Number 2/2013
WCA website
http://wcaweb.org
From the President: The Future of the WCA
In one of the most moving passages in Toni Morrison’s
novel, Song of Solomon, as her male characters talk
sermonically about dreams that they believe can be realized,
and as the characters “gun their memories” while discussing
the “good times and hard times, things that changed and
things that remained the same,” the men paused and looked
upon an evocative spot of ground that character Macon
Dead had cultivated. And the meaningful spot of ground
“colored their lives like a paint brush and spoke to them like
a sermon.” Macon Dead’s rich farm spoke compellingly to
the men as they gazed upon its new-fangled irrigation
systems and abundant peach orchards: “Here, this here is
what a man can do if he puts his mind to it and his back in
it.”
At the 2013 conference in Seoul, Korea, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the
beginnings of this beautiful and cherished organization, I used Morrison’s powerful narrative
to evoke memories of our “founding brothers,” six stalwart and resolute men who
demonstrated what can happen when individuals put their mind to a cause and their backs in
it. Our six, generous founders chose to benefit humanity rather than harm it. And we are
grateful to them for their keen devotion to humanity and for daring to speak into existence an
intercultural world where people can come together with a common agenda and purpose, to
in the words of our founding document, “promote peace and international/intercultural
understanding through face-to-face interactions among members.”
In my “Future of the Organization” speech, I also praised Professors Caroline Hatcher and
Patricia McCarthy for their unceasing work in helping us to recognize and remember our
founding fathers. As you know, they planned a splendid 30th year celebration in Seoul! Thank
you, Caroline and Patsy. Since 1983, our seven past presidents, working with secretariesgeneral, WCA board members and the membership at large, have done outstanding things to
elevate the stature and activities of the association, from introducing electronic registration
and diversifying the organization in 1999 under the leadership of President Judy C. Pearson
to adding graduate student mentoring as a core feature of the conference to being good
stewards of the generous gifts of the Park Family under the leadership of Presidents Barbara
Monfils and Caroline Hatcher.
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Our task today is to remain on the frontline of scholarship and creativity if we are to
have more IMPACT in and on the world. Together, we must symbolically and
substantively dramatize our vision of what the WCA is, and put it out there for the
entire world to see—and help us tell our story! The bright, shining future that I
envision for the WCA involves our adding more meaning to the world. It involves our
creating more associative value so that we will extend the legacy of our founders far in
the distance.
When I think of the Charter for Compassion, the name Karen Armstrong, author of
keen books on religion and culture, enters my mind; when I think of one man who
has done so much to lift people out of poverty, Muhammad Yunus comes to mind;
when I think of the United Nations Millennium Project, Jeffrey Sachs, economic
adviser to governments around the world, immediately comes to mind; when I think of
a man who believed that “justice should roll down like rivers and righteousness like a
mighty stream,” I think of Dr. Martin Luther, King, Jr; when I think of the concretized
and performed word unbuntu, I immediately think of the late honorable Nelson
Mandela, and finally, when I think of how goodness can be performed day in and day
out, I think of Mother Teresa. What is it that such esteemed individuals and
organizations share in common? And how do they relate to the future of the WCA?
The answer is that Armstrong, Yunus, King, Mandela, Mother Teresa and others
performed their missions. They brought and are bringing sharp attention to some
problem that is crying out, and that needs to be fixed. Like Macon Dead in Morrison’s
novel, Song of Solomon, they put their minds to meaningful projects and their backs
in them.
Clearly, the future of the WCA requires that we perform our mission more robustly.
Our six “founding brothers” and those who followed have given us seeds from a wellnourished soil. Although we have cultivated the soil beautifully, I am convinced that
we, too, must act more boldly and with a fierce sense of urgency if we are to alter
human events and leave indelible marks similar to the ones that our founders left. This
is our inheritance and we must honor it performatively!
My precious, big dream for the future of the lovely organization that I cherish so much,
is for us to create a significant, impactful project that is crafted from an animating
cause, one that calls us demandingly. Rebecca Solnit, in the Faraway Nearby, the title
of which is taken from Georgia O’Keeffe’s painting, says, “Stories are compasses and
architecture; we navigate by them, we build our sanctuaries and our prisons out of
them, and to be without a story is to be lost in the vastness of a world that spreads in
all directions like arctic tundra or sea ice.”
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The WCA has a splendid story, and all of us are under obligation to tell it more
powerfully. At the 2013 conference in Seoul, I offered an Empathy Matters Project
(EMP) as a vehicle for us to add more meaning to the world. I am convinced that it
would complement the brilliant work that we have done over the past 30 years. The
EMP would create a common project around which all of our members could rally, have
the associative power of repetition, increase our membership base, and BUILD human
solidarity globally, among other things.
