Glossary for Intercultural Communication

Accommodating style- emphasizes an indirect approach for dealing with conflict and a more emotionally restrained manner

Adaptors- gestures related to managing our emotions

Affirmative action- statutes that attempt to stop discrimination by encouraging the hiring of minorities and women

Afrocentric- an orientation toward African or African American cultural standards, including beliefs and values, as the criteria for interpreting behaviors and attitudes

Age identity- the identification with the cultural conventions of how we should act, look and behave according to our age

AIDS- Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; a disease caused by a virus, HIV, transmitted through sexual or blood contact, which attacks the immune system

Alternative medicine- a medical approach that goes against the norms of the medical establishment; it can incorporate holistic medicine, spirituality, and/or non-Western wellness philosophies

Americans with Disabilities Act- a law requiring that places of business make “reasonable” accommodations for employees with physical disabilities.

Anti-Americanism- negative ideas against the United States, most often the US government

Argot- nonstandard way of communicating that separates insiders from outsiders of a coculture; language within coculture

Assimilatable- the degree of participation in a type of cultural adaption in which an individual gives up his or her won cultural heritage and adopts the mainstream cultural identity (cultural adaptation)

Authenticity- in tourism, the search for “real” cultural experiences very different from the tourists’ everyday life

Benevolent deception- withholding information from a patient, ostensibly for his or her own good

Bilingual- able to speak two languages fluently or at least competently

Bilingualism- the ability to speak two languages

Boundary maintenance- the regulation of interaction between hosts and tourists

Class identity- a sense of belonging to a group that shares similar economic, occupational, or social status

Class structure- the economic organization of income levels in a society; the structure that defines upper, middle, lower and other social classes

Cocultural group- non-dominant cultural groups that exist in a national culture—for example, African American or Chinese American

Code switching- changing from one language or communication style to another

Collectivism- the tendency to focus on the goals, needs, and views of the ingroup rather than the individuals’ own goals, needs, and views

Colonial education system- schools established by colonial powers in colonized regions; They often forbade the use of native languages and discussion of native cultures

Colonial histories- the histories that legitimate international invasions and annexations

Communication- a symbolic process whereby reality is produced, maintained, repaired and transformed

Communication style- the metamessage that contextualizes how listeners are expected to accept and interpret verbal messages

Complimentarity- a principle of relational attraction suggesting that sometimes we are attracted to people who are different from us

Compromise style- a style of interaction for an intercultural couple in which both partners give up some part of their own cultural habits and beliefs to minimize cross-cultural differences (compare with consensus style, obliteration style and submission style)

Conflict- the interference between two or more interdependent individuals or groups of people who perceive incompatible goals, values or expectations in attaining those ends

Consensus style- a style of interaction for an intercultural couple in which partners deal with cross-cultural differences by negotiating their relationship (compare with compromise style, obliteration style, and submission style)

Constructive identity- an identity that is actively negotiated from various cultures in contact and that often creates feelings of new multicultural identity

Contact cultures- cultural groups in which people tend to stand close together and touch frequently when they interact—for example, cultural groups in South America, the Middle East, and southern Europe (see noncontact cultures)

Contact hypothesis- intercultural contacts can result in more positive and tolerate attitudes toward other cultural groups, but only under very specific conditions

Context- the physical or social situation in which communication occurs

Contractual honesty- telling a patient only what he or she wants to know

Core symbols- the fundamental beliefs that are shared by the members of a cultural group; Labels, a category of core symbols, are the names or markers used to classify individual, social or cultural groups

Cosmopolitans- people who view themselves as citizens of the world and are responsible to each other

Cross-cultural trainers- trainers who teach people to become familiar with other cultural norms and to improve their interactions with people of different domestic and international cultures

Cultural contact- when two or more cultures come together, sometimes on an individual basis, but often through larger social migrations, wars and other displacements.

Cultural group histories- the history of each cultural group within a nation that includes, for example, the history of where the group originated, why the people migrated, and how they came to develop and maintain their cultural traits

Cultural identities- who we are as influenced by the cultures to which we belong

Cultural imperialism- domination through the spread of cultural products

Cultural space- the particular configuration of the communication that constructs meanings of various places

Cultural texts- cultural artifacts (magazines, TV programs, movies, and so on) that convey cultural norms, values and beliefs

Culture- learned patterns of behavior and attitudes shared by a group of people

Culture industries- industries that produce and sell popular culture as commodities

Culture shock- a relatively short-term feeling of disorientation and discomfort due to the lack of familiar cues in the environment

