INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION Patrice Simpson, Burwood Girls High School It is ironic that I am addressing you today on June 16th

about Intercultural Com munication and the brea down of communication between people or groups who fail to understand each other's culture. Today, June 16th, is South African Youth Day , and is the 24th anniversary of the Soweto Youth Uprising when 15,000 students demonstrated their rejection of the apartheid system. As the uprising spread thr oughout South Africa, police and soldiers shot dead more than a thousand young p eople - school students - and injured and maimed thousands more. It is simplisti c to say that better understanding between the different cultural groups could h ave averted such a devastating era in South African history. And who nows wheth er better intercultural understanding could prevent current troubles in Fiji on the Solomons, or even whether some form of intercultural understanding would hel p convince John Howard to say "sorry". However it is true that cultural differen ces should be viewed as positively contributing to Australian and world societie s and that better intercultural understanding will mean that racist attitudes ca n be addressed. (That's not just me philosophizing - that's in the syllabus). Communication is the transfer of a message from one person to another, so that i t is understood, and hopefully, so that it invo es a response. (See diagram 1) Communication can be i) Verbal - language symbols ii) Non-verbal - body language, gesture, clothing, conformity with customs and norms, pare-language - tone, volume, pitch, emphasis, pauses etc. It is said that about 65-70% of how we communicate is through non-verbal means. (Some say up to 93%!) In normal everyday communication, the message does not always transfer from the sender to the receiver. Such communication brea down can occur for a number of r easons. These barriers to effective communication are often collectively referre d to as noise. (See diagram 2) Even when two people spea a common language, and share common experiences and b ac ground nowledge and traditions, the communication process may not wor as ef fectively as we would li e. When we add the extra dimension of cultural difference, the process becomes even more complex. There is an even greater chance of communication brea ing down no t only because of the language complications, but also because of cultural diffe rences. Everyone carries patterns of behaviour with them - ways of thin ing, feeling and doing that have been learnt throughout their lifetime - most of it learnt in ea rly childhood, which is when one is most open to learning. Such enculturation st arts through the family and continues through the local neighbourhood, school, p eers, social institutions such as wor and religion, and of course, the media. Values are among the first things learnt, not consciously, but implicitly. Devel opmental psychologists believe that by the age of ten most children would have t heir basic value in place and after that, changes are hard to ma e. These values remain unconscious i.e. they are not discussed but they are apparent in the way things are done. These basic values and attitudes have been passed down from ge neration to generation, and are often shaped by the environment in which we live . There is no doubt as to the many cultural groups around the world with different patterns of behaviour, values and rules. These conventions are culture specific i.e. different cultures develop different rules for achieving the same tas and people attach different meanings to the same events. The same action is thus ev aluated in different terms for example, spitting on the streets and sneezing int o a hand erchief and putting it into a poc et. When people cross cultural boundaries they ta e their "ta en for granted" meanin g structure from their home culture. They continue to choose actions consistent

