Introduction to the theory of intercultural communication. Intercultural communication "Moscow Psychological and Social University"

Non-state educational institution

"MOSCOW PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL UNIVERSITY"

FACULTY OF LINGUISTICS AND INNOVATIVE SOCIAL TECHNOLOGIES

I APPROVED

Vice Rector for Academic Affairs

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"_____"_________________20___

DISCIPLINE WORK PROGRAM

INTRODUCTION TO THE THEORY OF INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Direction of training

035700 - LINGUISTICS

Training profile

Theory and methodology of teaching foreign languages ​​and cultures

Graduate qualification (degree)

Bachelor

Form of study

Full-time, part-time, part-time,correspondence

Compiled by: Art. Rev.

Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Foreign Languages"

The program is compiled in accordance with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard for Higher Professional Education, taking into account the recommendations and ProOp of Higher Professional Education in the direction of “Linguistics” and the training profile “Theory and Methods of Teaching Foreign Languages ​​and Cultures”.

The work program in the discipline “Introduction to the theory of intercultural communication” is intended for students studying in the field of 035700 Linguistics.

The work program contains the course program, thematic plan of the course, and test questions. The topics of the classes are compiled in accordance with the goals and objectives of the course.

Reviewer: V. manager Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Foreign Languages

1. Goals of mastering the discipline

The purpose of the discipline is to familiarize students with the basic concepts of the theory of intercultural communication, with deep linguo-philosophical problems (understanding and interpretation of the products of speech and mental activity), introduction to the range of problems associated with the formation of a secondary linguistic personality, familiarization with the modern point of view on discourse and translation as a specific form of intercultural communications.

- formation and development of communicative, sociocultural and professional competencies;

Familiarization of students with modern ideas about the main features of communication, theory of activity, types of communication, concepts of “culture”, “intercultural communication”;

Preparing students for further mastery of language theory and research work.

The objectives of the discipline include: to form in students a system of primary basic knowledge in the field of intercultural communication, to lay the theoretical foundations for the formation of a secondary linguistic personality and intercultural competence, critical tolerance and the ability to overcome conflicts.

To develop in students the ability to use the appropriate conceptual apparatus, - to introduce students to the basics of scientific research methods;

Develop the ability to analyze empirical material using various modern methods of analysis;

Formation of the ability to work with scientific literature, analytically comprehend and generalize theoretical positions;

To acquaint students with the opportunity to use fundamental theoretical knowledge to successfully write essays, coursework and dissertations in current areas of linguistics.

2. Place of the discipline (module) in the structure of undergraduate education

“Introduction to the theory of intercultural communication” is one of the core disciplines in the training of a specialist in the field of philology. It belongs to the disciplines of the professional cycle, for the development of which students use competencies formed in the process of studying such disciplines as “Introduction to linguistics”, “Practical course of the first foreign language”, “Linguistic and regional studies”, “Professionally oriented translation”, “Cultural studies”, “ History and culture of the countries of the first foreign language."

Mastering the discipline “Introduction to the Theory of Intercultural Communication” is a necessary basis for studying other disciplines of the professional cycle, disciplines of the student’s choice, completing an internship, and preparing for the final certification.

3. The student’s competencies, formed as a result of mastering the discipline (module).

The process of studying the discipline is aimed at developing the following competencies:

OK-1- navigates the system of universal human values ​​and takes into account the value and semantic orientations of various social, national, religious, professional communities and groups in Russian society.

OK-2- is guided by the principles of cultural relativism and ethical norms, which presuppose the rejection of ethnocentrism and respect for the uniqueness of a foreign language culture and the value orientations of a foreign language society.

OK-3- Possess sociocultural and intercultural communication skills that ensure adequate social and professional contacts.

OK-6- Own the heritage of domestic scientific thought aimed at solving general humanitarian and universal problems.

OK-7- has a culture of thinking, is capable of analyzing, summarizing information, setting goals and choosing ways to achieve them, has a culture of oral and written speech.

OK-8- knows how to apply methods and means of cognition, training and self-control for his intellectual development, raising his cultural level, professional competence, preserving his health, moral and physical self-improvement.

OK-9- the ability to take a civil position in social and personal conflict situations.

PK-5- Knows the conventions of verbal communication in a foreign language society, the rules and traditions of intercultural and professional communication with native speakers of the language being studied.

PK-6- has an idea of ​​the specifics of the foreign language scientific picture of the world, the main features of scientific discourse in Russian and the foreign languages ​​being studied.

PK-7- has a willingness to overcome the influence of stereotypes and carry out intercultural dialogue in the general and professional spheres of communication.

