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Summary Intercultral Sensitivity; all chapters!
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English summary of the whole book Intercultural Sensitivity. English summary of the whole book Intercultural Sensitivity.
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Summary: Intercultural Sensitivity (Raising Cultural Awareness)
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Summary: Intercultural sensitivityChapter 1: Culture, communication and global
citizenship
1.1 What is culture? Visible and invisible culture
According to interculturalist Edgar Schein, culture consist out of three layers:
1) Artefacts of culture
2) Norms and values
3) Basic assumptions
Artefacts of culture: the first thing you notice when entering a new country.
Norms and values: they are written and unwritten standards of correct, desired behaviour. They are not as
visible as artefacts and it takes some time to notice them. Norms are things like, is it the norm to arrive 5
minutes early, exactly on time, or a few minutes later. Values are about what is good or right. Is it good to
stand up for an elderly person in the bus?
Basic assumptions: they are invisible and abstract and you learn them very young, before you are 7. We are
unaware of their influence. The judgements we make are shaped by the basic assumptions of our culture.
Intercultural communication is about bringing basic assumptions of our own culture to awareness and to
recognise basic assumptions of other cultures.
1.2 Definition of culture
Short definition by interculturalist Geert Hofstede: ‘’Culture is the collective programming of the mind, which
distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from another.’’
1.3 Cultural programming
Culture is learned and we are programmed through upbringing, socialization, norms and values, and
perception.
For example a handshake. Your parents are teaching you that handshakes are normal and you have to do it
every time you meet someone new. Through socialization you learn what a desirable handshake is, a firm one,
a limp etc. Part of the programming happens though perception. Just by looking around us we make
(un)conscious choices about how we want to behave.
There are three levels of programming: Individual, cultural and human nature. If we haven’t eaten for days,
human nature makes us look for food and eat it with our hands. When you put it on a plate and eat with fork
and knife, that is our cultural programming. But individuals may choose to do it different, regardless of their
cultural programming.
1.4 Culture and subcultures
Collective indicates the (sub)groups we belong to.
Examples of subcultures: continent, country, ethnic, urban, religion, social class, gender etc.
If culturally diverse teams are managed and trained in intercultural sensitivity and when cultural differences are
appreciated, they turn out to be the most creative and dynamic teams.
1.5 Intercultural communication
If you want to give information you are the source. Your
information is encoded by using language or nonverbal
expressions etc. It is transmitted through a channel. The
receiver decodes you message and responds, once
again encoding the response. It is an on-going process.
To communicate with other cultures, intercultural skills
are required. This is because culture has its impact on
every point in the communication circles. A well-
intended message, well coded in one culture, can have a totally different meaning, when decoded in another
culture. Sometimes misunderstanding is caused by ‘’noise’’ in the communication.
,1.6 Noise. What exactly is communication noise?
Noise: anything that distorts or blocks the message, that distracts the receivers or causes them not to
understand the message.
External noise: also known as physical noise, is interference form the environment.
Internal noise: also known as psychological noise, involves emotions, worries or personal prejudices that get in
the way of paying attention to what is actually being communicated.
Cultural noise: occurs when differences in cultural programming distorts the message.
1.7 TOPOI model, intervention for cultural noise
The TOPOI model distinguishes five areas of possible misunderstanding in communication. You can use the 5
letters and what they stand for as a checklist to reflect on the miscommunication. Then ask the three key
intervention questions and any other questions that may be necessary for feedback of clarity.
Key intervention questions:
1) What is my share in the misunderstanding?
2) What is the other person’s share?
3) What is the influence of the social environment (the norms, values and general beliefs)?
The 5 TOPOI areas:
1) Tongue or language.
This is about meaning of verbal and non-verbal communication. Be careful because sometimes a word
can have different meanings. Also be careful with non-verbal movements, they can insult someone
very easily.
2) Order.
Realize there is never one truth or reality. Everyone has their own logic and what makes sense to you
may not seem so logical to another person. For example the discussion about Piet. Make differences in
views clear, and just leave the views as they are. Look for what you have in common.
3) Persons.
The relationship of the participants in a conversation can determine the meaning of what is being said.
Relationships can be symmetrical or complementary. Symmetrical relationships are between equals,
like friends, teachers, brothers, classmates etc. Complementary relationships are between people at
different levels of authority, like between parents and children.
4) Organization.
Organizational structures that are not familiar to us can be the cause of misunderstanding. For
example, internationals may not know that you need a doctor’s recommendation before going to the
hospital.
5) Intention and influence.
What is the aim of the conversation? What are the intentions, needs and motives of the participants in
the communication? For example, in the Netherlands sunflowers are a nice gift, but in Ukraine they
grow everywhere and it is not very nice to give them as a gift.
1.8 Global citizenship
When the United Nations launched its Global Education First Initiative (GEFI) in 2012, fostering global
citizenship became one of its priorities in education, along with gender equality. For primary schools, secondary
schools as well as universities.
1.8.1 Definition
Global citizenship (UNESCO 2015): ‘’a sense of belonging to a broader community and common humanity. It
emphasizes political, economic, social and cultural interdependency and interconnectedness between the local,
the national and the global.’’
‘’ It aims to empower learners to assume active roles to face and resolve global challenges and to become
proactive contributors to a more peaceful, tolerant, inclusive and secure world.’’
, 1.8.2 Teaching global citizenship
Global citizenship is quickly making its entry in the curricula of primary and secondary schools worldwide.
Occasionally it is a separate subject. Sometimes it is interwoven into existing subjects, like geography, history
etc. Ideally it is embraced in a holistic approach, in different areas across the school and community.
In the Netherlands there is a very practical way for teaching global citizenship, called Windows on the World. It
covers 8 topics: diversity, identity, human rights, sustainable development, globalization, (North-South)
division, peace and conflict and global interconnectedness. Each topic has three examples from around the
world, called windows on the world. By looking through them, students discover the interconnectedness with
places, people and events around the world. At universities global citizenship enters as well but in other
subjects, as a part of corporate social responsibility, ethics, intercultural communication etc.
1.8.3 Global citizenship competencies
There are several approaches of global citizenship, but they roughly share these competencies:
An attitude for understanding multiple identities and collective identity. Intercultural sensitivity – to
have empathy, solidarity and respect for diversity.
Knowledge and cognitive skills. On global issues and universal values – to think critically and creatively
about global, regional, national and local issues and see the interconnectedness. To have a multi-
perspective approach.
Non-cognitive skills and behaviour. Including social skills, communication skills and attitudes for
networking.
To act collaboratively for the collective good at local, national and global levels for a more peaceful
and sustainable world.
1.8.4 What does it mean in practice?
1) Attitude
It creates room for a collective identity. It transcends individual, cultural, religious, ethnic or other
differences.
2) Knowledge of global issues
Students can take part in dialogues about universal values or work together with students from
different countries or go on exchange.
3) Skills and behaviour
Look at 1.8.3
These skills can be taught in language classes and to work with schools in other countries as well as with
schools in other areas in the community. On a local school level, peace education can teach students how to
react in cases of bullying etc. Through art projects, music and sports students practice collaborative behaviour.
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