Global Understanding
Key Concepts of Culture and
Communication
Contents
Theme I:
– Culture and Ethnography
Theme II:
– Ethnographic Inquiry and Communication
Tips
Theme III:
– Sharing Culture
Assignment – Journal 1
Theme I: Culture and
Ethnography
Key Terms
Key Points
Our goal in this
course is to
understand others by
exploring both what
makes us alike and
what makes us
different.
We should approach
this class as though
we were doing
‘ethnography’. We are
all both cultural
informants and
ethnographers.
Key Terms
Ethnography
Cultural Informants
Anthropology
Culture
Enculturation
Naïve Realism
Cultural Relativism
Ethnocentrism
Key Terms and Meanings
Ethnography:
– (N) A written account
of culture
– (V) The process of
learning about culture
that involves
generalizing
meanings systems by
observing what people
do, what people say
and the artifacts
people use.
Cultural Informants:
– Cultural experts whom
help us learn about
their respective
cultures
Anthropology:
– The study of
humankind
Key Terms and Meanings
Culture:
– Acquired knowledge that
people use to interpret,
experience and generate
social behavior
– A complex meaning system
developed through
interaction with the
environment and other
people that is used to direct
behavior, understand
ourselves and others and
to make sense of the world
Enculturation:
– The process through which
we learn culture by
extrapolating meaning
through observing what
people do, what people say
and the artifacts people
use.
Naïve Realism:
– The fundamental belief that
all people share the same
meaning
system/understanding of
how the world works.
Key Terms and Meanings
Cultural Relativism:
– Viewing beliefs,
practices, etc. in the
context of the culture
in which they are
found.
Ethnocentrism:
– Judging other cultures
based on your own
cultural values.
Theme II:
Ethnographic Inquiry and
Communication Tips
Ethnography and Communication
Ethnography and this course, Global
Understanding, are both about learning about
other cultures from the people who live in those
cultures.
Interviewing our partners/informants is the best
way to achieve this. Such interaction is also a
process of communication.
The success of your communication is
dependent on 1) the rapport your develop with
your partner and 2) how you ask questions.
1. Building Rapport
In this course, due to time limit, we need to build
rapport quickly.
The rapport between you and your partner start
with mutual understanding from general topics to
more sensitive ones.
Through the process of interaction, you learn to
trust and respect your partners.
Trust and respect are essential elements of
building rapport.
You achieve this by sharing information about
yourself that relates to what your informant is
talking about.
Remember!
It’s not what you ask but ‘how’ you ask it!
You are here to learn, not to ‘judge’!
You should get a meaningful response to
any question on any topic as long as it is
asked in a respectful manner.
2. Asking Questions
How you ask a question will greatly affect
the response you get.
Some types of questions elicit single word
responses, some elicit lists.
You should think about the types of
response you are looking for and
formulate the question accordingly.
Watch your tone, too. Try to ‘chat’, not to
‘interrogate’. You are your partner’s equal
and friend, not a police officer!
Examples
Do you…? - Typically, one word responses
– Do you celebrate Halloween?
What are/do…? Typically, lists
– What holidays do you celebrate?
How do/did…? Typically, processes or
descriptions of things.
– How do you celebrate Halloween?
Why do/did…? Typically, more speculative and
reflective, impli8citly asking about meaning.
– Why do you celebrate Halloween?
Remember!
Using a descriptive question followed by
additional questions asking the informant
to:
– Elaborate on
– or Clarify
an aspect of what they said is a very effective
way to learn about another culture.
3. Probing
The key to interaction in this course is to
encourage your partner to talk.
Probing is an effective way to encourage
your informants to elaborate and/or
continue talking after you’ve asked your
initial question.
By probing you show your partner that you
are interested in what they have to say.
Examples
Uh-huh
– As your partner is talking
occasionally give a nod or
some vocalization, such as
uh-huh, that doesn’t
interrupt the flow of your
partner talking and lets
them know you want them
to continue.
Echo
– Repeat something that
your partner says and ask
them a follow-question
about that.
Tell me more…
– Based on what your
partner has said, ask them
to tell you more about the
subject.
Summarize and confirm
– You summarize or
paraphrase what your
partner has said and check
if you understand them
correctly.
4. Returning and Sharing
In this class, you are both ethnographers
and informants. You learn as well as
teach.
When being the culture informant to your
partners, you should also help them
understand you and your culture.
You should try to explain things in detail
and elaborate.
Remember!
Communication is ‘not’ a one-way process.
Communication should be mutual and
bilateral!
You take as well as give.
Topics for Practice
College Life
Family
Culture Traditions
Meaning Life/Religion
Stereotypes and Prejudices
Theme III:
Sharing Culture
Key Questions
How much do you know about your culture?
Do you take your native culture for granted?.
Can you define key elements of your own
culture and think about the meaning behind
it?
Have you thought about how to approach
sharing your culture to your international
partners?
Remember!
To share your culture in cross-cultural
communication, you must first know your
culture!
Concern about your culture and try to
articulate it from now on!
Key Points for Sharing Culture
The Difficulty in Sharing Culture
The Way of Sharing Culture
Ideal VS. Real
Generalized VS. Personalized
The Difficulty in Sharing Culture
Because of the process of enculturation, we tend
to take our own culture for granted.
Everything we do just seems natural and right
because that is what we are raised to believe, so
we tend not to question it.
We only tend to question and critically think
about our own culture when faced with another
that is different.
This makes it very difficult for us to share our
culture with others because we ten not to have
thought much about it in any significant way.
The Way of Sharing Culture
When asked, “why do you do X”, of the first thing
that comes to mind is “Because it is a part of my
culture.”
This, however, really doesn’t explain anything.
Culture is a meaning system that directs belief
and behavior.
We must think deeper about the issue and ask
ourselves?
– Why is that a part of my culture?
– What is the meaning behind it?
If you are not sure about it, try to think further,
consult seniors or research in the subject.
Ideal VS. Real
When we do think of our own culture we
generally think of the “ideal” of our own culture.
That is, we think of the values we were taught as
children and that we would like to pass on to our
own children.
However, of the ‘ideal’ is not the same as what
culture is.
When sharing culture, you need to think what
you want to share:
– The real or the ideal or a mixture of both?
– Regardless of what you choose to say, you must
recognize this difference.
Generalized VS. Personalized
Not everyone within a given culture shares the
same exact experiences.
When discussing “culture” we usually speak in
generalities, which mean what the majority in a
particular culture believe/do.
However, this may not be true of any one
individual’s own personal experience.
When sharing culture, you need to think what
you want to share:
– The generalities or your own experiences
– Or placing your experience in context of the general
culture (this choice is of course better!)
Assignment
Journal 1
There should be two sections of your Journal 1:
A) Short Essay B) A Cultural List
Write a 500-word essay on one the following
topics with a title, thesis statements and
organized paragraphs :
– What does it mean to be:
a Taiwanese?
a Chinese?
a citizen of ROC?
people of (your hometown)?
student of Fu-Jen University?
follower of (your religion)?
Give a list of things you associate with ‘Taiwan’
or ‘Living in Taiwan’
Cultural List
Make a list of the words or phrases you
associate with ‘Taiwanese’.
Make a list of the words or phrases you
associate with ‘Chinese’.
-End-