PK-9- knows how to create and edit texts for professional purposes.

PK-10- masters the theory of education and training, modern approaches to teaching foreign languages, ensuring the development of linguistic, intellectual and cognitive abilities, value orientations of students, readiness to participate in the dialogue of cultures, further self-education through the languages ​​being studied.

PC-11- masters the methodology of pre-translation text analysis, which contributes to the accurate perception of the source statement, preparation for translation, including searching for information in reference books, specialized literature and computer networks.

PC-13- knows how to carry out written translation in compliance with the norms of lexical equivalence, compliance with grammatical, syntactic and stylistic norms.

As a result of mastering the discipline, the student must:

know:

· specificity of the theory of intercultural communication as a science,

based on communication theory and the concept of culture;

· subject and methods of research of this science;

· system of its basic concepts;

· a system of criteria for identifying markers of linguistic personality;

· principles of interaction of various mental structures in

nominative and discursive activity of the linguistic personality;

· principles of varying linguistic personality within a certain

linguistic culture and ways of forming a secondary linguistic personality;

· nominative and discursive strategies as cultural-

a specific phenomenon of a particular linguistic culture;

· types and models of speech communication;

· principles of communicative behavior in conflict-prone areas

be able to:

· critically analyze your own and others’ communicative behavior;

· use knowledge of verbal and non-verbal markers to

identification of communicants representing other linguistic cultures;

· use theoretical knowledge in the field of intercultural

communications in translation activities;

· recognize conflict-generating communication situations and prevent

their negative development.

familiarize:

· from the modern point of view of Russian and Western experts

on problems of intercultural communication;

· with basic methods of cross-cultural research;

· with a linguistic and cognitive picture of the world, with the concepts of national

linguistic consciousness and national communicative thinking.

4. Structure and content of the discipline (module)

The total complexity of the discipline is 2 credits, 72 hours.

Full-time study (duration of study 4 years)

Part-time study (course duration 5 years)

Part-time study (course duration 4 years)

Section 1. Concept of communication.

Topic 1.1. Origin of communicative activity. Mechanistic and activity approaches to communication. Models of communication and communicative act. Modeling communication in different sciences. Mechanistic or linear and non-mechanistic models of communication. The process of encoding - decoding information. Symbolic nature of communication. The concepts of “denotation” and “connotation”. Symmetrical, simultaneous and continuous communication. The unconscious nature of the communication process. Communication channels. Basic aspects and goals of communication.

Topic 1.2. Typology and functions of communication. Units of communication analysis. Verbal and non-verbal means of communication. Forms of communication. Types of communication: intrapersonal, interpersonal, group, mass. Communication environment and spheres of communication.

Information function. Social function. Expressive function. Pragmatic function. Interpretive function. Communication goals and human needs. Functions of communicative acts and events: emotive, conative, referential, poetic, phatic. Functional characteristics of the message. Speech influence and speech interaction.

Section 2. Cultural and anthropological foundations of intercultural communication.

Topic 2.1. The main stages of the formation of intercultural communication in the USA, Western Europe and Russia. Historical factors and circumstances of the emergence of intercultural communication. Intercultural communication as an interdisciplinary science. Stages of development of intercultural communication in the USA. Approval of intercultural communication in Europe and Russia. The subject of intercultural communication and its content as an academic discipline. Directions of research in intercultural communication.

Topic 2.2. The concept and essence of culture. History and methodology of cultural research. Cultural-anthropological aspect of culture. Culture and communication. Cultural and linguistic picture of the world. National picture of the world. Culture and behavior. Diversity of behavior and its factors. Empathy and communication. Forms and characteristics of empathy.

Cultural norms and cultural values. The nature and essence of cultural values. Forms of cultural values. Morals, customs, traditions, rituals, law (laws).

Culture and language Language as a cultural phenomenon. Sapir–Whorf hypothesis of linguistic relativity. Dialectics of language and culture in communication.

Section 3. The problem of “alien” culture.

Topic 3.1. Socialization and inculturation, their types and forms. Stages of enculturation. Mechanism of enculturation. The concept of cultural identity. The concept of identity and its form. Ours and others in cultural identity.

Topic 3.2. Categories of culture. E. Hall's theory of cultures. Characteristics of high- and low-context cultures. Time: monochronic and polychronic cultures. Differences between cultures in orientation to the past, present and future. The concept of “information flows”. Space: personal space and attitudes towards it in different cultures.

Theory of cultural dimensions by G. Hofstede. Power distance in mixed cultures. Opposition: individualism/collectivism. Opposition: masculinity/femininity of culture. Uncertainty avoidance. Theory of cultural literacy by E. Hirsch. Cultural literacy as a component of intercultural competence.