In this short piece, I cannot outline all the particulars, ideas, and resources necessary to
get this work done, but I do have in mind crafting an Empathy Matters Project in
different ways according to specific audiences, places, circumstances, resources and
needs. In my book, Empathy in the Global World: An Intercultural Perspective, I employ
the term empathetic literacy to mean “knowledge and information-based skills that help
global citizens respond to and manage intercultural encounters caringly and
competently.” Such a program, above all, has as its mission focusing on skills that
students and other citizens need to develop empathy, factors that influence empathetic
competence, and approaches to improving empathetic effectiveness. In my keynote
speech, which was delivered at the Chinese Intercultural International conference at
Hainan Island on November 21, 2013, I was given a platform from which to speak about
the significance of such acts of imagination. And I look forward to other rich
opportunities to place the WCA story “out there” globally.
Finally, in my role as president, I am dedicated to keeping and implementing our mission
statement, which is to promote peace and international understanding through face-toface interactions. As we look forward to a glorious 2014, let us, in the words of Solnit,
not be without a story in the “vastness of a world that spreads in all directions like arctic
tundra or sea ice.” I wish you peace and goodwill!
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WCA Accomplishments: 2011-2013
President Carolyn Calloway-Thomas
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Celebrated successfully the 30th anniversary of the founding of our dear WCA. The event was
beautifully organized by Professors Caroline Hatcher and Patsy McCarthy, with a supporting cast of
many dedicated individuals, including students at Sungkyunkwan University, Korea.
Created the Myung-Seok Park Distinguished Service Award to “recognize exceptional and outstanding service to the Association and to the intercultural communication profession.” Professor
Park was the inaugural recipient of the award at the 2013 conference in Korea.
Recognized and presented plaques to founders, Professors Myung-Seok Park and Takehide
Kawashima for their distinguished contributions to the WCA.
Instituted a signature Inaugural Issues Forum at the 2013 conference, using the timely title “The
Great Divide: Income Inequality and What it May Mean for Global Society.” Mr. Moo-Jong Park,
President and Publisher, The Korea Times, Seoul Korea, and VPs Caroline Hatcher, Judy Pearson
and Javier Protzel, served as forum participants. Calloway-Thomas served as moderator.
Appointed a new Secretary-General, Young-Ok Lee of Kyung Hee University, Korea to succeed Dr.
Carmencita Del Villar, who did an outstanding job as Secretary-General. Kudos to Professor Lee for
a splendid start!
Maintained sound fiscal management of the Association.
Established an Empathy Matters Project (EMP) as a second signature program for the Association,
which President Carolyn Thomas-Calloway is undertaking.
Pushed forward robustly on getting our premier Journal of Intercultural Communication Research
listed in the Social Sciences Index. This project should come to fruition within the next two years,
and will elevate the status of our excellent journal.
Updated the WCA Constitution and By-laws with an eye toward aligning the document with current
practices of the Association. For example, the Board voted to grant the journal editor membership
on the Board of Advisors.
Revived the VP position for Europe; our new VP for that region is Professor Stephen Croucher of
University of Jyvӓskylӓ, Finland.
Charged a Web site committee with refurbishing the WCA site in a timely manner. The committee
is headed by Stephen Croucher and Professor Melissa Beall.
Approved President Calloway-Thomas’s request to sort and organize WCA archival materials.
Calloway-Thomas will underwrite the project. The WCA will also investigate a university site where
we may securely house WCA documents for posterity.
Instituted a one-day Board of Directors meeting in order to plan and implement the goals of the
Association more effectively and efficiently.
Established a committee headed by Drs. Seon-Gi Baek and Stephen Croucher to investigate
difficulties that some members encounter in trying to secure visas for travel to WCA conferences.
The Committee was also tasked with creating a primer for members to use.
Redoubled our efforts to increase our membership base. Co-chairs Professors Leigh Anne Howard
and Patsy McCarthy are making significant progress in this arena. Our goal is to recruit minimally
300 new members by 2015.
Worked more vigorously to advertise and encourage life memberships as a way of sustaining the
organization and supporting new and innovative programs of the WCA.
Encouraged regional vice presidents to work together on common projects in our efforts to extend
the reach of the Association. President Calloway-Thomas offered her Empathy Matters Project as
a prototype for this endeavor.
Sustained the goodwill of the Association nationally and internationally!
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Speech for WCA Conference 30 Year Celebration
by Prof. Caroline Hatcher
Secretary-General and President 2004-2012
It is wonderful to be standing here today to celebrate the 30 year
journey of the World Communication Association. WCA has become a
special part of my life, enriching both my academic interests and
opening the way to wonderful friendships across the world.
My introduction to WCA came just 14 years ago in Kuala Lumpur where I
met many of you for the first time and so warmly welcomed by Drs Judy
Pearson and Sharon Ratliffe at the memorable conference hosted by Dr
Salleh Hassan.
