57025 Cross-cultural and International Communication

UTS: Communication: Communication and Learning
Credit points: 8 cp
Result Type: Grade, no marks

Handbook description

This subject focuses on media representations of similarities and differences, ethnocentrism in communication and methods for achieving cross-cultural communication. It introduces critical themes and vocabularies in intercultural communication and explores the links between communication and culture creation. It analyses the sociopolitical circumstances and individual attribution processes that lead to stereotyping and, in this context, assesses the role of verbal and non-verbal communication. Students develop strategies for dealing with cross-cultural issues, for working in multicultural teams and organisations, and for designing communication for and with multicultural publics and audiences. Globalisation and localisation strategies and effects are studied with a particular focus on communicating in and with Asia, and other key sociopolitical geographic arenas.

This subject is designed to enable students to deal with the impact of the increasing internationalisation of communication management, public relations and advertising. It challenges the use of ethnocentric communication and assists students to develop effective strategies for achieving cross-cultural communication.

Subject objectives/outcomes

At the conclusion of this subject, students are expected to be able to:

demonstrate understanding of relevant theories of ethnicity, race, culture, and cross-cultural communication
explain the role of the media, especially of communication practitioners, in creating representations that lead to cultural stereotyping
develop strategies for working and managing in multicultural teams and organisations
demonstrate the capacity to design communication for and with multicultural publics in order to establish best practice
analyse case studies of communicating with specific socio-political geographic areas and explain how globalisation is affecting communication management.

Contribution to graduate profile

This subject provides students with:

a good understanding of the nature of communication and communication management through a broad range of theories and paradigms
a sensitivity to ethical and legal issues related to communication
a capacity to critically reflect on the role and responsibilities of communicators
an understanding of contexts of communication
an understanding of the cultural bases of communication and the capacity to relate to publics from cultures other than their own
the capacity to be international in perspective
a capacity to critically reflect on their learning and professional communication practice
the capacity to manage technical, political, moral and aesthetic communication issues
the ability to apply communication theories to the analysis of case studies and professional practice
an understanding of communication management in local and international contexts
the capacity for lifelong learning.

Teaching and learning strategies

The subject is presented as a series of lectures, workshops and seminars. It includes guest lecturers, where appropriate. In this subject students take part in workshops where experiential learning is encouraged through small group work.

Content

This subject will cover three main areas of study:

Theories of ethnicity, race, culture, and cross-cultural communication.
Cross-cultural communication as representation, including racism and the legislation of policies regarding national definitions of culture and ethnicity in Australia, Asia and other geopolitical regions.
The internationalisation of communication management.

Assessment

Assessment item 1: Critical review

Objective(s):	a, b
Weighting:	40%
Length:	1500 words
Task:	Written review of an artefact of popular culture.
Assessment criteria:	Relevance of the piece to the topic demonstrated Degree, quality and appropriateness of referencing to previous literature Analysis and critique of the piece in relation to known literature or other sources Commentary professional and well informed Application of theory Degree of creativity, innovative thought, recommendations and insight into the topic Written expression – grammatically and syntactically correct, readable language; spelling – free of ALL errors, professional written standard; typed/word-processed, 1.5 spacing, numbered pages; cover sheet attached; scholarly referencing – Harvard standard.

Assessment item 2: Research Report

Objective(s):	c, d, e
Weighting:	Total: 60% Group report: 30% Individual reflection: 10% Presentation of findings: 20%
Length:	3000 words + appendices * Note: if teams are more than two people the word limit is an extra 1,500 words per team member. Eg, Team of 3 submits 4,500 words + appendices.
Task:	Complete in teams of two.
Assessment criteria:	Approach to the group ethical and professional Information reported relevant to the topic area - degree of referencing to previous literature Analysis and critique of communication approaches in relation to the literature Communication suggestions strategic, relevant and well informed Written expression – grammatically and syntactically correct; spelling – free of ALL errors, professional written standard; typed/word-processed, 1.5 spacing, numbered pages; cover sheet attached; scholarly referencing – Harvard. For individual reflection on the task 10%: Depth of reflection on learning in terms of personal discovery; demonstrated ability to analyse activities and issues discovered in the task and translate them to a learning outcome; understanding and insight displayed to a cross cultural communication situation. For presentation 20%: degree of creativity in presentation; ability to summarise key points and present conclusions; degree of audience engagement; ability to observe time limit in organising the material to be presented; demonstrated extent of involvement of all team members

Minimum requirements

Students are expected to read the subject outline to ensure they are familiar with the subject requirements. Since class discussion and participation in activities form an integral part of this subject, you are expected to attend, arrive punctually and actively participate in classes. If you experience difficulties meeting this requirement, please contact your lecturer. Students who have a reason for extended absence (e.g., illness) may be required to complete additional work to ensure they achieve the subject objectives.

Attendance is particularly important in this subject because it is based on a collaborative approach which involves essential workshopping and interchange of ideas. Students who attend fewer than ten classes are advised that their final work will not be assessed and that they are likely to fail the subject.

Recommended text(s)

Jandt, F. 2007, An Introduction to Intercultural Communication: Identities in a global community. 5th Edition. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

Indicative references

Avruch, K. 1998, Culture & Conflict Resolution. United States Institute of Peace.

Axtell, R. E. 1998, The Do's and Taboos of Body Language Around the World. New York: Wiley and Sons.