Topic 3.3. Acculturation, its types and results. Acculturation as mastering a foreign culture The concept and essence of acculturation. Basic forms of acculturation. Acculturation as communication.

Topic 3.4. Culture shock: causes, factors. The concept of culture shock and its symptoms. The mechanism of development of culture shock. Factors influencing culture shock. M. Bennett's model of mastering a foreign culture. The mechanism of mastering a foreign culture. Ethnocentric stages: Isolation, separation, protection, belittlement. Ethnorelativistic stages: recognition, adaptation, integration.

Section 4. The problem of understanding in intercultural communication.

Topic 4.1. Types of intercultural communication. Verbal communication. Specifics of verbal communication. Forms of verbal communication. Verbal communication styles. Contexts of verbal communication. The essence of nonverbal communication. Kinesics, oculistics, takesics, sensorics, proxemics, chronemics. The essence and means of paraverbal communication. Prosody, extralinguistics.

Topic 4.2. The essence of the perception process. Basic elements of the perception process. First impression factor. The superiority factor. Attractiveness factor. Factor of attitude towards us. Culture and perception. Differences in the perception of culture. Perception and interpretation of culture.

Topic 4.3. Intercultural conflicts and ways to overcome them. The emergence of intercultural conflicts. Conflict resolution strategies. Interpersonal attraction in intercultural communication. Concept and determinants of interpersonal attraction. External factors of attraction. Internal factors of attraction. The concept and essence of attribution. Attribution errors and their impact on the process of intercultural communication.

Stereotypes and prejudices in intercultural communication. The concept and essence of a stereotype. The emergence of stereotypes. Functions of stereotypes. The importance of stereotypes for intercultural communication. The concept and essence of prejudice. The mechanism of prejudice formation. Types of prejudices. Adjusting and changing prejudices.

Topic 4.4. Results of intercultural communication. Goals and objectives of intercultural communication. Tolerance as a result of intercultural

communications.

5. Educational technologies

As part of the discipline " Introduction to the theory of intercultural communication" The use of the following educational technologies in the educational process is provided:

Modular learning technology provides for the division of the discipline content into completely autonomous sections/modules integrated into the general course.

Information and communication technologies (ICT) generally

expand the scope of the educational process, increasing its practical orientation, contribute to the intensification of independent work of students and increase cognitive activity.

Internet technologies provide ample opportunities for searching for information, developing lesson fragments for studying various aspects of a foreign language at different levels of education, and conducting scientific research. The use of e-mail allows you to provide consulting support to students and monitor written work performed by students independently.

Technology of individualization of training helps to implement a student-centered approach, taking into account the individual characteristics and needs of students.

Technology for developing critical thinking contributes to the formation of a versatile personality capable of thinking critically about information and the ability to select information to solve a given problem.

Classes also include:

1) Conducting conversations and discussions.

2) Trainings: on intercultural conflicts and ways to resolve them.

4) Presentation of presentations, speeches, messages, reports.

5) Analysis (analysis) of cases or some kind of communicative events.

6. Educational and methodological support for students’ independent work. Assessment tools for ongoing monitoring of progress, intermediate certification based on the results of mastering the discipline.

Forms of ongoing control - discussions, preparation and discussion of reports and presentations, creative tasks.

Sample tasks for students’ independent work:

· Translation of texts;

· Preparation of reports and presentations on various topics;

· Analysis of communicative acts and their participants;

· Analysis of the cultures of native speakers of different countries using the theory as an example

high- and low-context cultures by E. Hall; theory of cultural dimensions by G. Hofstede..

The form of final control is an exam.

Assignments for independent work.

1. Scheme of personal analysis of a communicative act

(communication events)

Conduct a personal analysis of the communicative event.

Sender ( individual, collegial, cooperative, collegial-cooperative, collective speaker)

Recipient ( individual, collegial, cooperative, collegial-cooperative, collective speaker)

2. What are the personal communicative characteristics of the participants in communication?

Type of communicative personality ( dominant, mobile, rigid, introverted communicator ).

Transactional analysis according to E. Bern (I/ego states: Parent, Adult and Child).

3. What means confirm the characteristics of communicants?

Verbal ( vocabulary, grammar, intonation, phonetics, speech speed, rhythm and etc.)

Nonverbal ( body language, paralinguistic means, clothing and jewelry, gestures, facial expressions, body position, proxemics, tactile communication).

General communication ( strategy, tactics, communicative competence, etiquette).

Scheme of semiotic analysis of elements of a communicative act

(communication events)

Conduct a semiotic analysis of the communicative event (individual signs in it).

