Culture Is A Way Of Culture Essay

ASSIGNMENT: Achieving competence as an interpersonal communicator in a diverse society is necessary to your personal and professional success. One way to enhance our understanding of interpersonal communication as a relationship-building activity is to engage in first hand dialogue with people from cultures other than your own. This assignment gives you the opportunity to engage in the dual perspective – honoring the perspective of the person with whom you are communicating as well as honoring your own perspective. You are also able to contrast your worldview with the perspective of someone with a different life experience than your

The first point in my theory is that you can better your skills as an interpersonal communicator by better understanding your own culture. DeVito states that there are. “several major cultural distinctions that are crucial for more effective communication” they are: individualism or collectivism, high or low context, high or low power distance, masculinity or femininity, high or low ambiguity tolerance, long or short term orientation, and indulgent or (p. 34). To be able to understand your or anyone else’s culture you must be able to understand the ways that these things affect communication. Once you understand the ways that you are oriented in these seven categories due to enculturation you can understand how you communicate and become a more effective

Culture is not a fixed phenomenon, nor is it the same in all places or to all people. It is relative to time, place, and particular people. Learning about other people can help us to understand ourselves and to be better world citizens.

People respond to courtesy and feel comfortable when they know they have your respect. This helps them to be open and willing to ask questions when they don't understand something. By making people feel comfortable, you help them to be better listeners. Avoid words that require a dictionary when communicating cross-culturally. Pepper your communication with words that everyone understands.

Keeping the environment calm and quiet as possible when communicating, allowing plenty of time to have conversation;

Today, we live in a culturally diverse society due to globalization. As our world grows, expands and become increasingly more interconnected, the need for effective interpersonal communication among differing cultures has become apparent. When people from different cultures interact with one another there is intercultural communication because different cultures create different interpretation and expectations about what is seen as competent behaviors that will enable the construction of shared meanings.

It is extremely important to be familiar with the cultures and traditions of different countries because it not only develops your intellect but also opens more opportunities to interact with and respect people of other cultures. An example Ms. Nejen gave was when a British Nationalist needed help asking a woman he fell in love with hand in marriage. The woman was from Jordan, and Jordanian tradition for asking for marriage was to and the to meet the family and interact with the elders of her tribe in a specific way to gain acceptance and approval.

It is necessity to study and experience different cultures because there is no inferior culture and all

Acquiring acquaintance with other cultures can serve as cultural window and mirror, as well as a deeper approach and understanding of the cultural identity of the listener of the stories.

Throughout the world, cultures shape every state, country, and continent. People perceive things differently because of culture and society. Yet, these are the people who do not have the understanding what culture is nor have the education about culture. In the YouTube video named: “Cross Cultural Communication”, Pellegrino Riccardi provides background history on how people should communicate better with other nationalities.

Previous researchers have found that for a person to achieve better and more effective communication competence, it is necessary to develop skills that allow an appropriate participation in specific situations. The ability to listen, ask questions, and express concepts or ideas effectively is an important part of communication competence. Intercultural communication presents an unexplored and challenging field that needs to be understood for a better development in communication. (Dillon and McKenzie, 1998). The variables of listening depend on the different perceptions that a person obtains through their cultural background. Furthermore, culture often affects the structure of consciousness in the act of listening. When a person seeks to

I recognized the difference between wanting to know about a culture is different than experiencing the culture. Merely reading about how people in other cultures live does not give insight into their daily life. I may read about the country of Brazil and recognize the capital, president, language, and that the people dance, Capoeira. Though I would know all the facts, I would not understand that some locals dance Capoeira to connect to their African roots. In the words of St. Augustine, “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page” (St. Augustine, Matador Network). I became driven to learn different languages. Through learning Spanish and French I am able to understand why my native French aunt is an animated speaker. Learning languages allow people to connect with communities and the traditions behind them. “He who does not travel does not know the value of men” (Moorish proverb, Matador Network). Some may call me presumptuous, but I believe I am looking for something to connect me to other people instead of isolation due to misunderstanding of cultural traditions. Although cultures are supposed to aid in keeping the traditions of the communities it contributes to the separation of

Intercultural communication competence refers to the ability of an individual to adapt and communicate appropriately and effectively across a wide array of cultural contexts. That is to say, for an individual to be considered an intercultural communicator they must understand other’s cultures as well as they understand their own, and apply this understanding to communication (Chen 1-2). With the increasing diversity at the workplace, school and other social settings, it has become increasingly important to learn how to communicate with people from a diverse array of cultures. More importantly, adapting to a more effective intercultural communication competence model provides us with learning opportunities occasioned by the interaction with people from other backgrounds. The intercultural communication competence model comes with some key components including tolerance for uncertainty, self-knowledge, and motivation. The greatest and most important of these aspects is motivation. An individual must be willing to foster relationships with people from a different cultural background. If an individual lacks the willingness to promote intercultural relationships, then other aspects of the intercultural communication model become moot.

I contend we need to learn culture because of people from different cultural backgrounds have different styles or diversity of language, communication, and behaviors. We must learn or be taught of new methods that will emphasize the verbal skills, communication styles and the different behaviors to be able to communicate effectively. Reflection is ones self is crucial to the cross-cultural process of learning. To not have the understanding that we each have our own culture, and that our knowledge of one’s self culture is crucial, then there is the tendency of reduction in learning about other cultures which prevents or ceases the ability to understand.

Throughout my years in university, I have come to realize and understand the very importance of intercultural communication, within international relations. Generally when we refer to intercultural communication we are referring to the two key terms: culture and communication.