Quratulain > Status Update

The disenfranchised, with limited access to the communicative spaces and to the spheres of voicing, are often absent from the discursive spaces where health policies and programs are discussed, the sites where interventions are planned, and the processes where communicative strategies targeting them are carried out.

Conceptualizing Intercultural Competence,” Spitzberg and Chagnon define intercultural competence as, “the appropriate and effective management of interaction between people who, to some degree or another, represent different or divergent affective, cognitive, and behavioral orientations to the world” (p. 7).

Another prominent factor is the interactants’ motivation to form relationships across cultural lines...for example, sojourners seeking cultural knowledge and personal growth generally have more interest in interaction and friendships with host nationals than students who are task oriented and focus on education for better career prospects after returning home.
Elisabeth Gareis

When conflict arises, using silence as an initial reaction allows people to calm down, exhibit emotional maturity, and take time to identify better conflict management strategies. Additionally, silence may indicate disagreement, refusal, or anger.

The understated communication style involves the extensive use of silence, pauses, and understatements in conversations. The Chinese tend to see silence as a control strategy. People who speak little tend to be trusted more than people who speak a great deal; in understated style cultures, silence allows an individual to be socially discreet, gain social acceptance, and avoid social penalty.

in Arab cultures, individuals often feel compelled to over-assert in almost all types of communication because in their culture, simple assertions may be interpreted to mean the opposite. The Arab tendency to use verbal exaggerations is considered responsible for many diplomatic misunderstandings between the United States and Arab countries.

In collectivistic cultures, such as Japan and China, much of socialization emphasizes the use of self-criticism. Individuals use restraints, hesitations, modest talk, and self-deprecation when discussing their own abilities and accomplishments, as well as when responding to others’ praises. Self-effacement helps maintain group harmony because modesty may allow an individual to avoid offense.

Members of collectivistic cultures typically believe that courtesy often takes precedence over truthfulness to maintaining social harmony which is at the core of collectivist interpersonal interactions. As a result, members from collectivistic cultures may give agreeable and pleasant answers to questions when literal, factual answers might be perceived as unpleasant or embarrassing.

In low-context communication cultures (typically Western societies) meaning is conveyed mainly through explicit words. The speaker should be direct in his or her communication, provide detailed information, and use unambiguous language. He or she does not assume pre-existing knowledge on the part of listener or expect the listener to consider heavily the setting.

Members of high-context communication cultures (typically Eastern societies) rely on their pre-existing knowledge of each other and the setting to convey or interpret meaning. The personal characteristics of the parties involved and the nature of the interpersonal relationships are to be considered. Without