1. Identify two semiotic plans of the sign ( expression plan And content plan).

2. Draw a semiotic triangle for each analyzed sign, define it denotation, referent, designatum concept.

3. What syntactic and semantic relationships does this sign have with others in a given communicative act (communication event)?

4. What are the additional values ​​( connotations) receives this sign? How does the use of a sign depend on the communicative environment? Analyze the predominant use of verbal and non-verbal signs in various communication environments (trade, industrial, political, educational, tourism, transport, urban, etc.).

An approximate list of topics and Internet resources for preparing reports and presentations.

· Types of communication.

· Communication in small groups.

· Culture and behavior.

· Cultural identity.

· Ethnocentrism.

· The concept and essence of empathy.

· Communication and culture.

overcoming.

http://www. Quintessential. co. uk

Approximate list of questions submitted for final control (differentiated testing)

· Concept of communication.

· Activity theory as a methodological basis for the theory of communication.

· Communication and its types, basic units of verbal communication: texts, communicative acts. The structure of a communicative act.

· Symmetrical, simultaneous and continuous communication.

· Unconscious nature of the communication process.

· Symbolic nature of communication.

· Communication channels.

· Basic aspects and goals of communication.

· Communication functions.

· Models of communication processes.

· The process of encoding - decoding information.

· History and reasons for the emergence of intercultural communication.

· Concept and basic definitions of culture.

· Socialization and inculturation.

· Culture and behavior.

· Cultural norms and values ​​in intercultural communication.

· Cultural identity and its essence.

· Culture and language.

· Sapir-Whorf hypothesis of the relationship between language and culture.

· The essence of ethnocentrism.

· Cultural relativism as a methodological basis for intercultural communication.

· The concept and essence of empathy.

· The nature and essence of the concepts of one's own and another's.

· M. Bennett's model of mastering a foreign culture.

· The concept of communication and its role in culture.

· E. Hall's theory of high- and low-context cultures.

· Theory of cultural dimensions by G. Hofstede.

· Theory of cultural literacy by E. Hirsch.

· Structure of intercultural communication.

· Stereotypes in intercultural communication.

· Causes and functions of stereotypes.

· Communication and communications.

· Communication and culture.

· Verbal communication and its elements.

· Nonverbal communication and its forms.

· Paraverbal communication and its elements.

· The essence of the perception process.

· Culture and perception.

· Essence and attribution errors.

· Intercultural conflicts and their causes.

· The phenomenon of culture shock, its symptoms and methods

· overcoming.

· Concept and determinants of interpersonal attraction.

· The concept and essence of prejudice.

· Types of prejudices and their correction.

· The essence and main forms of acculturation.

· Acculturation as communication.

· Tolerance as a result of intercultural communication.

· Concept and structure of intercultural competence.

· Intercultural training as a method of teaching intercultural communication.

7. Educational, methodological and information support of the discipline (module)

Main literature

1. Sadokhin communication. Textbook, M.: Alfa-M; INFRA-M, 2004

2. Kashkin in the theory of communication. Voronezh: VSTU, 2000.

3., Sadokhin Intercultural Communication: Textbook for Universities (Ed. - M.: UNITY-DANA, 2002.

4. Ter-Minasova and intercultural communication. M.: Slovo / Slovo, 2008

5. , Tsurikova intercultural communication: Textbook - M.: MRION, 2003.

additional literature

1. Budagov and culture in the history of society (nature, nature, culture, civilization) // . History of the word in the history of society. M.: Education, 1971.

2. Non-literal speech acts // Conceptualization and meaning. Novosibirsk: Nauka, 1990.

3. Leontiev, consciousness, personality. M.: Politizdat, 1975.

4. Prokhorov sociocultural stereotypes of speech communication and their role in teaching the Russian language to foreigners. M., 1996.

5. Sorokin, civilization, society. M.: Political publishing house. lit., 1992.

6. Khaleev’s linguistic personality as a recipient of a foreign text. Language is a system. Language - text. Language is an ability. M., 1995.

