on the …

Language Contact Between Korean And English In Online Communication, Jiyoung L. Daniel

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

Over the past decade, the use of the Internet has become an indispensable part of life in the new millennium. One of the most popular activities in the era of the Internet is online communication. Net-Lingo, which is a product of online communication, is a new language variety that differs from both writing and speech as traditionally understood (Crystal, 2001). Given that Net-Lingo is considered a language variety, I describe the salient linguistic characteristics of Korean Net-Lingo (KNL) and investigate the specific mechanisms that govern the observable linguistic characteristics. The globalization of the Internet is prompting different languages to come …

Crosstalk 2.0: Asylum And Communicative Breakdowns, Marco Jacquemet

Communication Studies

Using ethnographic evidence on asylum proceedings for refugee recognition from various sources (Italy, Belgium, United Kingdom, and Canada), this paper updates Gumperz’s notion of crosstalk by exploring the massively flexible and multilingual nature of late-modern communication as epitomized in one of the most complex adjudication procedures performed by Western nation-states. Every year thousands of displaced people seek the protection of various European countries by filing asylum claims, which are examined by national commissions. This paper explores how the problematic nature of these encounters can be traced to the nature of late-modern communication, characterized as it is by asymmetrical power, multiple …

An Evaluation Of The California Brief Multicultural Competence Scale And Training For Mental Health Practices, Catherine Tillie Smith, Dahlia Avila

Theses Digitization Project

This study was designed to investigate the effectiveness of the California Brief Multicultural Competence Scale (CBMCS) and training as a tool to increase cultural competency skills. The interest of this was to determine if the training brought about a change in empathy or effectively increased knowledge about the importance of culture.

Care, Culture, And Education Nursing Students' Perceptions Of Care And Culture: Implications For Practice, Pauline Rita Wright

Educational Studies Dissertations

Today's nurses work and live in a multicultural society where they encounter patients whose backgrounds are different from theirs, and who need care from nurses who are both proficient in their work and knowledgeable about the role that culture plays in patient treatment. In this study, 45 student nurses enrolled in a baccalaureate program at a northeastern urban college completed a survey about their perceptions of care and culture including their relevance and application to the practice of nursing. Findings based on qualitative analyses indicated that parents and family were instrumental in students' learning about care and a combination of …

Language Choice In Interracial Marriages : The Case Of Filipino-Malaysian Couples., Francisco Perlas Dumanig

Student Works (2010-2019)

Language choice has become a common phenomenon in interracial encounters in which speakers are always faced with the challenge of choosing an appropriate language in various domains of communication. In multilingual and multiracial societies, language choice can sometimes be crucial because of its social, political, and economic impact on the speakers. Even in the smallest unit of a society which is the family, language choice plays an important role particularly in interactions between husbands and wives who come from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. It is therefore the objective of this research to examine the language choice in interracial couples’ …

Information Gathering And Culture Shock: Mediating The Effect Of Individual Characteristics Of International Adjustment, Jeremiah James Mcfarland

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect that information gathering and culture shock have on the relationship between individual characteristics and international adjustment. Participants for this study consisted of 95 international students within the California State University system.

Is She Chinese Or American? On The Identity Communication Patterns Between Caucasian Parents And Their Adopted Chinese Daughters In The U.S., May H. Gao, Deanna F. Womack

Faculty Articles

This study explored patterns of identity communication between Caucasian parents and their adopted Chinese daughters. As they grow up in "biracial" and "bicultural" families, adoptees must integrate multiple identities of being "ethnically Chinese," "culturally American," "female," "abandoned," and "adopted." Using qualitative methods, the researchers conducted 1-1 ½ hour in-depth interviews of adoptive parents to identify communication patterns and strategies used to create and manage the bicultural identities of their Chinese daughters.

Impact Of Cultural Factors On Transnational Teams: Diversity, Adaptation, Communication Quality, And Trust, Shu-Yir Lee

Theses Digitization Project

The present research proposes a general model of Transnational Teams (TNTs) to investigate how value placed on cultural diversity, cultural adaptation, communication quality, and trust affect the performance of TNTs and their interaction to each other. TNTs contribute to decisions about a firm's total portfolio of transnational interests, global brands and products, organizational configuration, and global sourcing strategy. Qualitative and quantitative methods are applied in this study of thirty members of TNTs from diverse teams. Based on the qualitative and quantitative analysis, relationships between theory and practice are examined. The analysis shows that there is a strong relationship between trust …

Approaching Chinese Culture: Strategies American Expatriates Adopt For Learning Chinese Culture, May Hongmei Gao, Deanna F. Womack