This introduced me to our wonderful Malyasian colleagues and to our inspirational Professor Park
who was a keynote speaker then as he is this year, and our Korean colleagues and to our many
wonderful US colleagues, to Javier Protzel and our South American colleagues and the list goes on. We
were in the midst of our own united nations!
What surprised and inspired me was that I found a genuine sense of openness to learn about other
cultures, a feature that I have found in few other professional associations.
But my experience is just part of a bigger picture. I am reminded of the assertion of feminist Susan
Bordo, who suggested that 'we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us'.
So it was with special pride that I researched and found the pathway through which Australians came
to be part of WCA. William Crocker, an Australian, was one important link in bringing together the
Pacific nations in 1971 as Professor Kawashima has described.
While I did not know William Crocker, I did manage to find a history of Australian communication
studies and was excited to learn that William Crocker later founded the Australian Communication
Association in 1979. I have no doubt that William’s experience with his international colleagues such
as Don Klopf, Professors Park and Kawashima, Jeffrey Auer, and others in CAP gave him the
confidence to propose and lead our first National Association. And so I, as an Australian, was led to
our common dream of intercultural communication when Dr Sharon Ratliffe, asked WCA President to
me nominate as Vice President for our region. Sharon personifies spirit of WCA with her own personal
generosity of spirit and the belief in the value of diversity.
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As Secretary-General 2004-2007 and then as President 2008-2012, I had the wonderful opportunity
to serve as the first non-US citizen in those roles.
This was quite a challenge
as I not only had to learn the US banking system but the tax system too and just after 9/11,
the US security service gave me quite a fright when I was suspected of laundering money
into the USA and warned to stop, as I innocently deposited WCA membership payments into
the Wisconsin WCA bank account!!!!
I watched and learned from three former Presidents, Judy Pearson, Sharon Ratlife and Barbara
Monfils. All played a generous mentoring role as I ‘learned the ropes’ of this wonderfully diverse
organisational cultural. I served as President with two wonderfully talented and generous Secretary –
Generals, firstly Judith Hoover and then Mark Orbe.
I wish to especially mention that Barbara Monfils’ guiding hand was as light as feather but
always true. For example, with Sharon as President and Barbara as Secretary-General, WCA
and the International Listening Association jointly took us to Stockholm, Sweden for the 2003
conference. This conference was a mark of the skills of collaboration of Barbara, a wonderful
colleague who worked with Melissa Beall (a VP in both associations) to deliver this unforgettable conference.
I also cannot give enough praise to Barbara and her talents as an organiser without mentioning
generous and kind Lon Monfils, who has contributed so much to WCA. Lon’s financial guidance and
sheer persistent hard work has turned many a WCA event into a triumph!
For me there are too many highlights to describe, so I will just mention four.
With Barbara as President, I was thrilled to be able to bring WCA to Brisbane Australia in 2007. Our
indigenous keynote speaker and conference dinner themed around the spirit of indigenous Australia
and the spectacle of green parrots feeding and swooping on our members and their screams and
laughter on our cultural day at the Tallebudgera Bird Sanctuary are indelibly printed on my memory.
You could call it ‘get up close and personal’ with Down Under.
Then, second highlight of my Secretary-General-Presidency in WCA was the commencement of the
Family of Myung Seok Park Financial Awards for Outstanding Scholarship. Professor Park’s generosity
in funding US $10 000 for each annual WCA conference event has given us the chance to support and
profile a culture of academic excellence and at the same time support our members both financially
and academically.
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Our 2009 Dublin Ireland conference at National University of Ireland, Maynooth campus,
saw the first awards bestowed on our members, with awards for both oral and written
presentations. For those who celebrated 25 years of WCA in Maynooth, I am sure it is
impossible to forget the spirituality and peace of the monastery where the conference was set and
the joy and celebration that Carmencita del Villar’s dancing and our lively and
mellifluous Korean PhD students brought to the event.
Our 2011 conference in Lima Peru was a dream many years in the making. Barbara Monfils has always
dearly wanted to take us to South America. So, it was with such excitement that we learned that Dr
Javier
Protzel
was
able
to
deliver
a
magnificent
conference
at
Universidad de Lima and our Secretary- General and Spanish speaking Mark Orbe so ably
organised it.
Surrounded by the parched coastal desert and lush expanse of the Amazon rainforest, Peru is a
country with so many national treasures – snow-capped mountains, giant sand dunes,
ancient ruins, labyrinthine cities, postcard-perfect volcanoes, and amazingly welcoming
people. I am sure none of us will forget the extraordinary music and dance performance by over 100
dancers and musicians and created by our hosts, especially for WCA for opening night of the
conference. The photos can only capture partially the magnificence of the
event. The level of academic debate and contributions of our South American colleagues
from 5 countries in this southern continent made the conference a truly exciting one.
