跨文化交际复习资料.doc

跨文化交际课程期末考试复习资料
I. Give a brief definitions of the following terms(名词解释)
1. Non-verbal communication
It refers to communication through a whole variety of different types f signal come into play, including the way we more, the gestures we employ, the posture we adopt, the facial expression we wear, the direction of our gaze, to the extent to which we touch and the distance we stand from each other.
2. privacy
privacy: It could be understood as the right of an individual to self-determination as to the degree to which the individual is willing to share with others information about himself that may be compromised by unauthorized exchange of such information among other individuals or organizations.
3. slang
Words and expressions which are regarded as very informal and so are not considered suitable for formal social situations or serious writing.
4. collectivist culture
Collectivist cultures place little value on individual identity and great value on group identity. They have been labeled as “we” cultures because basic unit is the in-group or collective.
5. culture shock
culture shock： It is a psychological phenomenon that is experienced most often by those who, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, in the process of adjusting themselves to a new culture.
6. proverb
Proverbs are those popular short sayings containing words of advice or warning—are an important part of the language and culture of a society.
7. intercultural communication.
8. Individual Culture
Individuals tend to define themselves by the extent to which they are different from, rather than similar to other. People are encouraged to display self-confidence and assertiveness, disclosure of personal thoughts and feelings.
9. Culture
Culture means:
(a) The arts, customs, and habits that characterize a particular society or nation.
(b).The beliefs, values, behavior and material objects that constitute a people's way of life.
10. Proxemics
Proxemics refers to the study of spatial relations. The study of proxemics includes three aspects of space: (a) fixed features of space. (b) semifixed features of space, and (c) personal space
11. Norms
Norms refer to rules for appropriate behavior, which provide the expectations people have of one another and of others. Norms are the outward manifestations of beliefs and values.
12. Individualism
Individualism refers to the doctrine that the interests of the individual are or ought to be paramount, and that all values, right, and duties originate in individuals. It emphasizes individual initiative, independence，individual expression, and even privacy.
13. Paralanguage
The set of nonphonemic properties of speech, such as speaking tempo, vocal pitch, and intonational contours, that can be used to communicate attitudes or other shades of meaning.
14. Low-context culture
Cultures in which little of the meaning is determined by the message is encoded in the explicit code are labeled low-context.

II. Answer the following questions(简答题)
1. Give some basic rules of boys or girls interaction
2. Describe the different ways in showing hospitality between Chinese culture and western culture
Chinese guests always refuse offer of drinks or food to demonstrate politeness in seeming not to wish to put their host to any trouble.Sometimes an offer is not a real offer but a polite remark. After we say 'no', we usually wait for the second and third offer. If the host just brings the food or drink and ignores 'no', we ill accept it. Chinese like to press their guests to drink or eat to show their hospitality. While westerners always accept or refuse offer of drinks or food very genuinely.Their refusal is accepted as genuine.Westerners don’t to press. To press people to have food or drink after they have refused is frowned upon and can cause embarrassments.
3. What are the differences on receiving gifts between Chinese and westerner?
In the West, it is regarded as polite to open gifts as soon as they are given to express appreciation. In China, the situation is quite the reverse. Normally we Chinese feel that if you open the gift as soon as it is given, you might embarrass the person who gives the gift and you might be thought greedy. Therefore, Chinese people tend to open the gifts after the visitors have left.
In China, many people send gifts without wrapping them, and if they wrap them, they usually tell the receiver what is inside, and the receiver will thank the sender and put the gift aside without unwrapping them since they already know what is inside. English receivers open the gifts in front of the senders of the gifts.
4. Explain the term “intercultural communication competence” and its three components.
The intercultural competence refers to the ability to understand and adapt the target culture. Intercultural communicative competence involves cognitive, affective and operational aspects, which are inseparable in reality. The interrelatedness of cognitive, affective, and operational components is very important in the improvement of the communicator’s intercultural communication competence. There are also three aspects in terms of affective components: adaptation motivation, Identity flexibility and esthetic co-orientation, The cognitive aspects of intercultural communication competence are the mental capacities of comprehension and ability to understand the meanings of various verbal and nonverbal codes. Operational components are that Individuals’ capacity to express cognitive and affective experiences outwardly is shown through specific behaviors.
1. The obstacles of studying Intercultural communication
2. Why do many Chinese people tend to ask about age, martial status, and even salary when first meeting one another?
To them, these are open conversational topics. Knowing a person’s age helps them use appropriate terms of address. And Chinese people pay a lot of attention to family life, so naturally talk of family members features as a common topic. As to salary, since there is a national system of salaries, people usually don’t consider it a secret and they talk about it openly.
3 . Analyze the cultural variations in selecting negotiators in America and Japan
4. What would you do if a stranger pronounced your name incorrectly?
5. What are the five basic themes in individualist culture?
1) There is a tendency for foreigners to treat strangers as equals, seen in the politeness with which foreigners treat out-group members and their willingness to follow public rules and laws that guarantee the rights of all. 2) There is a desire for independence and separateness, found in foreigners' needs for their own privacy and autonomy and in the freedom they give to children. 3) There is a lack of inhibition on the part of foreigners in terms of expressive behaviors, seen in their lack of concern about drawing attention to themselves and their willingness to disclose feelings and emotions. 4) There is a lack of understanding if the reciprocal bonds and duties that regulate in-group members, found in foreigners' casual attitudes towards hospitality. 5) There is a lack of concern at public displays of physical or sexual intimacy.
6. Analyze the characteristics in Masculine communication culture
7. What are the differences between Chinese and English Kin Terms?
In Chinese culture, people refer to people strictly according to the kin terms. It is completely unacceptable to refer to one's parents by using the names. When children address relatives, Chinese kin terms tell whether they are older or younger than their father or mother. Chinese kin terms tell whether the relatives are from the mother' or father's side and whether one's brother, sister or cousin is older or younger than he/she. Chinese kin terms are also to other people who are not one's relatives; kin terms are widely used to address known or unknown people
While in English culture, in some families in Western countries, some children address their parents directly by their first names. In Britain, children are expected to address the parents' brother and sisters with the title of Uncle or Aunt plus their names and sometimes simply address them by first name without a title. English kin terms don’t tell whether the relatives are from the mother' or father's side ,and there are not distinct kin terms for elder brother or younger brother. Kin terms are not as frequently used as in Chinese. In all kinds of social situations, either formally or informally, people won't use kin terms to address each other if they are not relatives.
8. State six principles for effective cross-gender communication.
9. What is the significance of Nonverbal Communication?
Nonverbal behavior is a significant area of communication study for at least three
reasons.
Nonverbal behavior accounts for much of the meaning we get from conversations.
Nonverbal behavior spontaneously reflects the subconsciousness.
We cannot avoid communicating through nonverbal signals.
Besides, nonverbal behavior is significant because nonverbal communication can
be open to many interpretations.
10. Describe the U.S. cultural patterns with the five value orientation categories.
People in the United States generally believe in a supreme God or universal spirit and believe that they can control nature. They have a lot of faith in science and technology and are materialistic. They get a sense of identity from work and generally separate work from play. People, in the United States are efficient, practical, and see progress and change as a good thing. They place a high value on time and have a future time orientation, although they often divide it into short-term goals.
People in the United States do not agree about whether humans are naturally good, bad, or a mixture of both. However, two beliefs related to human nature—rationality and mutability--- are still believed by many in the United States. One of the most fundamental beliefs of people is individualism. Associated with this belief are the ideas of self-motivation, competition, and responsibility for one’s own actions. People in the United States also have an unshakable belief in equality. They do not believe that everyone is the same, but they do believe that everyone does or should have the same opportunities as everyone else. Last, people in the United States are conformist—it is important to stay in touch with the latest fashion in hair, clothing, and so forth.
11. What does "gilding the lily" mean?
12.What are the communication differences between high-and low-context cultures?
13.What are the social functions of compliments
14. List some study area in nonverbal communication.
15. What would you do if someone asks you a question that you feel too personal?
16. Explain high-context culture and low-context culture.
Cultures in which little of the meaning is determined by the message is encoded in the explicit code are labeled low-context. Cultures in which less has to be said or written because more of the meaning is in the physical environment or already shared by people are labeled high context .