Faculty Articles

It is generally believed that cultural sojourners have diffi culties adapting to a wide range of business, academic, and social situations in a host culture. They need to adopt certain strategies to learn a foreign culture. Building upon existing literature on intercultural learning, adaptation, and perception, this research investigates American professional expatriates’ experience of coping with cultural others in China. In particular, this research investigates communication strategies that the American expatriates adopt in learning Chinese culture. Twenty in-depth interviews were conducted in China to collect data from multiple perspectives on how American professional expatriates adapt themselves from home (American) culture …

Comic : An Exploration Into Computer-Mediated Intercultural Communication, Simone Alder

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores how cultural differences manifest themselves in computermediated intercultural communication (CoMIC). This study particularly looks at the role and use of digital nonverbals (DNVs) and their regulatory functions. The data analyzed is from a global virtual team working together for a period of three months. The grounded theory method has been employed to code the electronic transcript of the team's communication. Furthermore, the participants were surveyed regarding their personal backgrounds, their work, and their perception of the communication processes that took place. The study shows that in an intercultural communication process DNVs are used to avoid intercultural misunderstandings …

A Survey Of Social Workers' Cultural Competency: An Exploratory Study, José Luis Lujano

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to measure the social workers' knowledge, awareness, sensitivity, and ability to serve the population of color.

The Pervasiveness Of Culture In Conflict, Pat K. Chew

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

Creating Community Through Communication: The Case Of East Desert Unified School District, Michelle Elizabeth Shader

Theses Digitization Project

East Desert Unified School District (EDUSD) serves many immigrant, migrant, and first generation students. The objective of this thesis is to identify the community processes and channels used that it serves. Organizationally, the interractions between the district and its communities will be studied from a systems perspective. Intercultural communication theories and organizational communication theories provide lenses for examining the communication processes occuring between the communbity and organization within the district, the parents resource service center alone with children and Family Services are grant supported and provide outreach services to community members.

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of A Diversity Training In An Educational Organization, Bonnie Gail Elliott

Theses Digitization Project

Diversity training programs are increasingly being incorporated into organizations as a strategy to meet moral standards and legal challenges. Unfortunately, little research as been conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of these programs. This study describes an effective diversity training program as one that changes a member of the organization's negative attitude about racial differences toward a positive attitude.

International Students' Experiences In Higher Education: A Case Study Examining Uncertainty Reduction Theory In Communication Classrooms, Susan Kuhn

Dissertations and Theses

This was an exploratory case study which focused on international students' experiences in higher education. In particular, this study investigated the efficacy of uncertainty reduction theory in communication classrooms. The research asked four exploratory questions: (a) What are the students’ perceptions of the teacher/student relationship? (b) Do international students experience uncertainty in communication classrooms? (c) If uncertainty is experienced, what is its source(s)? (d) If uncertainty is experienced, do students seek to reduce it, and if so, how?

A phenomenological perspective was utilized in this study as the organizing, theoretical framework. Relevant literature on uncertainty reduction theory was reviewed as …

Communication To Reduce Embarrassment Between Individualistic And Collectivistic Cultures, Puvana Ganesan

Institute for the Humanities Theses

lntercultural communication is an inherent aspect of life, and "as we move or are driven toward a global village and increasingly frequent cultural contact, we need more than simply greater factual knowledge of each other. We need, more specifically, to identify what might be called the 'rulebooks of meaning' that distinguish one culture from another" (Barnlund, 1975, p. 7).

This thesis sought to discover and contribute valuable content to this "rulebook of meaning" through intercultural communication between high context, collectivistic cultures and low-context, individualistic cultures in the situation of experiencing embarrassment. One goal of this study was to determine if …

The Relationship Between A Pre-Departure Training Program And Its Participants' Intercultural Communication Competence, Daniel Timothy Ferguson

Dissertations and Theses

Self-reported behaviorally-based intercultural communication competence inventories are one way to understand the relationship between a pre-departure training program and its participants' intercultural communication competence (ICC). One such inventory, called the Cross- Cultural Adaptability Inventory (CCAI), was chosen to explore this relationship.

This research sought to confirm or reject the following three hypotheses: 1) experimental subjects will demonstrate higher levels of ICC than control subjects, 2) experimental subjects will demonstrate higher levels of ICC after they take the pre-departure class at Walla Walla College, and 3) there will be relationships among all subjects' ICC and the demographic variables involved in this …

Intercultural Communication Competence And Intercultural Adjustment Of Japanese Business Sojourners And Their Spouses, Muneo Hotta

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this thesis was to examine the relationship among intercultural communication competence, attitudes toward the U.S. culture, and linguistic skills in English for Japanese business sojourners and their spouses living in the United States.

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.

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.

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."