Finally, I must acknowledge the role of 4 journal editors who have truly ‘made a difference’ to our
association and the quality of the conversations we have had.
Dr Judith Hoover inspired me to first publish in the then journal called: ‘World
Communication’. She worked tirelessly and in a wonderfully collegiate way to ensure that our journal
represented the richness of our intercultural association.
With the success of taking the journal to our new international publisher, Professor Jim
McCroskey, working with Sharon and Barbara, allowed us to reach a broader audience
through the International Journal of Intercultural Communication Research and Dr Jerry Allen
continued the charge. We owe each of them a great debt of gratitude for their contributions.
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I am especially proud of our current editor, Dr Stephen Croucher, who has brought youthful
energy and passion to the journal since his appointment in 2010. Stephen is growing our
journal, and its stature and reach. JICR is being positioned to stand as a leading journal in the field and
Stephen’s leadership is to be applauded.
In 2011, we were able to include our
award winning conference papers in a Special Issue of JICR for the first time, a strategy that I
and our Executive had been seeking to achieve for many years.
In 2012, I handed over the Presidency to Dr Carolyn Calloway-Thomas with great joy in my
heart, knowing her vision will take us forward and always remembering the strong and
visionary shoulders on which we all stand.
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WCA Board of Directors
(2013 – 2015)
President:
Dr. Carolyn Calloway-Thomas, Indiana University, USA
Secretary-General:
Dr. Young-Ok Lee, Kyung Hee University, Korea
Vice President, Asia/Pacific:
Dr. Seon-gi Baek, Sungkyunkwan University, Korea
Vice President, Aus/NZ:
Dr. Caroline Hatcher, Queensland University of Technology, Australia
Vice President, Europe:
Dr. Stephen Croucher, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Vice President, Latin America:
Dr. Javier Protzel, Lima, Peru
Vice President, North America:
Dr. Melissa Beall, University of Northern Iowa, USA
Vice President, Malaysia:
Dr. Salleh Hassan, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
At Large Member:
Dr. Lynda McCroskey, California State University, Long Beach, USA
Board of Advisors:
Dr. Jerry Allen, University of New Haven, USA
Dr. Judith Hoover, Western Kentucky University, USA
Dr. Takehide Kawashima, Nihon University, Japan
Dr. Barbara Monfils, University of Wisconsin, Whitewater, USA
Dr. Mark Orbe, Western Michigan University, USA
Prof. Myung-Seok Park, Dankook University, Korea
Dr. Judy Pearson, North Dakota University, USA
Dr. Sharon Ratliffe, Golden West College, USA
Dr. Sung-Gyung Kim, Korea Military Academy, Korea
Dr. Patricia McCarthy, Queensland University of Technology, Australia
Dr. Carmencita Del Villar, University of the Philippines, Philippines
Editor, Journal of Intercultural
Communication Research:
Dr. Stephen Croucher, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
WCA Webmaster:
Dr. Leo Chan, University of Houston at Clear Lake, USA
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Message from Secretary-General
Young-Ok Lee, Ph.D.
During the short period of my working as Secretary-General, most of the jobs have been performed
through exchanging messages via electronic mail or telephone call. I've realized that what matters
most in these processes of communication, where we cannot have recourse to nonverbal behaviors
like facial expressions, gestures, or the tone of voice, is using right words or phrases. As a non-native
English speaker who did not live in an English-speaking country longer than one year, although I've
studied English for an extended length of time, it was a real challenge to have to convey messages
regarding all the important affairs through this foreign language. However, with the warm kindness of
every member including our President, Prof. Carolyn Calloway-Thomas, with whom I have been
exchanging email messages almost every day, thus feeling that I cannot start my day without reading
or writing messages with my dear Carolyn, I've come to experience the happiness of sharing my idea
with a person who uses a different language with a different cultural background. I could feel the real
happiness of learning and improved understanding in this process of intercultural communication in its
real sense or working as an international person in this high-tech globalized world.
Now, I have to say that it is a real blessing to be able to work as Secretary-General for our dear World
Communication Association with its loving familial ambience and I sincerely thank Carolyn and Prof.
Park Myung-Seok for giving me this precious opportunity to practice real intercultural communication.
The first feelings I got when Carolyn invited me to work as Secretary-General about two months ago
were a mixture of about 90 percent of worry and 10 percent of happiness and excitement. Now,
thanks to loving encouragement from many friends and colleagues of our WCA, the ratio has reversed
and I'm now full of excitement and determination to do my best to be of service for our members - as
a way of returning great love and support of those friends and colleagues.