7. Kravchenko: Dictionary. - M.: Academic project, 2000.

8. Kruglova changes in historical types of cultures (antiquity and the Middle Ages)

9. Tsurikova naturalness of discourse in intercultural

communications. Voronezh: VSU, 2002

10. Falk's communication in basic concepts and definitions. Toolkit. St. Petersburg: Faculty of Philology and Arts

St. Petersburg State University, 2007

11. Gudkov and the practice of intercultural communication. - M.: ITDGK "Gnosis", 2003

12. Peach communication and corporate culture: Textbook. - M.: Logos, 2002

Internet resources

Resources of the electronic library "Gumer"

http://www. gumer. info/s_deab898f62cc6025f0aa4b. html

http://www. gumer. info/bibliotek_Buks/Linguist/m_komm/index. php

Portal about diplomatic experience of intercultural interaction

http://www. diplomacy. edu/Language/Communication/default. htm

http://www. /Dictionary_of_Cross-Cultural_terminology_Inter_cultural_terminology. html

Forum on Intercultural Communication Issues

http://www. Quintessential. co. uk/intercultural-forum/index. php

Blog on problems of intercultural communication

http://web. /hajar/CrossCulturalCommunications/Blog. html

http://www. payer de/kommkulturen/htm.

http://www. case. /library/index/html

http:/rspu. /journals/journal/lexicography/conference. htm

8. Logistics support of the discipline (module)

Specialized classrooms equipped with all necessary equipment; personal computers, digital projectors, Internet access to electronic dictionaries, PROMT, Google programs.

Intercultural communication as a scientific direction arose due to the practical interests of American politicians, businessmen, and diplomats, who had an urgent need to find out the causes and solve the problems that arise when interacting with representatives of different cultures. The fact is that after World War II, the sphere of influence of American politics, economics and culture began to actively expand throughout the world. American government officials working abroad often found themselves helpless in practical contacts with representatives of other cultures. This often led to conflicts, mutual hostility, and resentment. Even perfect knowledge of languages ​​did not eliminate the problems that arose. In this regard, there gradually became an awareness of the need to study not only languages, but also the cultures of other peoples, their customs, traditions, and norms of behavior.

As part of the program of economic assistance to developing countries, Peace Corps experts and activists visited various countries, where they also encountered misunderstandings and conflicts, which often led to the failure of their missions. It was these failures of Peace Corps activists that raised the question of the need for special training, in which the main focus was on developing practical skills in intercultural communication, rather than formal information about the cultural characteristics of a particular country.

In 1946, the US government passed the Foreign Service Act and created the Foreign Service Institute. Scientists of various specialties were brought in to work at the institute - anthropologists, sociologists, psychologists, linguists, etc., who developed new training programs for specialists to work abroad.

The institute's research was completed in 1956. Based on their results, E. Hall's book "The Silent Language" was published in 1959, which became the program for the subsequent development of intercultural communication. In the book, E. Hall proposed an understanding of culture and communication (“communication is culture, culture is communication”).

Soon several directions appeared within intercultural communication itself. One of them was headed by K. Kluckhohn and F. Strodbeck, who proposed their own methodology for studying the cultures of different peoples. The main differences between cultures, from the point of view of the authors, can be established in the attitude of individual cultures to such concepts as the assessment of human nature (the human nature orientation), the attitude of man to nature (the man-nature orientation), the attitude to the concept of time (the time orientation ), assessment of activity/passivity (the activity orientation).

The founders of another direction were L. Samovar and R. Porter, whose scientific interests were related to the study of issues of verbal and nonverbal communication. The authors pay special attention to the problem of interpreting nonverbal behavior, given that nonverbal symbols that are positively assessed by one culture may receive a negative interpretation from speakers of another culture.

In the 1960-1970s, works concerning adaptation to a foreign cultural environment appeared. At the same time, the term “culture shock” appeared. Research into the adaptation process has revealed that culture shock is divided into several stages. The first stage is characterized by euphoria, manifested in admiration for the new cultural environment. Next comes frustration, accompanied by a feeling of doubt and rejection of differences in the values ​​of native and foreign cultures. The process of adaptation ends with the fact that the new foreign cultural environment begins to be perceived as natural and the person acts in accordance with the social and cultural norms of the new environment.

On the European continent, the formation of intercultural communication occurred somewhat later than in the United States, and was caused by completely different reasons. Interest in issues of intercultural communication began to awaken in Europe due to the fact that the formation of the European Community opened the borders of many states for the free movement of people, capital and goods. European capitals and large cities began to intensively change their appearance due to the appearance of representatives of different cultures and their active inclusion in the life of these cities. The practice itself actualized the problem of mutual communication between speakers of different cultures. Since that time, research began to be carried out in Germany related to the problems of acculturation, migration of foreign workers, and relationships between foreign and German workers. Various studies have emphasized aspects of perception, behavior, and language differences, depending on the purpose.

In Russian science and the education system, the initiators of the study of intercultural communication were foreign language teachers, who were the first to realize that for effective communication with representatives of other cultures, knowledge of a foreign language alone is not enough. Various practices of communicating with foreigners have proven that even deep knowledge of a foreign language does not exclude misunderstandings and conflicts with native speakers of that language. Today it has become obvious that successful contacts with representatives of other cultures are impossible without knowledge of the characteristics of these cultures and practical skills in intercultural communication.

