“Superficial Americans” vs. “Unfriendly Germans”?

Contrastive and interlanguage approaches to intercultural communication

Dossier / Travail de Séminaire , 2007 , 19 Pages , Note: 1,3

Philologie Américaine - Linguistique

In the age of globalization, intercultural communication has become a necessity in many areas of life. Considering a worldwide increasing mobility, economists, politicians, scientists, tourists, exchange students, global celebrities, and many others frequently communicate in languages different from their mother tongues. Since English is widely spoken in the Western hemisphere, many native speakers are used to conversing with people who have acquired English as a foreign language. Misunderstandings are very likely to occur, often due to linguistic incompetence. Learners who have acquired basic knowledge of a foreign language in school, frequently struggle with their vocabulary, let alone grammatical correctness. Hence, a sufficient command of a (foreign) language is indispensable in order to communicate efficiently. Equally important is the awareness of cross-cultural differences, which often have a major impact on interactions in business as well as in everyday life. Being able to adequately interact with people from different cultures according to their respective values and unwritten rules of communication is referred to as intercultural competence and includes behavioral, communication and comprehension skills (Lüsebrink 2005:9). Interculturally competent individuals have usually appropriated their skills in a learning process of personal experience in foreign countries and theoretical knowledge about various aspects of one or several culture(s). Intercultural trainers are in demand: Seminars and workshops teaching basics of intercultural communication aim at passing on a general awareness of cross-cultural differences and possible difficulties resulting from them. As Casper-Hehne states, a major challenge in intercultural communication is to capture the link between linguistic phenomena and patterns of thought, emotion, and action, which are culture-specific for our interlocutors (2006: 63).

Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• Introduction
• Research
  • Face and face work
  • Contrastive Pragmatics
  • Interlanguage Pragmatics
  • Methodology and procedures
• Findings
  • Dimensions of cross-cultural difference
    • Directness vs. indirectness
    • Self-orientation vs. other-orientation
    • Content vs. addressees / explicitness vs. implicitness
    • Ad-hoc formulation vs. verbal routines
  • Discourse rituals
    • Greetings
    • Farewells
    • Compliments
    • Criticism
    • Discussions
      • Opposition formats
      • Concessions
      • Intercultural disagreement
  • Cross-cultural convergence

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This paper aims to provide an overview of research findings on intercultural communication between German and English speakers. It examines how cultural conventions influence communication patterns, particularly focusing on instances of misunderstanding. The paper draws upon the works of Helga Kotthoff, Juliane House, and Hiltraud Casper-Hehne, who have conducted contrastive and interlanguage pragmatic research on this topic. The concept of face work is introduced and explored in relation to German and English communication styles.

• The impact of cultural conventions on communication patterns between German and English speakers.
• The analysis of intercultural misunderstandings arising from cultural differences.
• The application of contrastive and interlanguage pragmatic research to intercultural communication.
• The role of face work in shaping communication styles in different cultures.
• The exploration of specific discourse rituals and communication strategies in intercultural encounters.

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

The introduction highlights the growing importance of intercultural communication in a globalized world. It emphasizes the challenges of linguistic competence and the need for awareness of cross-cultural differences. The paper defines intercultural communication as interpersonal face-to-face encounters between members of different cultures, focusing on how cultural premises affect interactions. It sets the stage for the analysis of communication patterns between German and English speakers, highlighting the potential for misunderstandings due to cultural variations.

The research section delves into the concept of face and face work, drawing on the work of Brown and Levinson. It explains the distinction between negative and positive face wants and how they manifest in different cultures. The chapter examines how these differences can lead to unintended misunderstandings in intercultural encounters, particularly between German and English speakers. This section lays the groundwork for the subsequent analysis of contrastive and interlanguage pragmatic approaches to intercultural communication.

The chapter on contrastive pragmatics discusses the methodology of comparing speech acts, texts, and discourse sequences across languages. It highlights the potential of this approach to identify culture-specific discourse phenomena and relate them to cultural traits. The chapter emphasizes the importance of combining contrastive analysis with the investigation of intercultural conversations to gain a deeper understanding of cross-cultural differences and the root of misunderstandings.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

Intercultural communication, contrastive pragmatics, interlanguage pragmatics, face work, negative face wants, positive face wants, cross-cultural differences, intercultural misunderstandings, German, English, communication patterns, discourse rituals, linguistic competence.

• Université: University of Hannover
• Cours: Intercultural Communication
• Note: 1,3
• Auteur: Anonym (Auteur)
• Année de publication: 2007
• Pages: 19
• N° de catalogue: V85549
• ISBN (ebook): 9783640408009
• Langue: anglais
• mots-clé: Americans”, Germans”, Intercultural, Communication, Intercultural Communication, Misunderstanding, Linguistics, differences, cross-cultural