I look forward to working with my dear members and getting help and encouragement from all of you
in preparing for our 2015 Lisbon conference. I wish you all happy holidays and may all your New Year's
resolutions realized in 2014.
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2013 Seoul Conference
30th Anniversary Celebration
The WCA Seoul Conference was held in celebration of its 30th anniversary of the founding of the WCA.
With a theme “Intercultural Communication in the Global World,” it was held at Sungkyunkwan
University, priding itself as the oldest university in East Asia in Seoul, Korea from August 8 to 12,
followed by post-conference tour around the Korean peninsula from August 13 to 16. Special
celebratory events provided wonderful opportunities for every participant to honor the founders,
strengthen the organization, and enlarge networks among the 130-odd members representing 18
countries from all around the world.
After welcome messages by our WCA President Dr. Carolyn Calloway-Thomas and our former
Secretary-General Dr. Carmencita P. Del Villar, a keynote speech and a congratulatory remark by
Sungkyunkwan University President Dr. Kim Jun-young, a keynote speech was delivered by Dr. Park
Myung-seok, a founding father of the WCA and Chairman of Beautiful Community Incorporated
Association on the topic “Peace and Co-Prosperity in Northeast Asia.”
At the conference, our past President Caroline Hatcher and Professor Patsy McCarthy created a
special program to remember and honor the “Band of Brothers” whose passion and vision made the
existence of the present WCA possible. A special tribute presided by Prof. Lynda McCroskey was
paid to our esteemed founder and eminent scholar, Dr. James McCroskey, who passed away this year.
The 2013 Seoul conference launched its Inaugural Issues Forum with the theme “The Great Divide:
Income Inequality and What It May Mean for Global Society”. A distinguished panel of scholars and
professionals interrogated the topic and all the conferees had ample opportunities to participate in
the dialogue, which made this event a really provocative and stimulating one.
Our WCA President, Dr. Carolyn Calloway-Thomas thanked those people who joined in orchestrating
details of this international conference, including WCA Vice President Seon-Gi Baek, Professors EunKyung Choi and Young-Ok Lee, other Korean colleagues, and the staff of Sungkyunkwan University .
Dr. Carmencita P. Del Villar, as Secretary-General, worked vigorously and indefatigably, to create
outstanding sessions and events for this conference. Dr. Carolyn testified that her meticulous and
dedicated works were invaluable in materializing this important international conference.
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Family of Myung Seok Park Financial
Awards for Outstanding Scholarship
With the generosity of one of its founding members, Professor Myung Seok Park, since 2011 the World
Communication Association has presented financial awards and honors for quality research papers in
the field of intercultural communication.
Following is the list of awardees of Family of Myung Seok Park Financial Awards in 2013 Seoul
Conference:
BEST ORAL PRESENTATIONS
Best Overall Oral Presentation - Wai Hsien Cheah
Best Presentation by a Non-native English Speaker - Antonietta Alfaro-Snively
Best Presentation by a Non-native English Speaker - Yoon Joo Lee
Best Student Oral Presentation - Chris Patterson and Victoria Thomas
BEST PAPER AWARDS
Best Quantitative Paper - Stephen Croucher. “A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Organizational Dissent and
Workplace Freedom in Five European Economies”
Best Qualitative Paper - Alexei Matveev, Young-Ok Lee, Miwa Merz . “Global Brand Communication
in Diverse Cultural Contexts: Multi-Country Analysis of LG Electronics’ Advertising Strategy in South
Korea, Japan, the United States, and Russia”
Best Theoretical/Praxis - Leigh Anne Howard. “Lines and Borders and Boundaries, Oh My:
Empathetic Reciprocity in Ethnographic Interactions”
Best Overall Paper - Alexei Matveev, Young-Ok Lee, Miwa Merz. “Global Brand Communication in
Diverse Cultural Contexts: Multi-Country Analysis of LG Electronics’ Advertising Strategy in South Korea,
Japan, the United States, and Russia”
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WCA Members Thank Professor Myung-Seok Park and His
Family for Scholarship Awards:
With WCA ‘Life’s Good’ and ‘It’s All Possible!’
Written by professors Alexei V. Matveev, Miwa Y. Merz, and Young-Ok Lee
It has been our great pleasure to receive the Family of MyungSeok Park Awards for Outstanding Scholarship at the 22nd
Conference of the World Communication Association (WCA)
held in Seoul, Korea in 2013. Our scholarly paper titled “Global
Brand Communication in Diverse Cultural Contexts: Multicountry Analysis of LG Electronics’ Advertising Strategy in
South Korea, Japan, the United States, and Russia’ has received
the Best Overall Conference Paper and the Best Qualitative
Paper Awards. The paper is authored by Dr. Alexei Matveev,
School of Business at the City University of New York,
Dr. Miwa Yamazaki Merz, College of Business at San Jose State University, and Dr. Young-Ok Lee,
College of Hotel and Tourism Management at Kyung Hee University, Korea.
