Understanding Intercultural
Communication Second Edition
Chapter 9
How Can We Manage Intercultural Conflict
Flexibly?
Stella Ting-Toomey & Leeva C. Chung
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
PowerPoint Slides Designed by Alex Flecky and Noorie Baig
TODAY’S MENU
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
IV. Intercultural Reality Check: Do-Ables
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
Intercultural conflict:
The implicit or explicit emotional struggle or
frustration between persons of different
cultures over perceived incompatible values,
norms, face orientations, goals, scarce resources,
processes, and/or outcomes in a communication
situation.
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
A. Culture-Based Conflict Lenses
Independent-self conflict
lens
Interdependent-self
conflict lens
Content conflict goal lens
Relational process lens
Win-lose conflict approach
Win-win relational approach
“Doing” angle
“Being” angle
Outcome-driven mode
Long-term compromising
negotiation mode
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
B. Intercultural Workplace Conflict Grid
• Uses two value dimensions (individualismcollectivism and power distance) to form
grid with four approaches.
•
Complete my.blog 9.1 on page 183 to find
out your conflict lens… then think of the
pros & cons of each conflict style.
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
B. Intercultural Workplace Conflict Grid
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
View this video on intercultural conflict in
the workplace.
Discussion Questions:
• Compare and contrast the different verbal styles of
the people in this video.
• Use the workplace conflict grid to assess the different
conflict styles.
• What would be your specific intercultural teaching or
coaching strategies?
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
C. Intercultural Conflict Perceptions: Three
primary perception features of
intercultural conflict:
1. Conflict involves intercultural perceptions,
filtered through lenses of ethnocentrism and
stereotypes.
2. Ethnocentric perceptions add biases and
prejudice to conflict attribution process.
3. Attribution process further compounded by
different culture-based verbal and nonverbal
conflict styles.
I. Intercultural Conflict: Cultural
Background Factors
D. Intercultural Conflict Goal Issues
1. Content goals
2. Relational conflict goals
3. Identity-based goals
E. Perceived Scarce Resources
1. Conflict resources
2. Tangible resources
3. Intangible resources
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
A. Defining Conflict Styles:
Three approaches to studying conflict styles:
• Dispositional approach
• Situational approach
• Systems approach
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
Five-style conflict grid
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
Activity:
Draw an animal that depicts your
prototypical conflict style
Now assess your specific conflict style –
complete my.blog 9.3 on page 193
Discuss your style with a partner.
• Think of the pros & cons of each conflict style
•
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
B. Cross-Cultural Conflict Styles
• Face: Socially approved self-image and
other-image consideration issues.
•
Facework: Verbal and nonverbal
strategies used to maintain, defend, or
upgrade our social self-image and attack
or defend (“save”) social images of others.
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
B. Cross-Cultural Conflict Styles
Face-negotiation theory helps explain
how individualism-collectivism value
patterns influence use of diverse
conflict styles in different situations.
C. Cross-Ethnic Conflict Styles and
Facework
Can you guess the different kinds of conflict styles
used by African Americans, Asian Americans,
European Americans, Latino/a Americans, and
Native Americans on a general patterned level?
II. Intercultural Conflict Process Factors
•
Media Activity: Spanglish film clip
Discussion Questions:
What did you notice about the conflict scene
between John and Flor?
• Can you identify all the verbal and nonverbal clashes?
• What conflict goals were involved in the incident?
Cite some specific examples.
•
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
A. Facework Management
• Self-oriented face-saving behaviors:
Attempts to regain or defend one’s image
after threats to face or face loss.
• Other-oriented face-giving behaviors:
Attempts to support others’ face claims and
work with them to prevent further face loss
or help them restore face constructively.
Giving face means not humiliating others in
public.
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
B. Mindful Listening
•
•
A face-validation and power-sharing skill;
listening with focused attentiveness to
cultural and personal assumptions
expressed.
Involves learning to listen responsively, or
ting (Chinese: “attending mindfully with our
ears, eyes, and a focused heart”).
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
B. Mindful Listening
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
Mindless Listening
Ethnocentric lens
Reactive approach
Selective hearing
Defensive posture
“Struggle against”
Judgmental attitude
Emotional outbursts
Coercive power
Positional differences
Fixed objectives
Win-lose/lose-lose outcome
Mindful Listening
Ethnorelative lens
Proactive/choice approach
Attentive listening
Supportive posture
“Struggle with”
Mindful reframing
Vulnerability shared
Shared power
Common interests
Creative options
Win-win synergy
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
C. Cultural Empathy
Perspective-take accurately the self-experiences
of others and convey your understanding
responsively.
D. Mindful Reframing
How you “frame” conflict via neutrally-toned
language may soften conflict defensiveness.
E. Adaptive Code-Switching
Purposefully modifying one’s verbal and
nonverbal behaviors in conflict interaction.
III. Flexible Intercultural Conflict Skills
Reframing Skills Activity



How did these conflicts go? How helpful do you
think the reframing statements were to the
conflict? Did any partners end up with win–win
solutions?
Coaches: how did it feel to try to reframe “in the
moment?“
Conflict parties: Do you believe you reacted
differently to your partner’s reframed statement
rather than how you would have reacted to the
original statement? How?
IV. Intercultural Reality Check: Do-Ables
To deal with conflict in a collectivistic culture,
individualists need to do the following:
1. Be mindful of mutual face-saving premises,
especially delicate balance of humiliation and pride,
respect and disrespect, and shame and honor
issues.
2. Practice patient, mindful observation and limit
“why?” questions.
3. Practice mindful listening skills, attend to other’s
identity and relational expectation issues.
Remember listen can become silent and vice versa
by rearranging the letters.
IV. Intercultural Reality Check: Do-Ables
In conflict situations in an individualistic
culture, collectivists need to do the
following:
1. Use assertive conflict behavior and state a clear
thesis, then systematically develop key points.
2. Use “I” statements and more “why?” questions.
3. Engage in active listening skills (rephrasing and
perception checking); do not rely solely on
nonverbal signals or count on other people to
gauge personal reactions.
Parting Thoughts…
Conflict = Chaos = Danger + Opportunity
Learn to listen to the identity stories, yearnings,
and nuances behind the fighting words.
~ Stella Ting-Toomey