Introduction to

Intercultural Communication
Competence
CHAPTER 1 Lecturer:
Nguyen Minh
Triet, M.A

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 Intercultural Competence
What is “intercultural”?
What is “competence”?

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 IMPERATIVES FOR
INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE
1. The demographic imperative
2. The technological imperative
3. The economic imperative
4. The peace imperative
5. The interpersonal imperative
 IMPERATIVES FOR
INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE

Demographic Economic
01 ❖ How many races, ethnic
groups, religions,
03 ❖ What makes corporations send
their employees abroad?
languages are there in ❖ Have you ever worked with a
Vietnam and in the U.S? foreigner?

Technological Peace
02 ❖ What is global village?
❖ Why do new technologies
04 ❖ What are hate groups?
❖ What if individuals fail to
increase our need to study understand and appreciate
about Intercultural those who culturally differ
Competence? from themselves?

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Competence

 DEMOGRAPHIC
IMPERATIVE
(Races & languages)

• The U.S.: Many cultural groups living

together➔ Multicultural society
• New York public schools > 160 different
languages are spoken.
• Los Angeles [CA] > 100 different
languages are spoken.
DEMOGRAPHIC IMPERATIVE
(Ethnic groups)
The American People – A Melting Pot
of races
The United States of America is
a diverse country,
racially, and ethnically
1. Native Americans
2. European Americans
3. Asian Americans
4. African Americans
DEMOGRAPHIC IMPERATIVE
(Religions)

The American People – A Melting Pot of races

The United States of America is
a diverse country, racially, and ethnically
- Native Americans
- European Americans
- Asian Americans
- African Americans
 TECHNOLOGICAL IMPERATIVE

Global Village
02
- Technological advances, mass media
- Modern long-distance transportation
➔ Intercultural contacts increase
 TECHNOLOGICAL IMPERATIVE

Intercultural links:
- 64 million U.S residents travel abroad

annually
- Citizens of other cultures visiting the U.S

Technology: human interactions across the globe

➔ increase the amount of
communication among people from
different cultures
 ECONOMIC IMPERATIVE

• Links between world

business partners
• Corporations= moving pp
from one country to
another
• The increasing cultural
diversity within the
nation’s workforce
Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Competence
 ECONOMIC IMPERATIVE
Read the story 1
A journalist asks a Dell computer manager where his laptop is
made:
1. Co-designed in Texas & Taiwan
2. Microprocessor: made in Intel’s factories in the Philippines,
Costa Rica, Malaysia, China
3. Memory: from factories in Korea, Germany, Taiwan, or
Japan
4. Keyboard, hard drive, batteries: made by Japanese,
Taiwanese, Irish, Israeli, or British firms with factories mainly
in Asia → Laptop: assembled in Taiwan
Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Competence
 ECONOMIC IMPERATIVE

Story 2
✓ Corporate world in Bangkok
✓ New year beginning on January 1st
✓ Local workers vs American ones
✓ Different views on gift giving

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Competence

 Hate group: a social group
PEACE -> show hatred, hostility,
IMPERATIVE commit crimes or use
violence or attack
members of a race, an
ethnicity, a nation, sexual
orientation, a religion

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 PEACE IMPERATIVE

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 ● Ku Klux Klan – KKK: advocated
extremist reactionary positions
– white supremacy, white
nationalism, anti-migration,
PEACE anti-Catholicism
IMPERATIVE ● Racist skinheads: the white
supremacist movement against
Jews, blacks, LGBT
● Neo-Nazis: a hatred for Jews
and a love for Adolf Hitler and
Nazi Germany
Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence
 INTERPERSONAL IMPERATIVE

Neighbors Family members

01 Speak different first 02 Individuals from
languages, dif.values, cultural backgrounds
celebrate dif. customs other than yours

Team leader
Colleagues at work
A team leader’s supervisor
03 Belong to various
cultures
04 from Switzerland but his
members located in New
York, Buenos Aires,
Shanghai, etc.
Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence
 INTERPERSONAL IMPERATIVE
➢ Ability to communicate competently w/ pp from
other cultures
→ higher quality of life
➢ Failing to creating a harmonious intercultural
society
+ human suffering
+ hatred passed on from one generation to another
+ disruptions in people’s lives
+ unnecessary conflicts

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

Follow-up activity

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 Homework 1

MERCURY VENUS
Mercury is the closest planet Venus has a beautiful name.
to the Sun and the smallest It’s also terribly hot,even
one in the Solarunderstanding
System hotter than Mercury

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 Homework 2

MERCURY VENUS
Mercury is the closest planet Venus has a beautiful name.
to the Sun and the smallest It’s also terribly hot,even
one in the Solar System hotter than Mercury

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 REMINDER DAY 1
1. Review five imperatives; Do your homework
2. Preview “Communication” page 12-21
3. Register membership for presentations;
➔ No need to inform your teacher, but leaders
will draw topic papers next week.
Official membership is expected to be
MERCURY
announced on the presentation
Mercury is the closest planet
date.
Venus has a beautiful name.
4. and
to the Sun Everyone is encouraged to It’s
the smallest join Zalo
also group
terribly for
hot,even
further
one in the Solar discussions on the course.
System hotter than Mercury

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence

 The end

Chapter 1: Introduction to Intercultural Communication Competence