Deception- the act of making someone believe what is not true

Demographics- the characteristics of a population, especially as classified by age, sex and income

Diaspora- a massive migration, often caused by war or famine or persecution, that results in the dispersal of a unified group

Diasporic histories- the histories of the ways in which international cultural groups were created through transnational migrations, slavery, religious crusades, or other historical forces

Direct approach- emphasizes that conflict is fundamentally a good thing and should be approached head-on

Discrimination- behaviors resulting from stereotypes or prejudice that cause some people to be denied equal participation or rights based on cultural group membership (such as race)

Discussion style- combines the direct and emotionally restrained dimensions and emphasizes a verbally direct approach for dealing with disagreements

Dynamic style- uses an indirect style of communicating along with a more emotionally intense expressiveness

Eco-tourism- tourism of sites of environmental or natural interest

Electronic colonialism- domination or exploitation utilizing technological forms

Emblems- gestures that have a specific verbal translation

Embodied ethnocentrism- feeling comfortable and familiar in the spaces, behaviors, and actions of others in our own cultural surroundings

Emotionally expressive style- conflict style where intense and overt displays of emotion are valued during discussion of disagreements

Encapsulated identity- an identity that is torn between different cultural identities and that often creates feelings of ambiguity

Enclaves- regions that are surrounded by another country’s territory; cultural minority groups that live within a larger cultural group’s territory

Engagement style- emphasizes a verbally direct and confrontational approach to dealing with conflict

Equal employment opportunity- laws against discrimination in the workplace

Equivalency- an issue in translation, the condition of being equal in meaning, value, quantity, and so on

Ethics- principles of conduct that help govern behaviors of individuals and groups

Ethics committees- groups that provide guidance in making health care decisions; usually composed of health care professionals, administrators, lawyers, social works, members of the religious community, and patient representatives

Ethnic histories- the histories of ethnic groups

Ethnic identity- set of ideas about how one’s own ethnic group membership; a sense of belonging to a particular group and knowing something about the shared experience of the group

Ethnocentrism- an orientation toward one’s own ethnic group; often a tendency to elevate one’s own culture above others

Eurocentric- the assumption of the centrality or superiority of European culture
Euthanasia- the ending of the life of a terminally ill patient

Eye contact- a nonverbal code that communicated meanings about respect and status and often regulates turn taking during interactions

Facial expressions- facial gestures that convey emotions and attitudes

Family histories- the body of knowledge shared by family members and the customs, rituals, and stories passed from one generation to another within a family

Folk culture- traditional culture that is not practiced for financial profit

Friendship- a personal, nonromantic relationship that has culture-specific definitions

Gay relationships- same-sex romantic relationships

Gender histories- the histories of how cultural conventions of men and women are created, maintained and/or altered

Gender identity- the identification with the cultural notions of masculinity and femininity and what it means to me a man or woman

Gestures- nonverbal communication involving hand and arm movements

Globalization- the increasing tendency toward international connections in the media, business, and culture

Global nomads- people who grow up in many different cultural contexts because their parents relocated

Grand narrative- a unified history and view of humankind

HBCUs- historically black colleges and universities

Health care professionals- physicians, nurses and all the other medical staff with whom patients in the health care system come into contact

Heterogeneity- consisting of different or dissimilar elements

Hidden histories- the histories that are hidden from or forgotten by the mainstream representation of past events

High-context communication- a style of communication in which much of the information is contained in the contexts and nonverbal cues rather than expressed explicitly in words

HIV- human immunodeficiency virus

Home- the immediate cultural context for our upbringing; where we have lived

Homo narrans- a term used to describe the story-telling tendencies of human beings

Host- residents of a tourist region

Hyphenated Americans- Americans who identify not only with be understood differently depending on the perspectives that people take (for example, social psychological, communication, or critical perspectives)

Illustrators- gestures that go along with and refer to speech

Immigration- movement to a new country, region, or environment to settle more or less permanently

Improvised performance- a way of thinking about intercultural interaction in which two people are making up a performance as they go along

Incompatibility- a state of incongruity in goals, values, or expectations between two or more individuals

Indirect approach- emphasizes that conflict should be avoided

Individualism- the tendency to emphasize individual identities, beliefs, needs, goals and views rather than those of the group

Intellectual histories- written histories which focus on the development of ideas

Intercultural communication- the interaction between people from different cultural backgrounds

Intercultural conflict- the perceived or real incompatibility of goals, values or expectations between two parties from different cultures