Today, there are two main areas of research in intercultural communication. The first of them, based on folklore. Is descriptive. Its objectives are to identify, describe and interpret the everyday behavior of people in order to explain the underlying causes and determining factors of culture.

The second direction, which has a cultural-anthropological nature, the subject of its research is various types of cultural activities of social groups and communities, their norms, rules and values. Social differentiation of society gives rise to its own models and rules of behavior in each group. Knowing them allows you to quickly and effectively resolve situations of intercultural misunderstanding.

The main goals of research in the field of intercultural communication are:

definition of the subject, methodology and conceptual apparatus of intercultural communication;

identifying the place of intercultural communication among other sciences;

formation and development of cultural sensitivity among participants in intercultural communication, the ability to correctly interpret specific manifestations of communicative behavior and a tolerant attitude towards it;

development of a methodology for teaching practical skills and abilities in communicating with representatives of other cultures.

Intercultural communication can be carried out and studied either at the group level or at the individual level. In other words, one can study communication processes between different cultural groups (large and small) or between individuals. Most studies conducted at the group level are in the nature of cultural anthropological and sociological studies, which consider a cultural group as a collective unity (whole) and try to understand it holistically.

Interpersonal level of communication. The final subject of intercultural communication is the person himself. It is people who directly interact with each other. At the same time, whether voluntarily or not, these people are part of certain social groups that have their own cultural characteristics. The behavior of each person is determined by the system of social relations and culture in which he is included. Each participant in cultural contact has his own system of rules, but these rules are determined by his sociocultural affiliation. Differences in these rules can be considered as differences between verbal and nonverbal codes in the specific context of intercultural communication. Therefore, in direct communication, representatives of different cultures must overcome not only language barriers, but also barriers that are non-linguistic in nature and reflect the ethnonational and sociocultural specifics of perception of the surrounding world, national characteristics of thinking, specific facial and pantomimic (kinetic) codes used by speakers of various linguistic and cultural communities.

Thus, it is known that the success or failure of communication largely depends on whether or not communication partners inspire trust in each other. This trust is determined primarily by two factors - the person’s personality and his special knowledge. But these factors are relative in different cultures. In non-Western cultures, trust in a person's personality is more important than trust in his special knowledge, but in Western cultures it is the other way around. Of course, this does not mean that all communicators in Western cultures are not trustworthy, and that communicators in Eastern countries do not have the necessary knowledge. The point is only that in Western countries, special knowledge is more important than personal reliability, while in Eastern countries, reliability is more important than special knowledge.

Finally, it should be taken into account that the process of communication and interpretation of messages in interpersonal communication, in addition to cultural differences, is influenced by the age, gender, profession, and social status of the communicant. They also leave an imprint on the nature of each specific act of communication and the level of mutual understanding of its participants.

Intercultural communication in small groups takes many forms: planned negotiations, for example between representatives of government agencies or business organizations of countries with different cultures; unplanned interactions, such as during holiday trips, conferences or academic seminars. In the latter case, representatives of the same culture try to stick together and a lot of time and effort have to be spent on harmonizing relations between the two cultural groups.

Communication in a small group consisting of representatives of different cultures will be fruitful only if its participants are able to adapt their communicative actions to the specific conditions of this group. Members of monocultural groups usually adhere to general group norms, while members of intercultural groups act as representatives of their cultures and their specific values ​​have a significant influence on the nature of communication. Everyone who has had to participate in such discussions or negotiations claims that representatives of any culture feel hurt if the course of discussion or proposals goes against their cultural values.

For effective communication in a small group, the communicator is forced to adapt to the cultural values ​​and beliefs of foreign cultural group members. Often in an intercultural group, discussants exhibit stereotypes of their own culture not intentionally, but out of habit, and their behavior, as well as the course of the discussion, is influenced by many cultural factors. Therefore, in situations where cultural values ​​influence the very nature of the discussion and the issues discussed, it is very important that communication partners understand and try to convince others that

These problems are culturally determined and not the result of someone’s malicious intent.

This does not mean that participants in discussions should try to change their cultural values ​​or the cultural values ​​of their partners and thereby open the way to agreement (experience shows that there is no culture whose members would be inclined to blame their own cultural values ​​for their problems). On the contrary, it is much more correct to solve problems in such a way that no one goes beyond the boundaries of their own culture. Sometimes the cultural system does not allow the introduction of those changes that are dictated by rational projects and programs proposed during discussions. In this case, it is better to try to look for another practical solution that does not require radical cultural changes.

