99200 Intercultural Communication
Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a
particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source
of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.
Subject handbook information prior to 2023 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Subject level:
Undergraduate
Result type: Grade and marksAnti-requisite(s): 99218 Intercultural Communication
Description
This subject provides an introduction to the core concepts and debates in the interdisciplinary field of intercultural communication. It is designed to help prepare students for the interpersonal and dynamic nature of working in increasingly globalised workplaces and intercultural environments. Using a problem-based approach, students learn to critically examine numerous frameworks and theories to interpret intercultural encounters in praxis-based scenarios. The applicability of specific strategies and approaches in intercultural communication are also examined for their relevance to industry, communities and in society more broadly.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
a. | Critically engage with intercultural communication theories and frameworks and apply these theories to analyse diverse cultural situations |
---|---|
b. | Analyse intercultural communication practices in the Australian and international contexts |
c. | Reflect on own perceptions of intercultural encounters and intercultural skills development for professional contexts |
d. | Design and conduct independent, ethical, small scale research in and about aspects of Australian culture and society |
e. | Communicate effectively and appropriately in written and oral academic English |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject engages with the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs), which are tailored to the Graduate Attributes set for all graduates of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (INT = International Studies CILOs):
- Understand and employ effective strategies to operate within professional and everyday settings across diverse cultures in Australia and/or internationally. (INT.1.1)
- Evaluate critically theoretical and specialised knowledge of contemporary societies, cultures and workplaces. (INT.2.1)
- Understand and engage with cultural diversities in Australia and/or internationally. (INT.3.1)
- Apply knowledge of Indigenous peoples, cultures, languages and histories to practice in Australia and internationally. (INT.4.1)
- Communicate clearly and effectively in written and spoken language using diverse digital technologies. (INT.6.1)
Contribution to the development of graduate attributes
As this is an open elective and not part of a specific degree program, the subject engages with the following Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Graduate Attributes:
1. Professional Readiness
2. Critical and Creative Inquiry
3. International and Intercultural Engagement
5. Active Citizenship
6. Effective Communication
Teaching and learning strategies
Face-to-face classes will incorporate a range of teaching and learning strategies including presentations, videos, online material, reflective surveys, discussion of readings/case studies and student groupwork. These will be complemented by excursions, independent student research and reading and participation in online discussion forums.
Formative feedback on students’ understanding of IC theories will be provided in the form of a UTSOnline quiz in week 4. Feedback on assessment tasks will be provided via GradeMark and the Grade Centre on Canvas.
Content (topics)
The subject starts by giving students an overview of intercultural communication theories and how they are used to categorise and describe cultures. Critically reflecting on these theories, students will explore the notions of culture and identity in particular focussing on and how these notions are shaped by communication and represented in our globalised world.
Building on this foundation, students explore the complexities of cultural competence, including how cultural awareness is built. This is developed through critical reflection of case studies and students’ own intercultural encounters and experiences.
Students will have opportunities to explore different facets of intercultural life in Sydney according to their particular area of professional interest and to apply the theoretical knowledge they have built to develop nuanced intercultural understandings.
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Interculturality in the Hood
Objective(s): | a, b, c and d | ||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Weight: | 50% | ||||||||||||||||||||
Length: | 6 minutes video presentation 800 words written reflection | ||||||||||||||||||||
Criteria linkages: |
SLOs: subject learning objectives CILOs: course intended learning outcomes |
Assessment task 2: Reflection on Intercultural Experiences
Objective(s): | a, c and e | ||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Weight: | 50% | ||||||||||||||||
Length: | 1500 words | ||||||||||||||||
Criteria linkages: |
SLOs: subject learning objectives CILOs: course intended learning outcomes |
Minimum requirements
No minimum requirements.
Required texts
Required texts are posted in the weekly activities on Canvas. Please check and prepare readings every week.
Recommended texts
Alberts, J.K., Nakayama, T.K. & Martin J.N. 2012, Human Communication in Society, 3rd ed., Pearson, Upper Saddle River.
Anderson, B.R.O. 1991, Imagined communities: reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism, Verso, London.
Appadurai, A. 1990, ‘Disjuncture and difference in the global cultural economy’, in M. Featherstone (ed.) Global Culture: Nationalism, Globalization and Modernity, Sage, London, pp. 295–310.
Bonvillain, N. 2011, Language, Culture and Communication, 6th edn, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River.
Crossman, J, Bordia, S, Mills, C. 2011, Business Communication: for the Global Age, McGraw-Hill, North Ryde.
Deardorff, D. (ed.) 2009, The SAGE Handbook of Intercultural Competence, Sage, Thousand Oaks.
Goodall, H.L. Jr., Goodall, S. and Schiefelbein, J. 2009, Business and Professional Communication in the Global Workplace, Wadsworth.
Gudykunst, W.B. and Kim, Y.Y. 2003, Communicating with Strangers, 4th edn, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Guilherme, M. et al. (eds) 2010, The Intercultural Dynamics of Multicultural Working, Multilingual Matters, Bristol.
Hall, E.T. 1976, Beyond Culture, Doubleday, New York.
Holliday, A. Hyde, M. & Kullman, J. 2012, Intercultural Communication: An Advanced Resource Book for Students. Routledge. Abingdon.
Holliday, A. 2016, Difference and awareness in cultural travel: negotiating blocks and threads. Language and Intercultural Communication, vol.16, no.3., pp. 318-331.
Holliday, A. 2016, Cultural travel and cultural prejudice, in Aquino, M. B. & Frota, S. (Eds.), Identities: representation and practices, Lisbon: CELGA-ILTEC, University of Coimbra, pp.25-44.
Jackson J. (ed.) 2012, Routledge Handbook of Language and Intercultural Communication, Routledge, Abingdon.
Jackson, J. (2020). Introducing Language and Intercultural Communication (2nd ed.). Routledge.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351059275
Kim, Y., Sohn, D. & Choi, S.M. 2011, 'Cultural difference in motivations for using social network sites: A comparative study of American and Korean college students' Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 27, Issue 1, January, pp. 365-372.
Kim, Y.Y. 2001, Becoming intercultural: An integrative theory of communication and cross-cultural adaptation, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Liddicoat, A. J. 2015, Interculturality. The International Encyclopedia of Language and Social Interaction: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Nakayama, T.K. & Halualani, R.T. (eds) 2010, The Handbook of Critical Intercultural Communication, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford.
Piller, I. 2011, Intercultural Communication: A Critical Introduction, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh.
Pusch, M. D. 2009, 'The Interculturally Competent Global Leader' in D. K. Deardorff (ed), The SAGE Handbook of Intercultural Competence pp. 66 - 84. Sage, Los Angeles / London.
Sawyer, R. & Chen, G.M. 2012, 'The Impact of Social Media on Intercultural Adaptation' Intercultural Communication Studies, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 151-169.
Ting-Toomey, S. 1999, Communicating Across Cultures, The Guilford Press, New York/London.
Sorrells, K. 2013, Intercultural Communication: Globalization and Social Justice, Sage, Thousand Oaks.
Ting-Toomey, S. and Chung, L.C. 2012, Understanding Intercultural Communication, 2nd edn, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
UNESCO. 2013, Intercultural Competences: Conceptual and Operational Framework. UNESCO, Paris.
Ward, C.A., Bochner, S. and Furnham, A. 2001, The Psychology of Culture Shock, Routledge, London.
West, R. and Turner, L.H. 2011, Understanding Interpersonal Communication: Making Choices in Changing Times, Wadsworth, Boston.