Importance of Intercultural Communication to Ist

“Culture is more often a source of conflict than of synergy.cultural differences are nuicanse at best and often disaster” –Dr. Geert Hofstede

There is no doubt that communities and cultures have been exposed to one another over the course of time. This interaction is known as the “middle ground” where different groups come in contact for various reasons either accidentally or purposely. This interaction and mixture of communities has the potential of creating a good or bad relationship between the two different groups, depending on the circumstances and their intentions. The reality is that there is fear towards many different communities which is mostly due to the lack of knowledge and lack of comprehension there is for these groups. Communities and cultures cross borders because they want to create a just society; we continue to live in a world full of unjust treatment, the drive to help others and fight for a fair society explains why communities and cultures cross borders. Crossing over of these communities leads to understanding and

Cultural confusion and an unwillingness to appreciate local customs and values gave birth to a contempt for local culture. Local people were simply seen as ‘other’, and “non-European people needed to be tamed or civilised, made ‘normal’” (Rizvi 1996, p.175).

that a culture is defined not only by its current state, but by the influences its history

I feel the ability to communicate with people across different cultural backgrounds is a strength that I have developed over time. Intercultural communication is the term given to communication that takes place between people whose cultural beliefs values and behaviours differ from one another (Buchanan 2015, p. 44). Cultural knowledge that is developed through socialisation and transferred from one generation to the next, shapes the way people communicate both verbally and nonverbally. It influences an individual’s perception of the world which in turn impacts intrapersonal communication; self-talk, and interpersonal communication; expressing meaning in a variety of settings (Buchanan 2015, p. 34; Kreunus et al. 2011, p. 48). When a person constructs meaning from a message, they attempt to understand what is spoken, how it is spoken and the context of the communication (Kreunus et al. 2011, p. 48). Semantic barriers can occur during when people interpret a messages by associating the meaning to their own cultural understanding and knowledge in order for it to make sense to them (ibid; Tylor, Kossen & Charmaine 2005, p. 271). The following principles can be applied to improve intercultural communication and increase cultural sensitivity; remove cultural barriers; decrease ethnocentrism, challenge biases and stereotypes, avoiding over-attribution bias, be aware of cultural differences to adjust communication (Buchanan 2015, p. 43; Tylor, Kossen & Charmaine 2005, p. 269).

For as many different religions that there are in the world, each has a different function and possible different method of control and manipulation that can be imposed by the governing body. Our Nation is unique in that we have no National religion or vast majority religion that has a guiding and overlying pull on society. Ours is a young nation in the grand scheme of things and the more ancient a people, the more deep routed their religion is engrained in their culture and actions. Take Israel for example, while in the modern context they may also be a young nation, if you were to ask an Israeli national they would tell you that their nation is as old as the Old Testament or the Torah as they call their holy book. They trace their lineage all the way back past the temple of Solomon where they believe the Wailing Wall still stands. People have fought for their beliefs and been driven by their need and desire to be a nation since these ancient times. In a people as ancient as this their culture has developed intertwined with religion. This aspect of functionality is lost in the

It has been the case that over the duration that mankind has graced the planet there has been group’s hell bent on enacting their beliefs and values upon the rest of the world. As time has passed there have been many times that these groups have changed the face of the planet permanently. You can look at any organized religious group and see just how they pushed the belief system onto others to spread their ideology. Now, taking into consideration that fundamentalism and militant groups are nothing new, you can see that it still affects society greatly even today. Let us look at

The world’s most prominent religions consist of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. A little over 5.5 billion people out of the 7.1 billion on Earth today align themselves with one of the five major world religions. Religion has an enormous influence on the lives of all people no matter geographical location or nationality. Religion creates order and a moral code, which in an isolated group can create peace and a better way of life. However, in many cases, religions believe that they are the one true religion, which can cause strife between groups of peoples. These issues have given rise to many wars that have continued into our modern world. Religion has a hand in most activities and decisions that individuals make daily. With so much influence and power religions often are completely isolated entities with deep divisions and differences. However, there are several common threads that connect the major religions of the world. Three of those similarities are a sacred text, a male leader who embodies the values of the religion, and a moral code involving a numeric device