Intercultural dating- the pursuit of a romantic intercultural relationship

Intercultural relationships- relationships that are formed between individuals from different cultures

Interdependent- a state of mutual influence; the action or behavior of one individual affecting the other person in the relationship

Interlanguage- the form of language that emerges when a nonnative speaker overlaps his or her native grammar or structure onto another language

Intermediary- in a formal setting, a professional third party, such as a lawyer, real estate agent, or counselor, who intervenes when two parties are in conflict; Informal intermediaries may be friends or colleagues who intervene

International conflict- conflict that occurs on the international level, often between nations

International students- students attending high school or college in another country

Interpersonal allies- people, often friends, who work for better interpersonal and intergroup relations

Interpersonal conflict- conflict that occurs between individuals, rather than groups or nations

Interpretation- the process of verbally expressing what is said or written in another language

Intimacy- the extent of emotional closeness

Labels- terms used to refer to people’s identities

Language- a means of communication using shared symbols

Language acquisition- the process of learning language

Language policies- laws or customs that determine which language will be spoken when and where

Learning styles- the different ways student learn in different cultures

Low-context communication- a style of communication in which much of the information in conveyed in words rather than in nonverbal cues and contexts

Macrocontexts- the political, social, and historical situations, backgrounds, and environments that influence communication

Majority identity development- the development of a sense of belonging to a dominant group

Maquiladoras- assembly plants or factories (mainly of US companies) established on the US-Mexico border and using mainly Mexican labor

Masculinity/femininity value- a cultural variability dimension that concerns the degree of being feminine—valuing fluid gender roles, quality of life, service, relationships, and interdependence—and the degree of being masculine—emphasizing distinctive gender roles, ambition, materialism, and interdependence

Media imperialism- domination or control through media

Mediation- the act of resolving conflict by having someone intervene between two parties

Medical jargon- medical terminology, especially that which is confusing or difficult for the layperson to understand

Medical terminology- a set of scientific words and phrases used by doctors to precisely describe illness

Melting pot- a metaphor that assumes that immigrants and cultural minorities will be assimilated into the US majority culture, losing their original cultures

Migrating- when an individual leaves the primary cultural context in which he or she was raised and moves to a new cultural context for an extended period of time

Minority identity development- the development of a sense of belonging to a non-dominant group

Mobility- the state of moving from place to place

Monochronic- an orientation to time that assumes it is linear and is a commodity that can be lost or gained

Multicultural identity- a sense of in-betweenness that develops as a result of frequent or multiple cultural border crossings

Multilingual- the ability to speak more than two languages fluently or at least competently

Multinational- companies that have operations in two or more nations

Multiracial and multicultural people- people whose heritage draws from more than one racial or cultural group

National history- a body of knowledge based on past events that influenced a country’s development

National identity- national citizenship

Neighborhood- living area defined by its cultural identity, especially an ethnic or racial one

Noncontact cultures- cultural groups in which people tend to maintain more space and touch less often than people do in contract cultures. Great Britain and Japan tend to have noncontract cultures

Nonverbal codes- systems for understanding the meanings of nonverbal behavior, including personal space, eye contact, facial expressions, gestures, time orientation and silence

Nonverbal communication- communication through means other than language—for example, facial expressions and clothing

Obliteration style- style of interaction for an intercultural couple in which both partners attempt to erase their individual cultures in dealing with cultural differences (compare with compromise style, consensus style and submission style)

Pacifism- opposition to the use of force under any circumstances

Perception- the process by which we select, organize, and interpret external and internal stimuli to create our view of the world

Personal identity- a person’s notions of self

Personal space- the immediate area around a person, invasion of which may provoke discomfort or offense

Phonology- the study of speech sounds

Physical ability identity- knowledge of self based on characteristics related to the body, either more permanent or temporary—for example, sight, hearing and weight

Physical attraction- sexual desire based on the appearance of another

Political conflict- conflict that happens at the societal level over political issues

Polychronic- an orientation to time that sees it as circular and more holistic

Popular culture- forms of contemporary culture that are made popular by and for the people through their mass consumption of these products; those systems or artifacts that most people share and that most people know about, including television, music, videos, and popular magazines

Postcolonialism- an intellectual, political and cultural movement that calls for the independence of once colonized states and also liberation from colonialist ways of thinking

Power- a state of differential levels of societal and structural privilege

Power distance- a cultural variability dimension that concerns the extent to which people accept an unequal distribution of power

Pragmatics- the study of how meaning is constructed in relation to receivers and how language is actually used in particular contexts in language communities

