This course offers a meaning based-approach to cross-cultural communication. In different societies people speak differently, not only because they speak different languages but because their ways of using language are different. These differences can be profound and systematic, reflecting different cultural values, or at least different hierarchies of values. This can be the case even within one country. By studying cultural values manifesting themselves in different ways of speaking, we can improve our ability to interact with others.

Topics explored in the course include the following: The ‘logic of conversation': Are there universal principles of human conversation?; Different styles of social interaction; communicative styles and ‘cultural scripts', key words; heterogeneity of societies and the problem of stereotyping; different attitudes to emotions and non-verbal communication. How can we study these empirically?  Examples are drawn from Anglo-Australian Anglo-American, African American, Indigenous Australian, Chinese, French, Japanese, Jewish and Israeli, Korean, Malay, Melanesian, Polish, Russian, Southeast Asian, Hispanic, and West African speech communities.

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Explain how and why miscommunication happens and how stereotypes are formed.
2. Identify and analyse speech practices that are characteristic to a speech community or community of practice.
3. Describe and analyse speech practices and associated ways of behaving from a non-ethnocentric perspective.
4. Identify and evaluate ways of studying cross-cultural and intercultural communication.
5. Reflect on their experience and contribute, in their own way, to a better intercultural understanding in Australia and in the world.
6. Carry out research on intercultural and crosscultural communication.
7. Apply the analytical techniques learned to the culturally unbiased description of speech practices and associated ways of behaving.

Assignment : 1200 words (25%) [Learning Outcomes 2, 3]

Research proposal: 3500 words (50%) [Learning Outcomes 6, 7]

Tutorial and Wattle class forum posts and discussion (10%) [Learning Outcomes 1-5]

In-class test: 1 hour (15%) [Learning Outcome 4]

3 hours of classes for 8 weeks, 2 hours of classes for 5 weeks, and up to 4 hours a week outside contact hours.

No assumed knowledge or required skills

LING2021, LING1021

A reading brick available on-line on the course Wattle site.