Religion is a universal part of many cultures and affects societies through its functions and dysfunctions. Firstly, religion offers a reason for life on earth, by explaining life after death, and giving its followers missions and motives for daily life. It also provides emotional and mental comfort for individuals going through a stressful time; as it gives suffering, stress, and death a purpose. Furthermore, religion sets guidelines for everyday life and is a form of social control. For example, the ten commandments for Christians, karma for Hindus, and the Shariah Laws for Muslims, are social regulations that set a pathway for specific behaviors and attitudes. Contrastingly, religion also negatively impacts society, as it opens doors for conflicts among different belief systems. Historically, crusades and torture were common forms used by religious groups to gain and maintain control. Currently, torture still occurs in some countries as religious groups are fighting for power and believe that anyone who doesn’t believe in their gods or follow their ways deserves to die. Religion may also create anxiety among individuals as they are consumed with following the “rules”, and feel distressed when they violate them. Some followers are not able to meet the set guidelines, such as, not having enough money to tithe, or not having a way to attend church. Meanwhile others have the means to follow the principles but for their own personal

Throughout the history of the world, there have been three underlying motives: Politics, economics, and religion. These factors continue to play an important role in the modern world, religion in particular. Religion often unites individuals of every race, nationality, and ethnicity in a way politics nor economics can imitate. The contemporary importance of religion lies in its strong development of community.

Anytime I went to arts class my brain automatically shut down because of my Italian professor's witty and facetious answers he gave to every question Because I couldn't stand it and hated. Coming from a stern African background, I appreciate the use of ungregarious and straightforward responses that is going straight to the point and not beating about the bush; hitting the nail on its head. But in this situation I fell victim to the difference in cultural background that existed between us that is him being Italian hence his witty answers to questions and me being African. Intercultural communication hinders the smooth interaction between members of different cultural backgrounds due to norms such as individualism vs collectivism where some people choose to take care of themselves and their immediate loved ones like children and the latter being a way of life which people tend to care about people on a larger scale an example is the extended family system, low context VS high context, low context cultures rely primarily on words to express their thoughts which contrasts the use of nonverbal cues to express thoughts in the high context culture, also is the high and low power distance, societies with low power distance tend to challenge authority and question their actions but in high context cultures they accept the distance that lies between the people and their leaders and finally achievement vs nurturing, achievement minded societies are more focused on attaining material

During our intercultural communications field trip we went to five different locations. At first the other girls in the groups were very stressed about visiting so many places and had a very set agenda. As the driver I just asked for the addresses and said, “Alright, where to?”.

Intercultural communication is understanding the effective way in communicating between people with different cultural background. Factors such as business etiquettes and cultural differences are critical to be able to achieve a positive outcome in a negotiation. Knowing how to negotiate with the Japanese is essential especially when the person comes from a different background. In this essay, Emily, an australian entrepreneur who wish to expand her business venture in Japan will be advised on gaining a good impression with meeting Mr. Hamasaki, a manager of a popular store.

Religion has taken on many forms over the past 5,000 years. From the gods of ancient Egypt to Christianity as we know it, one aspect remains static. Religion has acted as a binding agent between individuals. It creates a group of like-minded individuals and sets guidelines in accordance to the core set of beliefs. What came first: society or religion? According to Emile Durkheim, religion is a product of society’s need for a social order. The role of religion in the society reflects the state of humanity at that time, not the state of God. Religious behavior in the United States, as recorded through a survey done by the Association of Religion Data Archives, is reflective of Durkheim’s central point that religion’s role in society is to act as the structural bones, and keep people contained. Society stands on its own, whereas religion stands on society.

Among the world’s different cultures, the people of each group develop their own ways of dealing with conflict. Whether anticipated or not, conflict is something that will always be a part of human nature. These conflicts can be minor, or can become dangerous for the individuals involved. Misunderstandings between the two parties in a conflict can also cause harm to the situation, especially if the each of the parties is from a different culture. Intercultural communication can be defined as, “the implicit or explicit emotional struggle between persons of different cultural communities over perceived or actual incompatibility of cultural ideologies and values, situational norms, goals, face-orientations, scarce resources, styles/processes, and/or outcomes in a face-to-face (or mediated) context within a sociohistorical embedded system” (Neuliep, 2018, p. 361).