Intercultural Communication
Gateway – Intercultural Communication refers to an intellectual and dialogical entry point into the study of cultural interaction across diverse social, professional, and mediated contexts. It emphasizes critical engagement with how meaning, identity, and power are negotiated in intercultural encounters. The concept aligns with the journal’s focus on theory-driven and empirically grounded research that examines communication across cultural boundaries. It supports interdisciplinary perspectives, including discourse analysis, intercultural competence, migration studies, and global digital communication. Ultimately, it frames intercultural communication as a dynamic, context-sensitive process that fosters mutual understanding and reflexive awareness in an increasingly interconnected world.
All Items
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Uses of Mass Media for Adaptation Purposes: A Quantitative Study of Brazilian Immigrants in Los Angeles
Abstract: This research project used a survey to assess the impact of English- and Portuguese-language mass media on how Brazilian immigrants in the Los Angeles area adapt to their new environment. In addition to mass media use, the survey also took into account cultural preferences, language fluency, and demographics as possible predictors of cultural adaptation for Brazilian immigrants in a large and multicultural metropolitan area of the United... [...] Read more
Values, Cultural Identity and Communication: A Perspective From Philosophy of Language
Abstract: Problems of communication in intercultural dialogue typically arise when the communicators understand concepts of meaning and identity in strikingly different ways. This article employs influential assumptions in modern philosophy of language to discuss fundamental aspects of these problems. Drawing on a distinction between beliefs and values, it is argued that intercultural communication typically fails when communicators have different... [...] Read more
Variation in Letters to Shareholders from British, Polish and Spanish Companies - A Comparative Study
Abstract: This study analyzes the moves and the communicative intentions in the letters to shareholders from selected British, Polish and Spanish companies, in order to provide data on variations in intercultural business communication within Europe, a field of research in need of growth. A qualitative approach was used to examine a corpus of letters from energy companies based in these three countries. The variations identified in the use of the... [...] Read more
Vietnamese Perceptions of (Im)politeness through Their Narratives of Medical Encounters with Native English-Speaking Doctors during Postgraduate Study abroad
Abstract: This study examines how Vietnamese postgraduate students interpret (im)politeness during clinical consultations with doctors in English-speaking countries. Drawing on narrative reflective reports from 14 Vietnamese university academics who completed their doctoral studies in TESOL and Applied Linguistics abroad, the research analyzes participants’ retrospective accounts of critical medical encounters in which they evaluated native... [...] Read more
Visual Communication across Cultures
A study of visual semiotics in Japanese and British advertiments
Abstract: In this paper, I question the notion that "The Visual" is a culturally transparent means of communication (Neurath, 1937, 1948). I will be demonstrating how different cultures (Japanese and British) use the resources of visual communication, in ways that are related to their specific underlying value systems. In order to show this I draw on advertisements from both countries and use the visual grammar developed by Kress and van Leeuwen (1990,... [...] Read more
Was Malinowski Norwegian? Norwegian Interpretations of Phatic Talk
Abstract: From time to time, there is a public debate in Norway about Norwegian lack of politeness. The most recent debate started with a female Norwegian-American reader’s letter to a Norwegian newspaper. Her critique especially targeted Norwegian lack of phatic talk (greetings and small talk) towards strangers; something that she thought was both arrogant and impolite. The corpus in this article is based on responses from the Norwegian... [...] Read more
We were like them” Intersecting Identities and Mediators' Intercultural Communication in a Municipal Service
Abstract: The main aim of this article is to present an intercultural communication study conducted in a municipal service, which focuses on how cultural mediators make sense of their work with migrants, being both representatives of an Italian institution as well as former foreigners/migrants themselves: their shared everyday context, common destiny and their understanding of users’ experiences. The study, on the whole, underlines how cultural... [...] Read more
Wearing the Hijab: An argument for moderate selective acculturation of newly immigrated Arab-American women
Abstract: The goal of this research is to examine how Arab women newly emigrated to the United States struggle to decide how to blend with or into the fabric of this country while still retaining their culture, language and religion in a manner that is comfortable and acceptable to them. All the interviewees were Arab/Muslim women from the countries of Iraq and Lebanon. The research also examines the conflict among Muslim women over the decision as to... [...] Read more
WeChat Use And Cross-Cultural Adaptation of International Students In China: The Mediating Role of Social Self-Efficacy
Abstract: An increasing number of international students are pursuing studies in China and encounter challenges and uncertainty in a new foreign environment. Cross-cultural adaptation is influenced by social self-efficacy, social interaction, and WeChat use but little is known about the interaction of these three factors in influencing cross-cultural adaptation. The study examined the mediating role of social self-efficacy in the relationship between... [...] Read more
West meets East: on the Necessity of local Pedagogies
Abstract: There is growing awareness that Western educational practices and language pedagogies cannot simply be exported to other parts of the world. The ethnocentricity of many teacher education projects that aim at introducing CLT to Asian societies have caused cultural conflicts and have led to the call for culturally appropriate methodologies. This paper presents an ethnographic analysis of three situations taken from two in-service teacher... [...] Read more
What is the Basis of American Culture?
What is it that intercultural communication students cannot afford to miss about the American Culture?