The paper “Global Brand Communication in Diverse Cultural
Contexts” outlined a multi country study that investigated LG
Electronics’ brand communication and its marketing strategy
for a new product of LG, LG Cinema 3D Smart TV. The
researchers were interested in understanding how LG
Electronics promotes its Cinema 3D Smart TV in South Korea,
Japan, the U.S. and Russia. The researchers set forth to
determine similarities and differences in the marketing and
advertising strategies of LG Electronics in these four countries.
Receiving any award at the conference is a great honor.
Receiving the Family of Myung-Seok Park Awards at the 30th
anniversary of WCA was a special gift to all of us since we all
met at WCA many years ago and collaborated on this project
over distance. We would like to thank again Prof. Myong-Seok
Park, Dr. Carolyn Calloway-Thomas, President of WCA, Dr.
Carmencita Del Villar, former Secretary-General of WCA,
WCA founding members and leaders, and many WCA
members for this opportunity to share our study via a
wonderful WCA venue. With WCA ‘Life’s Good’ and with
Professor Park and his family’s support for awards ‘It’s All
Possible!’
We hope that WCA will continue to grow and invite international scholars to share their research and
scholarship at future WCA conferences. It is truly a great way to advance our academic career. We are
all grateful to network with global scholars through WCA!
LG Cinema 3D Smart TV is smart! How Smart are You?
See you all in Lisbon, Portugal!
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Memory of 2013 Seoul Conference
by Prof. Wai Hsien Cheah
Awardee of the Best Oral Presentation Award
Going to conferences, presenting our research findings, listening to research studies conducted by
colleagues in the field, and catching up with “old” friends as well as meeting new ones, to name a few,
are things that we do on a regular basis in academia. Although the 2013 World Communication
Association (WCA) conference held in Seoul, South Korea this past August was only my second WCA
conference that I have been to, I do foresee myself going to more in the coming years.
What separates a WCA conference from the annual convention of the International Communication
Association (ICA) or National Communication Association (NCA) is that it is held every two years in a
different country. The size of the conference is smaller in scale, and the focus will always be about
intercultural communication. In addition, the conference is generally hosted by a reputable higher
educational institution in the host country. Unlike the hustle and bustle of “big” conferences, held
mainly in hotels or convention centers, with thousands of participants, the atmosphere of a WCA
conference was much more relaxing. The bus pick-up from the hotel to the conference site, the two
or three parallel sessions, the planned lunches and dinners (including cultural performances), coffee
breaks, and the availability of smart classrooms for presentation purposes, all add to the convenience
and ease for both participants and presenters. The most unique aspect of the WCA conference is the
number of top paper awards and presentation awards given out at each conference. As a past overall
top paper winner and top non-native English speaking presenter at Peru’s WCA conference in 2011,
and this year’s best overall presenter, I am extremely grateful and humbled by Professor Myung-Seok
Park’s generosity.
As a newly appointed Associate Professor with tenure at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
(SIUE), I now prefer going to low-key conferences, and the WCA conference is one of the few that
meets my needs. I enjoyed the cultural day tour and post-conference tour. I enjoyed the time I spent
talking to folks I met for the first time, and I cherish the relationships I established with those that I
got to know from the previous WCA conference. All in all, WCA is truly a people conference.
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Impressions of a “Brand New” WCA Member
Written by Prof. Esther Yook
“Would you like a flyer?”asked the well-dressed scholar who apparently stayed on the same floor of
the NCA convention hotel in Orlando, FL in 2012. I recognized the name on the scholar’s name tag,
Professor Carolyn Calloway-Thomas, and I gratefully accepted one. Glancing at the flyer, my heart
raced because I saw that the WCA conference would be held in Seoul Korea, where my sister and
relatives currently live.
I asked for a few more flyers and shared them with colleagues during the Korean American
Communication meeting, and slipped it into my folder, planning to review it on the plane trip back from
NCA, as I usually do. After meaning to follow up with my paper co-authors about submitting our paper
to WCA, that winter I fell and broke my arm and was busy trying to keep up with teaching, so I
consequently missed the deadline for submitting the paper. When I contacted Professor CallowayThomas and explained the situation, she graciously understood and allowed me to submit it tardily.
That is how my relationship with WCA started.
I hesitated about using the words “brand new” in the title of this article because I am far from a “new”
scholar to the field of communication. In fact, I have been studying communication for about three
decades now. My first Master’s degree was in Simultaneous Interpretation, for which I studied at
Sorbonne University for two years. A professor there, Mme. Karla De Jean, suggested that I continue
my studies in communication, rather than in linguistics or in English, when I told her that I would be
continuing my studies in the United States. Her advice was golden: I have enjoyed being a
communication scholar ever since, allowing me to study such various topics as semantics, and social
psychology, and apply it to the fascinating phenomenon of human communication.
