Exploring cultures and intercultural experiences

general courses

Students know English at least at the B2 level (which will allow them to freely communicate in the group, give an oral presentation in English, and understand academic papers).

Classroom

The course is intended for second-year B.A. students. Students will acquire basic knowledge about the concept of culture and different approaches to exploring cultures and intercultural experiences (as part of applied linguistics; in particular, intercultural communication). Students will also develop basic self-development skills to monitor and advance their intercultural growth as well as research skills to explore cultures.

This course bridges theory and practice through a series of exercises that help the student to develop an understanding of major conceptual frameworks of culture. In theoretical terms, the student will acquire new knowledge about major cultural paradigms and concepts related to cultural success (such as cultural awareness, competence, sensitivity, intelligence, etc.). In practical terms, the student will develop their understanding of the concepts as well as abilities through stories, examples, exercises, simulations, and their own research.

The student will acquire knowledge in the following areas:

(1) Definitions and approaches to (exploring) culture.

(2) Determinants of successful intercultural encounters (intercultural vs. cross-cultural communication, the concepts of cultural awareness, sensitivity, intelligence, learning, adjustment, etc.)

(3) Exploring intercultural experiences through narrative inquiry (examples from studies of business expatriates and international students).

Course workload:

Classroom activities – 30 hrs

Self-study – 30 hrs, including:

- homework assignments – 20 hrs

- preparation for the final exam – 10 hrs

Total: 60 hrs (2 ECTS)

(1) Barna, L. M. (1994). Stumbling blocks in intercultural communication. In L. A. Samovar & R. E. Porter (Eds.), Intercultural communication: A reader (7th ed) (pp. 337–346). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13398-014-0173-7.2

(2) Bennett, M. J. (2009). Defining, measuring, and facilitating intercultural learning: A conceptual introduction to the Intercultural Education double supplement. Intercultural Education, 20(sup1), S1–S13. https://doi.org/10.1080/14675980903370763

(3) Beugelsdijk, S., & Welzel, C. (2018). Dimensions and dynamics of national culture: Synthesizing Hofstede with Inglehart. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 49(10), 1469–1505. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022118798505

(4) Chen, G.-M., & Starosta, W. J. (1996). Intercultural communication competence: A synthesis. Annals of the International Communication Association, 19(1), 353–383. https://doi.org/10.1080/23808985.1996.11678935

(5) Chen, G.-M., & Starosta, W. J. (1997). Review of the concept of intercultural sensitivity. Human Communication, (1), 1–13. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED408634.pdf

(6) Hall, E. T. (1976). Beyond culture. Anchor Press/Doubleday.

(7) Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions and organizations across nations (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

(8) Hua, Z. (2016). Identifying research paradigms. In Z. Hua (Ed.), Research methods in intercultural communication. A practical guide. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons.

(9) Inglehart, R., & Baker, W. E. (2000). Modernization, cultural change, and the persistence of traditional values. American Sociological Review, 65(1), 19–51.

(10) Kaasa, A. (2021). Merging Hofstede, Schwartz, and Inglehart into a single system. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 52(4), 339–353. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220221211011244

(11) Kaasa, A., & Minkov, M. (2020). Are the world’s national cultures becoming more similar? Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 51(7–8), 531–550. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022120933677

(12) Kim, Y. Y. (2001). Becoming intercultural: An integrative theory of communication and cross-cultural adaptation. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

(13) Lewis, R. D. (2006). When cultures collide: Leading across cultures. In Harvard Law Review. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb059499

(14) Minkov, M., & Kaasa, A. (2021). A test of the revised Minkov-Hofstede model of culture: Mirror images of subjective and objective culture across nations and the 50 US States. Cross-Cultural Research, [In Press].

(15) Morris, M. W., Savani, K., Mor, S., & Cho, J. (2014). When in Rome: Intercultural learning and implications for training. Research in Organizational Behavior, 34, 189–215. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.riob.2014.09.003

(16) Piller, I. (2007). Linguistics and Intercultural Communication. Language and Linguistics Compass, 1(3), 208–226. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-818X.2007.00012.x

(17) Ronen, S., & Shenkar, O. (2013). Mapping world cultures: Cluster formation, sources and implications. Journal of International Business Studies, 44, 867–897. https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2013.42

(18) Schwartz, S. H. (2006). A theory of cultural value orientations: Explication and applications. Comparative Sociology, 5(2–3), 137–182. https://doi.org/10.1163/156913306778667357

(19) Spencer-Oatey, H. (2012) What is culture? A compilation of quotations. GlobalPAD Core Concepts. Available at https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/al/globalpad-rip/openhouse/interculturalskills_old/core_concept_compilations/global_pad_-_what_is_culture.pdf

(20) Trompenaars, F. & Hampden-Turner, C. (1998). Riding the waves of culture. McGraw-Hill.

(21) Thomas, D. C., Elron, E., Stahl, G., Ekelund, B. Z., Ravlin, E. C., Cerdin, J.-L., … Lazarova, M. B. (2008). Cultural intelligence: Domain and assessment. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 8(2), 123–143. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470595808091787

(22) Wilczewski, M. (2019). Intercultural experience in narrative. Expatriate stories from a multicultural workplace. https://doi.org/10.1075/sin.26

Knowledge: K_W05, K_W07.

Skills: K_U02, K_U03, K_U05, K_U06, K_U09.

Socio-cultural competencies: K_K01, K_K03, K_K04.

Assessment of student performance:

- performing in-class assignments (completing homework assignments) (up to 50% of the final grade);

- a written final exam checking the student’s theoretical knowledge (50-100% of the final grade).

Assessment criteria:

At the end of the course, the student takes a final exam. The student needs to reach at least 60% of the total score to pass the exam.

The final exam will evaluate:

• theoretical knowledge produced during the course.

The overall result is established in accordance with the following scale:

• over 90% – 5.0

• 85%-89% – 4.5

• 80%-84% – 4.0

• 70%-79% – 3.5

• 60%-69% – 3.0

N/A