Abstract: Culture is about survival of the human species. Central values and human capital formation drive cultures. This paper discusses intercultural communication theory from a historical-developmental perspective across the history of humankind, thus defining the uniqueness of the human cultural experience, namely, speech communication. Linking this unique empirical-based human cultural experience to specific cultures and their core values is the... [...] Read more
When East Meets West: Polish Business Communication from a Cross-Cultural Perspective
Abstract: This paper investigates how foreign nationals living and working in Poland evaluate Polish colleagues’ communication in English and its effectiveness in international business. It identifies features of linguistic behaviour attributed to Polish business interactions. Five dimensions of cultural variability (directness, emotionality, power distance, confrontation, critical evaluation) are used as benchmarks and offer an observational framework... [...] Read more
Witnesses of Wealth.Development Workers, Intercultural Communication and Norwegian National Identity
Abstract: In this article the broader topic of communication and identity is addressed through a discussion of intercultural involvement and national identity in the case of Norway. The main research question is how Norwegian expatriate development workers discursively sustain, challenge and (re)construct Norwegian national identity. Discussing this I draw on material from a recent study where I interviewed twenty-three development workers (). In the... [...] Read more
Women, Faith, and Power: Intercultural Tensions In Aceh’s Election Supervision
Abstract: Legally, the law in Indonesia has regulated and mandated female representation of 30%, but in the Aceh election supervisory institution, the representation figure does not reach the threshold. Aceh, as a province that was given the privilege of Sharia autonomy, actually experienced a deficit of representation, not caused by theological reasons, but because of structural obstacles and institutional bias. This study aims to evaluate the... [...] Read more
World Wide Journey of the Needle: Cross-Cultural Web Radio Experience
Abstract: This article examines cross-cultural web radio use of university students coming from strictly distinguishable countries (Turkey and the Netherlands) with respect to both cultural characteristics and the development of the radio cultures. Our research builds on a conceptual framework combining two interrelated variable sets: Cultural value orientations and the factors determining the formation of radio culture in these countries. The proposed... [...] Read more
You do not just translate your thought into another language - you translate the whole issue into that culture
Intercultural understanding in the experience world of Finnish technical professionals
Abstract: The objective of the researchwas to examine the experience world of professionals in the field of technology as users of foreign languages to illustrate the general meaning structure in the agency of a foreign language user. The theoretical approach here is phenomenological. The fieldwork was carried out through thematic interviews with seven interviewees in a medium-sized Finnish engineering company with international operations. Through a... [...] Read more
You Think I am Stupid? Face Needs in Intercultural Conflicts
Abstract: Embedded in intercultural conflicts are identity or face-based goal issues (Rothman, 1997), which, when not effectively managed, may lead to unresolved conflicts. This study examined actual email interactions over a period of five months between an American visiting professor and an International Office staff member at a University in China. It showed three patterns of interaction that failed to manage each other’s face or identity needs and... [...] Read more
You’ve got mail! Using email technology to enhance intercultural communication learning
Abstract: As organizations become increasingly globalized and workforces increasingly culturally diverse, the use of "global virtual teams" is becoming more and more common. To be prepared to work in such a team, students need to develop skills in both intercultural communication and the use of modern computer technologies. This paper reports on a project that involved intercultural communication students in the U.S.A. and New Zealand corresponding... [...] Read more
Тhe History of the Acculturation Concept
Abstract: The historical concept of acculturation proposed by American researchers in the early 19th Century is important nowadays. The object of contemporary scientific knowledge is intercultural interaction not so much between individual ethnic groups or nationalities but between prominent cultural systems or civilizations. The idea of analyzing the concept of acculturation in the historical aspect seems quite timely: migration processes that have... [...] Read more
“But it’s truly aggravating and depressing”: Voicing counter-expectancy in US–Philippines service interactions
Abstract: Intercultural competence is essential in a globalized business environment, where successful cross-border transactions rely on effective cross-cultural communication. Interactions between US customers and Filipino customer service representatives (CSR) in call centers are one example where intercultural competence is required. This study examines the use of counter-expectancy expressions in call center complaint calls by American consumers... [...] Read more
“Glocalization” and Intercultural Representation in Filipino TV Commercials: A Multidimensional Discourse Analysis
Abstract: This paper looks at how Filipino “glocalizes” international brands in TV commercials and how it links to customers’ culture and norms in the Philippine context. Four TV commercials from the food industry were purposively identified as target samples. These samples were then compared to other TV commercials in two different contexts, namely, Thailand and the USA to see the process of glocalization and interculturality. Improvised tools from... [...] Read more
“I Am Not Racist, But ...”: Rhetorical Fallacies in Arguments about the Refugee Crisis on Czech Facebook
Abstract: This paper examines the strategies of social media users commenting on the so-called refugee crisis. This qualitative analysis of the role of passion politics discourse on social media primarily employs the concept of rhetorical fallacies. It aims to stress the interdiscursive nature of immigration as a topic. It is connected with anti-liberalism, anti-feminism (or homophobia), and conservatism. For the purpose of this study, we used... [...] Read more
“The Chinese Will Not Change; We Have To Change” Adjustment of the Finns to the Chinese in a Chinese Investment Facilitation Context
Abstract: This paper explores the intercultural communication, cultural adjustment strategies and power relations between Finnish and Chinese representatives in the context of Chinese investment facilitation in Finland. The study is mostly based on interviews of individuals who work either for one of Finland’s state agencies tasked with attracting investment or local government. When analyzing aspects of power, the paper’s theoretical basis is the... [...] Read more
“Wallah! I Beg Your Pardon...”: A Cross-cultural Study of Apology Speech Acts
Abstract: This study explores the cross-cultural pragmatic features of apology speech acts generated by Arabic native speakers, English native speakers and advanced Saudi learners of English. The instrument employed for this study was a discourse completion task (DCT). The DCT included eight situations that elicited apologetic responses from 69 participants. Results revealed that Arabic native speakers and Saudi learners of English use apology... [...] Read more