Group task of Intercultural Comunication Name of member Group: Abiyyu Alamsyah/1802050021 Muthmainnah/1802050023 Siti hanimah/1802050056 Putri Lira Habibillah/1802050060 Class: 8 A Morning Intercultural Communication. THE FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION Communication Allows You to Gather Information about Other People Personal experience will tell you that when you meet someone for the first time, you immediately begin to gather information about him or her. Communication also plays a role in determining and defining your identity. Identity is so important to intercultural communication that we later devote an entire chapter to the topic. Now that we have talked about the purposes of communication, we are ready to define communication and to discuss some of the basic principles of communication. Communication Helps Fulfill Interpersonal Needs While there may be many times when you feel frustrated with other people and find comfort in solitude, in most instances people are social creatures, and therefore communicating with others satisfies a great many needs. Although cultures might express these feelings and emotions differently, all people, by both nature and nurture, have a need to communicate and interact with others. Communication Establishes Personal Identities Communication also plays a role in determining and defining your identity. Identity is so important to intercultural communication that we later devote an entire chapter to the topic. Communication Influences Others Now that we have talked about the purposes of communication, we are ready to define communication and to discuss some of the basic principles of communication. Communication Defined There was good reason for the English statesman Benjamin Disraeli to write, "I hate definitions." While definitions are necessary, they can also be troublesome. Isolating the commonalities of those definitions, and wishing to select one that is all-encompassing, we hold that communication is a dynamic process in which people attempt to share their internal states with other people through the use of symbols. Principles of Communication Because this is a book about communication and culture, it seems only fitting that we pause at this time and discuss some of the principles of communication. Second, while the linear nature of language forces us to discuss one principle at a time, keep in mind that in reality the elements of communication are in continuous interaction with one another. Communication is a Dynamic Process You will notice that the words dynamic process were contained in our definition. Third, the concept of "process" also means that you and your partner are part of the dynamic process of communication. As you shall see later in the chapter, culture, too, is dynamic. Communication is Symbolic Inherent in our definition of communication is the fact that humans are symbol-making creatures. In human communication, a symbol is an expression that stands for or represents something else. Wood presents an excellent summary of some of the ways symbols allow people to share their realities: We use symbols to create meanings. There is not a natural connection between symbols and their referents: the relationships are arbitrary and vary from culture to culture."61 What is being said here is that although all cultures use symbols, they usually assign their own meanings to the symbols. Communication is Contextual We say communication is contextual because “[it] occurs in particular situations or systems that influence what and how we communicate and what meanings we attach to messages.” Put in slightly different terms, communication does not occur in isolation or in a vacuum, but rather is part of a larger system composed of many ingredients, all of which must be considered. As Littlejohn states, “Communication always occurs in a context, and the nature of communication depends in large measure on this context.” What this implies is that setting and environment help determine the words and actions you generate and the meanings you give the symbols produced by other people. Communication is Self-Reflective This characteristic of communication states that humans have the ability to think about themselves, their communication partners, their messages, and the potential results of those messages, all at the same time. We Learn to Communicate What applies to these trivial pieces of information also pertains to how you learned to communicate. Not all people have had the same experiences, and not all cultures have gathered the same information. In one culture, people have received information on how to use camels or horses for transportation, while in another people have received instructions on how to drive automobiles. One culture’s special skill for treating heart disease can be transmitted to a culture lacking this information. A culture that employs acupuncture to cure certain ailments can teach this technique to people whose culture lacks that expertise. Communication Has a Consequence At one end of the continuum lie responses to messages that are overt and easy to understand. The message from the other person has thus produced an observable response. A little farther across the continuum are those messages that produce only a mental response. These are responses to messages you receive made by imitating, observing, or interacting with others. Generally, you are not even aware that you are receiving these messages. Your parents act out their gender roles, and you receive messages about your gender role. At the far end of the continuum are responses to messages that are received unconsciously. Messages that you receive can alter your hormonal secretions, your heart rate, or the temperature of your skin; modify pupil size; and trigger a host of other internal responses.