with the way they've been enculturated and continue to interpret actions in term s of their own enculturation. It is inevitable that communication across cultura l boundaries will brea down unless people can recognize their ethnocentrism and ta e action to overcome it. They must recognize that one culture cannot be judg ed by the standards of another. This is cultural relativism and it is important to understand this concept and not judge others according to your values. As the syllabus says, the concepts and methodologies relating to this depth stud y can only be understood, and demonstrated in an HSC exam, by using one or more case studies. You need to understand aspects of society and culture that are sim ilar and different and you really should refer to p67 of the syllabus to ensure you have covered all aspects mentioned. The following diagram, (courtesy Robin Julian, Monte Sant Angelo College 1999) a bly sums up those aspects of culture of which you should be aware. (See Diagram 3) If we approach cultures ta ing into consideration only the obvious outer layers of culture i.e. food, language, rituals, clothing etc then there is a real ris of slipping into stereotypical labelling, of forming prejudices and ta ing discr iminatory action. Unless we now and understand the underlying values, which are less visible, then there will be little chance of ma ing sense of what is easil y observable. William Gudy unst stresses the importance of understanding the differences betwe en individualist (ego-centric) cultures and collectivist (socio-centric) culture s in learning about other people and in promoting intercultural communication. I ndividualists emphasize individual goals promoting self realization. Collectivis ts require individuals to fit into the "group". Imagine the unaware Australian tourist venturing from his secure Sydney home whe re individuals are considered responsible for themselves and respect for one's p rivacy is of paramount importance. Off he goes to Indonesia, or to Tonga or Samo a or even many African countries - anyone of the many collectivist cultures that are prime holiday destinations for Australians. He finds a beautiful secluded b each and wants nothing better than to lie in the sunshine enjoying the peace and sanctity, far away from the maddening crowds and hustle/bustle of the city. Wit hin two minutes he's surrounded by locals - questions, questions, questions. Coo l at first, but as time moves on, bordering on what the peacesee ing tourist vie ws as harassing. No matter how much he pleas for time by himself, the locals wil l not give up. He finally gives up on his desire for privacy. Luc ily, he's an i ntrepid type of tourist and happily accepts their invitation to stay n their vil lage. He feels quite privileged and important. What he doesn't realize is that t he locals would probably be perceiving him to a person of very low status, as pe ople of any importance would never travel alone. What he also doesn't realize is that as he sleeps, it is possible that four or five people are li ely to climb into bed with him - the more the merrier, strengthening the group and building u p group status. As much fun as he is li ely to have, he probably would enjoy his experience a lot more if he understood the cultural mores and values before he arrived. In a situation such as this it is unli ely that any grave international conflict would arise as a result of his lac of nowledge. However there are occasions w hen better understanding and improved intercultural communication s ills would b e useful. In business matters or political dealings it is essential to understand the valu es and traditions that shape people's behaviour. Even in our own environment, we interact daily with people from a range of cultural bac grounds. Even though ou r peers in the playground or at wor share the same values as you their parents may still be embedded in home culture traditions. And we wouldn't want to offend them would we? In our multicultural Australia, or in our international dealings for business or pleasure, we will inevitably be confronted by situations that require sensitive handling. So how do we avoid, or deal with, intercultural misunderstanding? First of all,

if one is aware of the possibility of dealing with people from other cultures, t hen learning a few words of their language would certainly demonstrate your resp ect and willingness to develop rapport. Not everyone spea s English; in fact, it is a very difficult language to master. You should encourage people's attempts to share your language - your patience and perseverance will be appreciated. Don 't forget the non-verbal aspects of communication also - gestures and symbols ar e not universal and mista es are inevitable, by the other person and by you. It is often necessary to chec meanings. If at first you don't succeed then try aga in. Rephrase, repeat, try another non-verbal cue. When signals between sender an d receiver are interpreted differently, then the message will be confused. When dealing with people from different cultures, it is easy to become anxious a nd frustrated and stress levels can be really high. You have to try to relax, to laugh, to ta e ris s - even if you feel ridiculous. Remember cultural relativis m - don't judge everything from your own cultural perspective. Try to empathize i.e. put yourself in the shoes of the other person and most importantly, don't j udge a whole group based on the actions of one alone. Successful intercultural communication requires enthusiasm and a willingness to overcome cultural barriers. It is a two-way process. When such barriers are overcome then stereotypes will not prevail, and hopefully the many racist attitudes around the world can be addressed. References. Gudy unst, W.B. "Bridging Difference: Effective Intergroup Communication" (Sage Publications Thousand Oa s USA 1998) Holstede, G. "Cultures and Organisations: Software of the Mind - Intercultural C o-operation and its Importance for Survival" (AMED USA 1997) Trompenears, F. "Ringing the Waves of Culture: Understanding Cultural Diversity in Global Business" (NB Publications USA 1998) And than s to Robin Julian for "The Iceberg of Culture" diagram.