Intercultural communication in large groups. In cases where intercultural communication is carried out between large groups of people, ethnic and national levels of communication are distinguished (see: Erasov B.S. Social Culturology. M., 1998. P. 422-424).

The ethnic level of intercultural interaction is observed between local ethnic groups, ethno-linguistic, historical-ethnographic (in terms of common spiritual culture), ethno-confessional and other communities. In modern ethnology, an ethnos is considered to be a historically formed set of people in a certain territory, characterized by common cultural characteristics, self-awareness and jointly carried out economic activities. The basis of ethnic unity is the idea of ​​the presence of consanguineous ties between groups of people forming an ethnic group. Ethnic culture concerns primarily the everyday life of an ethnic group and includes language, morals, customs, customary laws, values, knowledge, beliefs, folk art, tools, clothing, food, buildings, means of transportation, etc. Like any culture, ethnic culture appears as a unity of continuity and renewal. Culture renewal can be endogenous (arising within a culture without outside influence) and exogenous (borrowed from outside), resulting from intercultural communication.

In the interaction of cultures at the ethnic level, two trends are clearly evident. Mutual assimilation of cultural elements, on the one hand, contributes to integration processes, mutual cultural exchange and enrichment, and on the other hand, it is accompanied by strengthening of ethnic self-awareness and the desire to consolidate ethnic specificity.

In itself, intercultural communication at the ethnic level, expressed in increased contacts, bilingualism, an increase in the number of mixed marriages, etc., does not yet lead to the establishment of a cultural community. The culture of an ethnos not only ensures its integration and stability as a system, it also performs an ethno-differentiating function, which consists in distinguishing between “us” and “strangers”. Each ethnic group perceives the existence of other ethnic groups as an external phenomenon and distinguishes it both by the nature of its life activity and due to the dissimilarity of its cultural appearance. The attitude towards it can cause interest or, on the contrary, rejection. Mutual or one-sided penetration is possible as a result of the use of any cultural elements, but without loss of mutual separation. Thanks to cultural contacts, elements of interethnic culture are formed, on the basis of which communication between different ethnic groups occurs. The elements of such a culture primarily include languages ​​of interethnic communication, which do not necessarily have a clear national connection. An example is Swahili, used by the peoples of Tropical Africa for trade and economic communication.

However, according to B.S. Erasov, such a culture does not have the degree of maturity that will ensure intensive interaction and agreement of heterogeneous elements. The differentiating characteristics of culture can serve as a reason for hostility and violence, and disagreements and conflicts often arise. The extreme expression of such hostility can be ethnocide—the destruction by a dominant group of the cultural traditions of another ethnic group. In this case, a weak group may survive, but will lose or radically change the culture of its ancestors. All this speaks to the need to form sustainable unity at a higher, national level.

The national level of intercultural communication is possible in the presence of national unity. National unity arises both on a mono-ethnic and multi-ethnic basis through common economic activity and state-political unification. This is complemented by the formation of an appropriate culture. National culture represents a set of traditions, norms, values ​​and rules of behavior common to representatives of one nation or state.

Since a nation embraces a state-organized society, and society is characterized by stratification and social structure, the concept of national culture covers subcultures of social groups that an ethnic culture may not have. Ethnic cultures can be part of the national culture, as well as the cultures of representatives of other nations. Thus, American national culture is extremely heterogeneous; it includes Irish, Italian, German, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican and other cultures. One can speak about the heterogeneity of Russian culture. Most national cultures are multi-ethnic, but unlike ethnic cultures, national cultures unite people living over large territories and not necessarily related by blood.

This determines the types of intercultural communication at the national level: communication between subcultures within a single national culture and communication between national cultures themselves. Such communications often turn out to be dual and lead, on the one hand, to national consolidation (and sometimes supranational consolidation, such as is demonstrated by European nations today, which enabled the famous philosopher, sociologist and writer A.A. Zinoviev to insist on the introduction of a new term - Western "super-society"), and on the other - to the growth of interethnic contradictions within one state or between states.

For example, in India, trends of ethnic, linguistic and religious consolidation, causing clashes between representatives of different ethno-linguistic and religious groups (Kashmir), are directly condemned. Many Indian scientists and politicians consider local nationalism to be the cause of conflicts and frictions leading to disorganization of state unity.

Often, measures to strengthen territorial and national-state unity lead to restrictions on the rights and expulsion of foreign groups. So, in the 1970s. in a number of African countries (Guinea, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, and later Somalia) “foreigners” were expelled, many generations of whom lived in these countries. In the 1990s. Similar processes affected a number of countries of the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia.

