Deck 5: A: Nonverbal Communication

Question 1

Describe and illustrate social identity theory using yourself as an example. How do the groups you identify with affect the way you perceive yourself and others? Can you identify ways in which your perception and behavior may change depending on which group you are with at a given moment?

Answer 1

The examples used will vary but should illustrate the following concepts: •We define ourselves, in part, according to our group memberships. •We identify ourselves according to both our ingroups and outgroups. •Our social identity may change in different contexts based on which group membership is salient. •We may engage in social comparison-comparing our group to the groups of others to see how we measure up.

Question 2

Citing specific examples to support your answer, explain why it is important to develop intercultural communication skills.

Answer 2

Ideal answers should reflect that there are personal, academic, and professional benefits to being a competent intercultural communicator. The examples provided will vary.

Question 3

Based on what you learned throughout this chapter, why do you think intercultural communication competence is considered more important today than it was a generation or two ago?

Answer 3

Answers will vary but should include a few of the following observations: •Most people are more mobile today than they were in the past, and so we encounter more diverse groups of people than we used to. •Mediated communication has brought a diverse world right into our homes. •Most colleges today have not only large numbers of international students but also great diversity in student organizations. •Our culture has changed over the last few generations to embrace diversity rather than to emphasize assimilation. •Most companies, and especially multinational corporations, employ a diverse group of people. •As our culture has become more diverse, many of us have sought to identify ourselves more closely with co-cultural groups.

Question 4

Explain what we mean when we say that culture is both learned through communication and expressed through our own communication. Provide an example of something the media have taught you about your culture, and describe one way in which you express that cultural attribute.

Question 5

Your friend Jasmine has signed up to study abroad in Japan. Based on what you've learned about high- and low-context cultures, individualist and collectivist orientation, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, time orientation, and masculine and feminine cultures, what information would you share to prepare her for the cultural differences she should expect?

Question 6

Reflecting on your own experiences, explain and illustrate how interacting with others from different ethnic, racial, religious, or cultural backgrounds has helped you to understand your own culture more clearly and be a more competent intercultural communicator.

Question 7

Scenario: When Monica arrived in Nepal for her Peace Corps assignment, she realized she had forgotten the medication she takes for her painful migraine headaches. Luckily, she was able to get a new prescription sent to a local pharmacy. Unfortunately, when she went to pick up the medication on a weekday afternoon, the pharmacy was closed and no hours were posted on the window. Frustrated, she went to a café next door complaining, "They don't know anything about customer service-he doesn't even keep regular business hours!" A short time later, the pharmacist greeted her with the filled prescription-the server at the café had phoned him at home and he rushed over to get her the medication.
Question: How does what you learned about individualist/collectivist cultures and time orientation inform your understanding of this scenario? Was ethnocentrism or discrimination a factor? What does intergroup contact theory suggest might be the outcome, for Monica, of this intercultural exchange?

Question 8

Synthesizing what you know about perception, what connections would you draw between concepts like ethnocentrism, discrimination, cultural myopia, stereotyping, prejudice, selective perception, fundamental attribution error, behavioral affirmation, behavioral confirmation, and self-fulfilling prophecies?

Question 9

Pulling together what you learned in Chapters 1, 2, and 5, what advice would you give to someone who wants to improve his or her intercultural communication competence?
Answer Key