跨文化交际 复习资料

1、文化：culture

It is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.

The Characteristics of Culture:

Learned、transmitted、Subject to change、unconscious、integrated、symbolic、adaptive.

2、跨文化交际：intercultural communication

Intercultural communication means the communication between people from different cultural backgrounds. It is communication between people whose cultural perceptions and symbol systems are distinct enough to alter the communication event.

3、高语境文化：High-Context Cultures

①Infer information from message context, rather than from content.

②Prefer indirectness, politeness and ambiguity.

③Convey little information explicitly.

④Rely heavily on nonverbal signs.

4、价值观：Values

A standard by which members of culture define what is desirable or undesirable、good or bad、beautiful or ugly、acceptable or unacceptable. V alues are standards set by the members of a society.

V alues are often highly contexted. V alues can change significantly over time. V alues can differ within one society and around the world.

5、言语交际：verbal communication:

It refers to any form of communication that is directly dependent on the use of language.

非言语交际：Nonverbal communication

It will be defined as the process by which nonverbal behaviors are used, either singly or in combination with verbal behaviors, in the exchange and interpretation of messages within a given situation or context.

6、本地化：Localization

The process of adapting a product or service to a particular language, culture, and desired local “look-and-feel.”Aspects to be considered in localization: Language、Time zones、Money、National holidays、Local color sensitivities、Product or service names、Gender roles、Geographic examples 、Advertisements

7、刻板印象：Stereotypes

A fixed general image, characteristic, etc. that a lot of people believe to represent a particular type of person or thing.

Stereotypes are a form of generalization about some group of people, or a means of organizing images into fixed and simple categories that are used to stand for the entire collection of people. It is found in nearly every intercultural situation. The reason for

the pervasive nature of stereotypes is that human beings have a psychological need to categorize and classify.

8、文化休克：Cultural shock

It is caused by the anxiety that results from losing all familiar signs and symbols of social intercourse.

9、符号：Symbol

A person，an object, an event, etc. that represents a more general quality or situation.

1、猫头鹰的故事：

①This is because Chinese and English native speakers assign different associative meanings to the same bird—owl.

②Owl in China is the sign of bad luck. The mere sight of an owl or the sound of the creature’s hooting is enough to cause people to draw back in fear.

But in English it is associated with wisdom. In children’s books and cartoons, whenever there is a dispute among birds or beasts, it is the owl that acts as judge.

③The term dog elicits different feelings in these two cultures. In China gou(dog) often has derogative meanings, such as 狼心狗肺. But in West is considered the best friend of man, which is well established in their cultures. So the feel disgusted at eating dog meat.

④Long(龙) is a symbol of the emperor in ancient China. It has been almighty to us Chinese. Today long is often identified with China or Chinese. But to the English—speaking people, the Chinese long has been rendered in English as “dragon”. Dragon is a fire—spitting monster, cruel and fierce that destroys and therefore must be destroyed.

⑤In Chinese ,松、柏、鹤、桃stand for longevity. In English, they are just plants.

2、气泡空间：

①This is because each person has a “bubble” of space (territory). Studies show that people from South America, Arab countries, and many Asian countries have a smaller personal territory than do North Americans, British and Germans. In Mexican and Arab cultures, physical distance between people when engaged in conversation is very close. In order to feel comfortable while talking, what the Mexican does is to move closer, while what the North American does is to step back a little.

②In Western counties, personal territory is highly valued. Each one has his/her own space at home or in office which should not be invaded. In public places, they have “temporary territory”, not be intruded upon either.

③As is in the case of human behavior, the use of space is directly linked to the value system of different cultures. The Americans whose culture stresses individualism generally demand more space than do people from collectivistic cultures and tend to take an active, aggressive stance when their space is violated.