Journal of Business and Technical Communication Apr 1993

“The Gods must be Crazy”: The Challenge of the Intercultural

TIMOTHY WEISS

Abstract

Pedagogy and research in intercultural and international communication depend on an understanding of a framework of concepts: (a) the instability and ambiguity of cross-cultural signifiers, (b) culture as a changing construct, (c) culture as a plurality and mixture of cultures, and (d) cross-cultural communication as dialogic. We need to revise our notion of culture as acquisition, our transmission model of communication, and our pedagogy of presenting tips and fostering stereotypes about “foreign” peoples and places. We need to begin with concepts of intercultural/international communication and a discussion of faulty approaches and appraisals that engender miscommunication before taking a narrow focus on dos and don'ts in our exchanges with others.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
1993-04-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651993007002002
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Topics
writing pedagogy
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (17)

  1. Marsen et al. (2024)
    Introduction to Special Issue: Educating Global Communicators: How Communicatio…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Rieger (2022)
    Intercultural Communication: Providing a Working Definition of Culture and Reex…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Batova (2018)
    Global Technical Communication in 7.5 Weeks Online: Combining Industry and Acad…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  4. Agboka (2013)
    Participatory Localization: A Social Justice Approach to Navigating Unenfranchi…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Yu (2012)
    A Study of Engineering Students' Intercultural Competence and Its Implications …
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
Show all 17 →
  1. Agboka (2012)
    Liberating Intercultural Technical Communication from “Large Culture” Ideologie…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Bokor (2011)
    Moving International Technical Communication Forward: A World Englishes Approach
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Yu (2011)
    Integrating Intercultural Communication into an Engineering Communication Servi…
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  4. Cardon (2008)
    A Critique of Hall's Contexting Model: A Meta-Analysis of Literature on Intercu…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  5. Matveeva (2008)
    Teaching Intercultural Communication in a Basic Technical Writing Course: A Sur…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  6. Matveeva (2007)
    The Intercultural Component in Textbooks for Teaching a Service Technical Writi…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  7. Barker et al. (2006)
    Teaching Intercultural Communication in a Technical Writing Service Course: Rea…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  8. Hunsinger (2006)
    Culture and Cultural Identity in Intercultural Technical Communication
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  9. Forman (1998)
    Corporate image and the establishment of Euro Disney: Mickey mouse and the Fren…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  10. Miles (1997)
    Globalizing Professional Writing Curricula: Positioning Students and Re-Positio…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  11. Boiarsky (1995)
    The relationship between cultural and rhetorical conventions: Engaging in inter…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  12. Kostelnick (1995)
    Cultural adaptation and information design: two contrasting views
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

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CrossRef global citation count: 21 View in citation network → Build reading path →

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