The resort to such measures is most often explained by economic reasons, primarily the desire to weaken competition for the “titular ethnic group” in access to local resources, which often causes significant economic damage due to the outflow of the active population and enmity with neighbors. In addition, there are sociocultural reasons, in particular religious ones, as was the case in Bosnia and Croatia, where irreconcilable hostility broke out within a single South Slavic ethnic group, divided religiously.

Communication acts as an interaction of subjects generated by the needs of coexistence. In the process of communication, there is a mutual exchange of types and results of activities, ideas, feelings, attitudes, etc. It is communication that organizes society and allows a person to live and develop in it, coordinating his behavior with the actions and behavior of other people. “There is no sphere of human activity that could not be considered through the prism of communication, not to mention the fact that communication itself, mediated by signs, is increasingly crystallizing into independent activity with a certain psychological structure...”.

The process of communication, due to its practical significance, attracts the attention of specialists in various fields of humanities: philosophy, psychology, sociology, cultural studies, ethnology, linguistics.

Along with the concept of “communication,” in the last few years the term “communication” has appeared and become widespread in Russian science, which has firmly entered the conceptual apparatus of social and humanitarian knowledge. The concepts of “communication” and “communication” partially coincide. They are correlated with the processes of exchange and transmission of information, although these concepts are different in form and content. The term "communication" is derived from the Latin word "communicatio", meaning "to make common, to connect, to communicate."

Based on various points of view and approaches, communication is a socially determined process of exchanging information of different nature and content, transmitted purposefully through various means and aimed at achieving mutual understanding between partners and carried out in accordance with certain rules and norms.

Human communication is limitless and diverse. Diversity is reflected in different forms, types and types of communication. In modern communication science, the following forms of communication are distinguished: interpersonal, business, social, interethnic, intragroup, mass and intercultural. In modern communication science, the identification of certain types of communication is carried out on several grounds, therefore the number of types of communication in different sources varies quite significantly.

The concept of "Intercultural communication"

"Intercultural communication" is a special form of communication between two or more representatives of different cultures, during which information and cultural values ​​of interacting cultures are exchanged. The process of intercultural communication is a specific form of activity, which is not limited only to knowledge of foreign languages, but also requires knowledge of the material and spiritual culture of another people, religion, values, moral attitudes, worldviews, etc. collectively determining the behavior model of communication partners. The study of foreign languages ​​and their use as a means of international communication today is impossible without a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the culture of the speakers of these languages, their mentality, national character, way of life, vision of the world, customs, traditions, etc. Only the combination of these two types of knowledge - language and culture - ensures effective and fruitful communication."

Intercultural communication can be carried out either at the group level or at the individual level. But at both levels the main subject of intercultural communication is a person. Moreover, the behavior of each person is determined by the values ​​and norms of the culture in which he is included. In this regard, each participant in intercultural communication has his own system of rules determined by his sociocultural affiliation. Therefore, when communicating directly, representatives of different cultures face the need to overcome not only linguistic differences, but also sociocultural and ethnic differences.

Currently, a whole group of humanities is studying intercultural communication: cultural studies, communication studies, sociology of culture, linguoculturology, ethnopsychology, etc.

In order to maintain diverse and multi-level contacts and forms of communication, it is necessary not only to know the relevant language, but also to know the norms and rules of a foreign language culture. Each participant in international contacts quickly realizes that proficiency in a foreign language alone is not enough for full-fledged intercultural understanding, that knowledge of the communication process itself is required in order to predict the possibility of misunderstanding partners and avoid it. Human mutual understanding is becoming one of the most important aspects of the development of modern society. Modern man is characterized by a growing need for full communication, the desire “to be best understood and appreciated by others.” The main means of achieving mutual understanding between people is their communication, during which people express themselves and reveal all their qualities.

In communication, a person assimilates universal human experience, historically established social norms, values, knowledge, methods of activity, thus forming as a personality, as a bearer of culture.

intercultural communication context communication

Although a person experiences the world through himself, projecting his own worldview experience onto another person, one must remember that “other” first of all means “different from me.” The dissimilarity of people from each other creates favorable conditions for a person to acquire new skills and abilities and improve existing ones, but, on the other hand, the more differences in character, upbringing, education and level of culture among interacting partners, the more opportunities for contradictions to arise between them and conflicts. Therefore, people must possess a diverse arsenal of forms and means of cultural communication, the basics of psychological knowledge about the behavior of communication partners.

The solution to these issues is the subject of a new scientific direction called “intercultural communication”.

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