Despite my long history in the field of communication, the 2013 August conference in Seoul Korea was,
however, the first World Communication conference that I have ever attended. I had heard about it
WCA before, but had been a regular attendee of NCA throughout the years, not thinking of attending
any others, partially due to time commitments as well as university travel funding. However, the fact
that my paper was ready to submit to WCA, coupled with the anticipation that I would get to see my
sister and spend some time with her, was motivation enough.
I am so glad that I attended the WCA conference in 2013. I not only was able to present my paper in a
session chaired by a professor whose work I had read in the past (Professor Monfils), I was also able to
see Drs. Judy Pearson, Paul Nelson, and Melissa Beall, whom I have met in the past through my
previous Master’s degree advisor, Dr. Bill Seiler. Melissa was kind enough to “mentor” me during a
break, asking what my impressions of WCA were so far, and if I intended to continue to attend. I recall
answering that I was not sure, but that I would find out whether my university would cover it. But since
then I have talked to my department chair, who already knew of the solid reputation of WCA and the
organization’s leaders, and she actively searched for funding sources to enable my participation in
future years!
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An additional factor in my decision to actively participate in future conferences is the fact that I met
other international scholars and graduate students, and the smaller size of the conference allows for
more in depth and meaningful conversations with them, as opposed to larger conferences where there
are too many people to be able to converse meaningfully outside of all of the sessions, and structured
events. I especially appreciated the opportunity to meet Dr. Young-Ok Lee, who was very kind to have
lunch with a newcomer, and to share a good amount of time in conversation with me. I feel that we
have a lot in common and am very glad to have met her there.
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Making signs easier for foreign visitors to read
Kazuo Tatchan Akasaka
It’s been a long time since I visited Seoul, Korea. I
found myself a bit fearful when looking at the signs at
the bus stop to the hotel from the International Airport.
The reason why is that I could not read any of the
signboards. They were only written in Hangul, the
Korean alphabet. I did not expect that. I could not
understand them at all, because I don’t know Hangul. I
felt like a complete lost child. I didn’t think that I could
be like that with no Hangul at all. I saw some signs in
English while riding the bus, but it was almost
impossible for me to read them because the bus was
moving faster than my eye could follow. I found myself
hoping many times that the signs would be bigger so I
might be able to read them.
I have tried to encourage the people in Japan who make signs to deal with this kind of problem about
information on signs in Japan. So I was glad that we started making signs in other languages besides
Japanese. At bus stops, airports, and train stations we now have three more signs in other languages,
such as English, Chinese and Hangul. We have had signs in multiple languages in Japan for many years. I
was happy to know that we are doing something good for foreigners in Japan. So it seemed rather
ironic that I was now in a situation where my ability to understand Hangul was a problem.
We even have some signs with a combination of letters and numbers that indicate which train comes
to the platform. For example, the Metro at “Odori” station is labeled “No 7” and the metro at Sapporo
station is labeled “No 6.” Transportation in much of Japan is labeled the same. You will find the station
number displayed in many places where you might go. However, this was not true in Aomori station. I
think we are working on getting multiple signs in the rest of the country, but it takes a lot of time and
money to do this. I am saying we should hurry up and finish the job, because I think these signs are kind
to tourists from abroad.
I tried to look at the Japanese characters again from a new point of view. We have four different
writing systems in Japan, Roman, hiragana, katakana and kanji and we mix them together when we
write. This makes Japanese hard to read. With Hiragana and katakana together there are over 100
letters to represent the sounds in Japanese. You need to know about 3000 kanji to read a newspaper
or a magazine. So if a foreigner looks at Japanese writing they will be surprised at the number of letters
involved Moreover, learning to distinguish between hiragana, katakana and kanji is very difficult for
foreigners.
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Let me introduce you to a passage from a column in this newspaper called “Yoroku.” In addition to
people who learn Japanese as diplomats according to a survey last year by the Japanese Foundation
more than 3.98 million people were learning Japanese which is an increase of 9 percent compared to
a survey taken in 2009. China has become the country with the most Japanese learners. There were
105 million learners which is an increase of 27 percent.
I can imagine a foreigner looking at a Japanese text with the mix of hiragana, katakana and kanji and
shouting “Japanese, I quit!” It is so confusing to see such complex signs in Japanese. Japanese
notation is a barrier for those trying to learn Japanese. On the other hand English has a consistent set
of symbols. There is no mixed set of symbols as we do in Japanese. Someone might challenge this
claim and say that English has lower case and upper case letters and you have to use an upper case
letter to start a sentence and to start a proper name. At the same time, for Japanese people, writing
such as the above is quite ordinary. Though there may be different sets of characters in a single
sentence, it can be read and understood rapidly.