17. Explain the definition of “collectivist culture”
a. Collectivist cultures place little value on individual identity and great value on group identity. They have been labeled as “we” cultures because basic unit is the in-group or collective.
b. kindness to visitors: friendly, welcoming, and generous treatment offered to guests or strangers
c. Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, or social outlook that stresses "the moral worth of the individual" . Individualists promote the exercise of one's goals and desires and so independence and self-reliance while opposing most external interference upon one's own interests, whether by society, or any other group or institution .
18. How do people from different cultures understand “silence”?
The use of silence in communication is different from culture to culture. Silence can communicate agreement, apathy, awe, confusion, contemplation, disagreement, embarrassment, obligation, regret, repressed hostility, respect, sadness, thoughtfulness, or any number of meanings. In eastern cultures, silence has long been regarded as a virtue. While in western cultures, silence has generally been considered socially disagreeable. To most people in the United States, silence means lack of attention and lack of initiative. To the Chinese, silence means agreement.
19. Analyze the characteristics in Feminine communication culture
20. Why do we need to study intercultural communication?
(1). Technological development
The development of new transportation and information technologies has connected all nations in ways that were possible before this century only in the imagination.
(2). Widespread population Migrations
(3). The changes in the international business community have compelled China to reexamine her business.
(4). Development of Multiculturalism. Cultural diversity or multiculturalism will become the norm; not the exception. The public must acknowledge and adjust to difference but build on commonality.
21. What are the characteristics in naming Chinese Given Names?
There have existed differences in naming given names to male and female throughout the Chinese history. If we get down to the classifications of the Given Names according to the different sexes, it is not difficult to see that the differences may lie in two categories, that is, in meanings and forms. Traditionally, male given names usually suggest steel and great strength, showing great concerns about the fate and future of the nation, while female given names impress people on their beauty, elegance, fragrance, loveliness, and gentleness. Shown in the following are the ten classifications of both the sexes showing different characteristics in given names:
22. State two typical situations to send flowers in business and social situations
There are two typical situations in which flowers can be useful to businesspeople. One is to help establish a good relationship with a secretary. The other is when an executive is invited to someone's house. It is still more customary - all over the world - to give flowers to women rather than men, who in most cultures only receive flowers when ill. Here are some flower-giving guidelines which should keep you from falling foul of local taboos.
Part III Case Analysis (You are required to state cultural phenomenon in each case)(3*20’)
Case 1
Xiao LI and Xiao Wang were colleagues. Xiao LI gave a lot of help to Xiao Wang financially and socially. Recently Xiao LI would get married. But he forgot inviting Xiao Wang attend his wedding. Later Xiao Wang got information about Xiao LI’ wedding and sent RMB 500 Yuan to Xiao LI.

Question: What cultural phenomenon can be reflected? Why?

In Chinese culture influenc