Communication across cultures : mutual understanding in a global world / Heather Bowe and Kylie Martin.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bowe, Heather J. (Heather Joan), 1947-

Contributor:

Martin, Kylie.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Intercultural communication.

Politeness (Linguistics).

Speech acts (Linguistics).

Discourse analysis.

Translating and interpreting.

Physical Description:

xiv, 194 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Summary:

Communication Across Cultures examines the ways in which spoken and written language may be interpreted depending on the context and expectations of the participants. Key concepts are drawn from linguistic pragmatics and discourse analysis, and studies of politeness and cross-cultural communication. The book has many examples from a variety of languages and cultures - from Japan to Germany, from the Americas to Africa, and to Australia.

This book is intended for students of linguistics and related disciplines, and interdisciplinary researchers who have no specialised knowledge of linguistics. Relevant literature and recent research are featured and explained throughout for the benefit of students who are learning how research in this field is conducted, and also for interdisciplinary researchers wishing to incorporate some of these perspectives into their own work.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Culture, communication and interaction 1

1.2 Culture, communication and intercultural interaction 2

Chapter 2 Direct and indirect messages: The role of social context identified by Grice and Searle 9

2.1 Grice's maxims 10

2.2 Speech acts 15

2.4 Review 22

Chapter 3 Politeness and face 26

3.1 Theories of politeness: Brown and Levinson 27

3.2 Different perspectives on politeness 32

3.3 Criticisms of Brown and Levinson 34

3.4 The study of cross-cultural pragmatics using natural semantic metalanguage 38

3.5 Cognitive and cultural schema 41

3.7 Review 43

Chapter 4 Speech acts and politeness across cultures 46

4.1 Requests: Indirectness and politeness 47

4.2 Complaints 50

4.3 Apologies 52

4.4 Acceptance of an apology 55

4.5 The gender factor 56

4.7 Review 58

Chapter 5 The analysis of conversation 61

5.1 Turn-taking in conversation 61

5.2 Some differences in turn-taking in intercultural contexts 65

5.3 The role of back-channelling 66

5.4 Repetition as back-channelling in successful intercultural communication 66

5.5 Greetings and leave-taking 68

5.6 Some functions of laughter 72

5.7 Another function of humour: Joking 74

5.8 Cultural differences in conversational routines 75

5.10 Review 76

Chapter 6 Power relations and stereotyping 80

6.1 Hofstede and the dimensions of culture 80

6.2 Power relations in interactions 84

6.3 Stereotyping and ideology 87

6.5 Review 90

Chapter 7 Naming and addressing: Expressing deference, respect, and solidarity 95

7.1 Pronouns of address 95

7.2 Nouns of address 102

7.3 Honorifics 109

7.5 Review 114

Chapter 8 Cultural differences in writing 120

8.1 Linearity: A key principle of English written discourse 120

8.2 Non-linear discourse structures 122

8.3 Multiple perspectives: The example of Japanese 123

8.4 'Digressiveness': A feature of German academic register 127

8.5 The form/content distinction 128

8.6 Letter writing 129

8.8 Review 137

Chapter 9 Interpreting and translating 140

9.1 Types of interpreting 140

9.2 Primacy of the mother tongue 141

9.3 Difficulties in achieving a balance between pragmatic equivalence and impartiality 141

9.4 Interpreters assuming the role of institutional gatekeeper: A case study 142

9.5 Advertising: A true challenge for intercultural communication 143

9.6 The development of interpreting/translating services in Australia 146

9.7 Some tips for translating and interpreting in the business context 152

9.9 Review 154

Chapter 10 Intercultural communication issues in professional and workplace contexts 157

10.1 Two different workplace cultures in contact 157

10.2 Differences of expectation in intercultural business encounters 159

10.3 Information gathering in medical and legal practice 162

10.4 Australian Indigenous clients in the courtroom 163

10.5 Workplace communication: From factory to office 165

10.7 Review 166

Chapter 11 Towards successful intercultural communication 169

11.1 The elaboration of repetition as a creative strategy to help avoid miscommunication 169

11.2 Turn-sharing as collaboration between non-English-speaking workers: Ancillary staff at a Melbourne hospital 174

11.3 The response of the individual to the challenges of intercultural communication 176

11.4 The emergent and distributed nature of cultural cognition: The locus of new conceptual interpretations 177

11.6 Review 179.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 181-192) and index.

ISBN:

9780521695572

0521695570

OCLC:

73994047