Cross-Cultural Communication

Cross-cultural communication is a process of creating and sharing meaning among people from different cultural backgrounds using a variety of means. The term cross-cultural communication is used interchangeably with intercultural communication at times. However, cross-cultural communication and intercultural communication are differentiated based on the focus of the research: whereas intercultural communication focuses on the interaction with different cultures, cross-cultural communication focuses more on the comparisons of different cultures. After providing a more thorough definition of cross-cultural communication, this entry offers a review of the inception of cross-cultural communication and a description of different approaches toward research. Major cross-cultural communication theories are then discussed, and considerations for those conducting cross-cultural research are provided.

Conventionally, culture, in the narrow sense, implies different ethnicities and races that developed their own cultural values and language in a certain geographical region; however, it becomes common to include more than ethnic or racial background differences in intercultural communication. For example, sexual orientation and existence/nonexistence of disabilities are often included as cultures. Moreover, critical scholars view culture as heterogeneous. That is, some cultures can include several ethnic and racial groups, which do not assimilate the majority culture. Therefore, terms such as mosaic and salad bowl are used to illustrate the view of the heterogeneous feature of culture. On the other hand, cross-cultural studies have been conducted assuming a culture is rather homogenous because of the pressure from society. When various ethnic or racial groups coexist, marginalized groups will assimilate to the majority [Page 309]group in the society and create a culture, which can be illustrated as a “melting-pot” metaphor. Therefore, cross-cultural scholars are able to compare different cultures.

By comparing different cultures, researchers can understand similarities and differences among cultures. Knowing the similarities and differences helps us to predict others’ behavior and, in turn, helps us to communicate better. A social psychologist, Geert Hofstede said, “Culture is software of the mind,” which implies how we follow cultural values and norms in the society. In addition, culture is not something that people are born with; it is learned through socialization. For example, people from the United States and people from Japan behave differently according to their cultural values and norms. Yet if someone’s ethnicity is Japanese but that person grows up in the United States, that person tends to behave like an American.

“Onion” and “iceberg” models are frequently used to describe a culture. For the onion model, the core of the onion indicates cultural values, meaning the cultural values are difficult to see from the outside. Cultural values are also difficult to change. On the other hand, the outer layers of the onion, which consist of things such as symbols and rituals, are visible to others and easy to change. For the iceberg model, that which is above the water surface indicates things that are noticeable to others, such as clothing, language, and food. That which is underneath the surface represents a bigger part of culture, much like how most of an iceberg is below the water’s surface, and includes cultural values, beliefs, and attitudes. Therefore, people from different cultures use different verbal and nonverbal communication styles to communicate to each other, which creates challenges to people who are not familiar with the culture.

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