Banks, Stephen P. 1995, Multicultural Public Relations: A social-interpretive approach. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Barnard, G. 1995, Cross-cultural communication: a practical guide. London: Cassell

Brick, Jean 1991 A Handbook in Intercultural Communication. NCELTR.

Cohen, R. 1997, Negotiating Across Cultures: International Communication in an Interdependent World. United States Institute of Peace.

Dallmayr, F. 1996, Beyond Orientalism: Essays on Cross-Cultural Encounters. Sate Univ of New York Press

Denzin, N.K. 2002, Reading Race. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Denzin, N.K. & Lincoln, Y.S. (Eds), Collecting and Interpreting Qualitative Materials (3rd ed), Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Dodd, Carley H. 1998, Dynamics of intercultural communication. Boston: McGraw-Hill, (5th ed.)

Earley, P. Christopher. 1997, The transplanted executive: why you need to understand how workers in other countries see the world differently. Imprint New York: Oxford University Press.

Gallois, C. 1997, Communication and culture: a guidebook for practice. New York: Wiley.

Gudykunst, W. B. 1992, Communicating with strangers: an approach to intercultural communication. (2nd ed.) New York: McGraw-Hill

Gudykunst, W. B. (Ed) 2005, Theorizing about Intercultural Communication. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage

Klyukanov, I.E. 2005. Principles of Intercultural Communication. Boston: Pearson Education.

Lane, P. 2002, A Beginner's Guide to Crossing Cultures: Making Friends in a Multicultural World. Intervarsity Press.

Hall, B. 2002, Among Cultures: The challenge of communication. Fort Worth: Harcourt.

Hall, E. T. 1989, Beyond Culture. New York: Anchor/ Doubleday.

Hampden-Turner, C.M. & Trompenaars, F. 2000, Building Cross-Cultural Competence: How to Create Wealth from Conflicting Values. Yale University Press.

Harris, P. R. & Moran R. (Eds) 2000, Managing Cultural Differences: Leadership Strategies for a New World of Business (5th ed) Gulf Professional Publishing Company.

Hartley, J. (Ed) 2005, Communication, Cultural and Media Studies - the Key Concepts (3rd ed). Oxon: Routledge Abingdon.

Herman, E. S. and McChesney, R. W. 1997, The Global Media. Cassell.

Hofstede, G. 1994, Cultures and organizations: software of the mind: intercultural cooperation and its importance for survival. London : Harper Collins Publishers.

Irwin, H. 1996, Communicating with Asia: understanding people and customs. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

Kirkham, S. R. 2003, 'The politics of belonging and intercultural health care', Western Journal of Nursing Research, 25(7):762-780.

Lustig, M. W. & Koester, J. 2000, Among Us: Essays on identity, belonging and intercultural competence. New York: Addison Wesley.

Lustig, M. W. & Koester, J. 1999 Intercultural Competence: Interpersonal communication across cultures. 3rd edition. New York: Addison Wesley.

Mattock, John. 2003. Cross-cultural communication: the essential guide to international business. London ; Sterling, VA: Kogan Page Limited.

Martin, Judith N. & Nakayama, T.K. 1997, Intercultural communication in contexts. Mountain View, Calif.: Mayfield Publishing.

Morrison, T., Conaway, W.A., Borden, G.A. & Koehler, H. 1995, Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands: How to Do Business in 60 Countries. Adams Media Corporation

Mowlana, Hamid 1996, Global Communication in Transition: The End of Diversity? Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Mueller, B. 1996,. International advertising: communicating across cultures. Belmont : Wadsworth Pub. Co.

Neuliep, J.W. 2006, Intercultural Communication - A contextual Approach (3rd ed), Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Nolan, R. W. 1999 Communicating and adapting across cultures: living and working in the global village. Westport, Conn.: Bergin & Garvey

O'Sullivan, Kerry 1994, Understanding Ways: Communicating Between Cultures. Hale and Iremonger.

Peterson, Brooks.2004. Cultural intelligence: a guide to working with people from other cultures.Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.

Prosser, M.H. & Sitaram, K.S. (eds) 1999, Civic discourse: intercultural, international, and global media. Stamford, Conn.: Ablex Publishing Corporation.

Ricks, D. R. 2000, Blunders in International Business. Blackwell Publishers

Samovar, Larry A. & Porter, Richard E. 2001, Communication between cultures (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publ. Co.

Samovar, L.A. & Porter, R.E. & McDaniel, E.R. (Eds) 2009, Intercultural communication: a reader. Belmont, CA : Wadsworth Pub. Co. (9th ed.)

Sardar, Z. 1998, Postmodernism and the Other: The new imperialism in Western culture. London: Pluto Press.

Singer, Marshall 1998, Perception and Identity in Intercultural Communication. Intercultural Press.

Sriramesh, Krishnamurthy. 2004. Public relations in Asia: an anthology. Singapore; Australia: Thomson.

Sriramesh, Krishnamurthy & Vercic, Dejan. 2003. The global public relations handbook: theory, research, and practice.Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Ting-Toomey, S. 1999 Communicating across cultures. New York: Guilford Press

Trompenaars, Fons 1998, Riding the waves of culture: understanding diversity in global business. (2nd ed), McGraw Hill.

van Ruler, Betteke & Vercic, Dejan. (Eds). 2004. Public relations and communication management in Europe: a nation-by-nation introduction to public relations theory and practice. New York: Mouton de Grouter.

Wiseman, Richard L. (Ed) 1995, Intercultural communication theory. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications.

Wiseman, Richard L. and Shuter, Robert (Eds) 1994, Communicating in Multinational Organisations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

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