Prejudice- an attitude (usually negative) toward a cultural group based on little or no evidence

Prejudicial ideologies- sets of ideas that rely on stereotypes

Racial and ethnic identity- identifying with a particular racial or ethnic group; although in the past racial groups were classified on the basis of biological characteristics, most scientist now recognize that race is constructed in fluid social and historical contexts

Racial histories- the histories of nonmainstream racial groups

Reader profiles- portrayals of readership demographics prepared by magazines

Regionalism- loyalty to a particular region that holds significant cultural meaning for that person

Regulators- gestures used to guide the flow of conversation, especially for turn-taking

Relational messages- messages, both verbal and nonverbal, that express how we feel about others

Relativist position- the view that particular language we speak, especially the structure of language, shapes our perception of reality and cultural patterns (compared with nominalist position and qualified relativist position)

Religious conflicts- conflicts that arise from strongly held views and religious beliefs

Religious freedom- the ability to practice ones’ religion without fear; a concern among health care professionals who worry about engaging in religious issues

Religious histories- bodies of knowledge containing the items of faith and that faith’s prescriptions for action that have been important for a cultural group

Religious identity- a sense of belonging to a religious group

Resistance- avoiding intrusions; may take fairly passive forms or more assertive forms

Restraint style- conflict style where disagreements are best discussed in an emotionally calm manner

Retreatism- the avoidance of tourists by hosts

Revitalization- the economic benefits associated with tourism in certain areas

Romantic relationships- intimate relationships that comprise love, involvement, sharing openness, connectedness, and so on

Self-awareness- related to intercultural communication competence; the quality of knowing how you are perceived as a communicator, as well as your strengths and weaknesses

Self-reflexivity- a process of learning to understand ourselves and our own position in society

Semantics- the study of words and meanings

Sexual orientation histories- the historical experiences of gays and lesbians
Silence- the absence of verbal messages

Similarity principle- a principle of relational attraction suggesting that we tend to be attracted to people whom we perceive to be similar to ourselves

Social conflict- conflict that arises from unequal or unjust social relationships between groups

Social histories- written histories that focus on everyday life experiences of various groups in the past

Social movements- organized activities in which individuals work together to bring about social change

Social positions- the places from which we speak that are socially constructed and thus embedded with assumptions about gender, race, class, ages, social roles, sexuality, and so on

Social roles- roles we enact that are learned in culture—for example, mother, big brother, and community leader

Socially responsible tourism- tourism that emphasizes positive economic, social, cultural, and environmental impacts from the tourism industry

Socioeconomic class histories- bodies of knowledge relating to a group’s relationship to social class and economic forces

Source text- the original language text of translation

Staged authenticity- when local people alter their cultural performances to meet tourist expectations, the resulting representation of the local culture is not authentic

Status- the relative position an individual holds in a social or organizational setting

Stereotypes- widely held beliefs about a group of people

Stereotyping- the use of stereotypes

Strict paternalism- a physician’s provision of misinformation for the supposed benefit of the patient

Study-abroad programs- university-sponsored programs that five course credit for study in other countries

Submission style- a style of interaction for an intercultural couple in which one partner yields to the other partner’s cultural patterns, abandoning or denying his or her own culture (compare with compromise style, consensus style, and obliteration style)

Syntactics- the study of the structure, or grammar, of a language

Target text- the new language text into which the original language text is translated

Teaching styles- the different ways teachers teach in different cultures

Third culture style- a new communication style that results from two people trying to adapt to each other’s styles

Tourists- visitors to another country or region

Translation- the process of producing a written text that refers to something said or written in another language

Traveling- the changing of cultural spaces through locomotion

Tuskegee Syphilis Project- a government-sponsored study of syphilis in which treatment of the disease was withheld from African American males for the purpose of establishing an experimental control group

U-curve theory- a theory of cultural adaptation positing that migrants go through fairly predictable phases (excitement/anticipation, shock/disorientation, and adaptation) in adapting to a new cultural situation

Uncertainty avoidance- a cultural variability dimension that concerns the extent to which uncertainty, ambiguity and deviant ideas and behaviors are avoided

Universalist position- an ethical approach that emphasizes the similarity of beliefs across cultures—for example, killing within the group or treason

Unmitigated honesty- a physician’s communication of the entirety of a medical diagnosis to a patient

Values- a system for viewing certain ideas as more important than others

Verlan- a French form of argot in which the syllables in words or the words are often reversed

Whiteness- the associations having to do with the identities of White people

Worldview- underlying assumptions about the nature of reality and human behavior