I was lost as I looked at Hangul characters in Seoul, but people who are traveling in Seoul need some
help. So I am suggesting that at least there should be signs in English because it is a language that
many people in the world are able to use.
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2015 Lisbon Conference Preview
Our Regional Vice President for Europe, Prof. Stephen Croucher and his Portuguese
colleague, Mr. Joao Caetano are in the midst now of planning the 2015 Lisbon
Conference. Prof. Croucher has confirmed that they have contacted a travel agent
who has already recommended various hotels in the area for us to use for the
conference. He sent the following message:
“WCA will finalize the hotel choice in July 2014 with Carolyn and Young-Ok. The team
in Portugal has also been thinking of ways to advertise the 2015 conference to other
associations in Portugal, Spain, and Europe. The Universidade Aberta is well
connected to many European and African universities and groups. We are excited to
incorporate these connections into the 2015 conference.
The team in Portugal has also started thinking about possible tourist locations to see
while in Portugal. Portugal is a treasure trove of vineyards, port makers, great food,
old villages, castles, beautiful seasides, and loving people.
We can't wait to host you in Lisbon in 2015! “
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Book Review
Park Myung-Seok (2013), Intercultural Communication
Encounters, Korea Communication Association
Intercultural Communication Encounters is the result of Prof. Park's lifelong
research and enthusiastic leadership he showed in various international
meetings and gatherings to enhance intercultural communication.
In this book he collected his research papers and keynote speeches he delivered
in various international conferences and seminars, especially those which he
founded or served as President, namely, the CAP (Communication Association),
WCA (World Communication Association) and PACA (Pacific and Asian
Communication Association).
This book is just the one that Prof. Park wished he should have read before he
first left for the United States of America. All the people who plan to visit other countries or engage in
business or negotiation with people from other countries are strongly advised to read this book, at
least the first three chapters dealing with the basic cultural differences between Korea and other
countries. Chapter II on patterns of cross-cultural business behavior deals with specific features of
various countries in comparison with that of Korea based on five communication paradigms: the way of
problem solving; communication patterns; the way of associating with other people; the concept of
time; and the way of expressing emotions. Chapter III offers some concrete suggestions on how to be
more effective when working with Americans. They will allow global business persons to achieve a
higher level of awareness of the requirements posed by different cultural situations, thus enabling
them to gain a competitive edge. The presentation of main ideas in the book is often accompanied
with many real, dramatic, and sometimes hilariously funny examples Prof. Park personally experienced
or other recorded episodes, which help clarify and verify the points and make them un-forgettable.
As a student of Prof. Park's, who, under his teaching and guidance, has discovered this wonderful world
of intercultural communication studies, I would like to extend my whole-hearted respect and
congratulations to Prof. Park on the publication of this phenomenal book, which may be considered a
summary of a pioneer's lifelong devotion to a great job of enhancing understanding and peace among
different cultures around the world through improved intercultural communication.
Written by Young-Ok Lee, Kyung Hee University.
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The Journal of Intercultural Communication Research (JICR)
JICR, a publication of the World Communication Association, focuses on
quantitative, qualitative, critical, and rhetorical research related to
intercultural and cross-cultural communication.
JICR publishes manuscripts that report on the interrelations between
culture and communication within a single nation/culture or across
nations/cultures. Authors are invited to submit manuscripts via
electronic attachment to be considered for publication in volumes 43-45
(2014-2016). Manuscripts should be submitted via Manuscript Central
at: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com:80/rjic.
JICR, a publication of the World Communication Association, focuses on
quantitative, qualitative, critical, and rhetorical research related to
intercultural and cross-cultural communication.
Manuscripts should be no more than 25 pages (12 pt., double spaced, 1 inch margins), not counting
references, tables or figures, and must conform to the requirements of the most recent Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA). Research on the use of human participants
must have been conducted in compliance with acceptable national or international standards (e.g.,
regulations of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services) on voluntary participation,
informed consent, deception, and debriefing. The manuscript should not have been published or be
under consideration for publication elsewhere. A detachable cover page should include the
manuscript title, each author’s name, mailing address, email address, telephone and fax numbers.
Author identification should include each author’s current affiliation and address, highest degree
earned, the institution granting the degree, and the year granted. A 50-100 word abstract and a list
of keywords should follow the title page. Tables and figures must be in APA style and on separate
pages and not included in the text. They should be understandable independent of the text, but
their approximate position should be indicated in the text and they should be referred to in the text.
Authors are responsible for supplying copies of figures in finished form suitable for reproduction.
Manuscripts deemed by the editor to be appropriate for JICR and that conform to the above
guidelines will be subjected to blind review.
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