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To complement past emphasis on understanding other cultures, the field of intercultural business communication needs a stronger focus on understanding oneself. Cultural identity is an individuals sense
of self derived from formal or informal membership in groups that transmit and inculcate knowledge,
beliefs, values, attitudes, traditions, and ways of life. A broad conception of cultural identity should
not privilege nationality but instead should balance components related to vocation, class, geography,
philosophy, language, and the social aspects of biology. Cultural identity changes over time and
evokes emotions. It is intertwined with power and privilege, affected by close relationships, and negotiated through communication. The proposed model of cultural identity highlights components directly
related to business, such as economic class and professional affiliation, and demonstrates how culture not only connects people but also defines them as unique individuals. This model can expand
research and enrich teaching in intercultural business communication.
Keywords:
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necessary and their synthesis is the key to the effective practice of intercultural business, technical, and professional communication.
To increase understanding of a
communicators state of mind in an
intercultural business communication
situation, it is necessary to reconceptualize cultural identity.
Scholars often define culture in general, inclusive ways but operationalize it in narrow, specific ways. Hofstede (1980), for instance, saw
culture as the collective programming of the mind (p. 13) but primarily
studied cultural differences related to nationality. Gudykunst and Kim
(1992) defined culture as systems of knowledge shared by a relatively
large group of people (p. 13) but identified groups in terms of political
boundaries between countries. Haworth and Savages (1989) channelratio model of intercultural communication seemed applicable to any context, but all their illustrations related to differences in nationality.
Some writers view culture as a hierarchy, with a national-level, dominant macroculture as an umbrella over many subcultures or cocultures
(Chaney & Martin, 2007). Others acknowledge the broader components of
culture but limit their own focus. For example, Hecht, Collier, and Ribeau
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(1993) defined culturewhether national, ethnic, professional, organizational, or gender based (p. 15)as patterns of interaction and perception that
a group of people share; the focus of their work, however, was ethnic cultural
identity, in particular that of African Americans. Trompenaars (1994)
acknowledged corporate and professional cultures but limited his work to the
first level, the differences in culture at a national level (p. 9).
Other writers equate cultural identity with nationality and separate it from
ethnicity, race, religion, class, and other components that broader definitions
of culture encompass. Sussman (2000), for instance, said that within her
work the terms culture and country are used interchangeably (p. 355).
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The privileging of nationality and to a lesser extent ethnicity in the conception of cultural identity has several causes. Politically, the creation of
international movements such as the Peace Corps as well as the growth
of international business increased interest in international studies and
encouraged country-based comparisons. Hofstedes (1980) influential
studies heightened the interest in national cultures. Using a large corporate survey in the 1970s, he categorized employees by nationality and
chose nations as his units of analysis. Subsequent scholars applied his theories and methodology to other countries and contexts.
Another cause of the emphasis on nationality in definitions of culture
has an underlying philosophical basis. As the study of culture moved from
its historical intellectual baseanthropologyto psychology, communication, and business management, scholars sought to carve out areas of
specialization. One way to do this was to isolate one component of cultural identity, such as nationality or ethnicityor even one particular
nationality or one particular ethnicityto the exclusion of others. This
approach dovetailed with a growing concern about the treatment of minority groups in North America and Europe. Some specialists, such as Collier
(2005), cited a philosophical commitment to social justice as their motivation for focusing narrowly on ethnicity in cross-cultural studies. The
privileging of countries might even reflect a Western bias related to
philosophies of patriotism and nationalism (Limaye & Victor, 1991).
An additional reason for the continued privileging of nationality concerns
practical issues about intercultural research. Whatever the type of study, it is
often easier to obtain information about participants nationality than about
their socioeconomic class, ethnicity, religion, and other elements of cultural identity. Even when such details are available, each added variable
complicates the methodology and interpretation of results.
In summary, for political, philosophical, or practical reasons, many
studies of intercultural communication narrow their focus to one component of cultural identity.
Benefits of Expanding the Concept of Cultural Identity
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when Triandis (1989), Sussman (2000), and others replicated Kuhn and
McPartlands (1954) study, they found that many people do not include
nationality in descriptors of their identity. Similarly, according to Cross
(1991), race and ethnicity are not necessarily the most salient elements of
cultural identity for minorities.
Second, as a result of the more accurate conception of cultural identity,
business education and training would improve. For instance, an expanded
concept of cultural identity could reduce stereotyping, which is based on
overgeneralizing and oversimplifying. This change would help people
understand others multidimensional backgrounds and prevent people
from assuming that nationality or ethnicity was more important in cultural
identity than class, vocation, religion, gender, or other components. In
addition, a more complex conception of cultural identity could enhance
peoples intercultural communication abilities. Focusing solely on nationality may lead people to have unjustified confidence in their ability to
interact effectively in intercultural situations. Appreciating the complexities of cultural identity will help people discover areas of commonality
with others instead of just the differences.
A third benefit of an expanded concept of cultural identity would be
new perspectives on and approaches to intercultural business communication research. A broader concept would include specific connections to
business and other vocational factors. Studies of corporate culture typically take the perspective of the organization as a whole, not of individuals within it. Yet just as growing up in a country or being part of a
particular ethnic group affects a persons values, beliefs, and behavior, so
does being acculturated into a particular profession, field, or company. In
intercultural business communication, cultural identity must include vocational and professional components as central, not peripheral.
Two examples illustrate how a broader definition of cultural identity
might enrich intercultural business communication research. In Grahams
(1985) oft-cited study contrasting the communication styles of Americans,
Japanese, and Brazilians, the subjects participated in a negotiation experiment with partners of their own nationality. The groups differed not only
in nationality but also in other traits, including age, professional field,
education, and amount of business experience. Thus, it seems likely that
the contrasting communication styles were related to a complex combination of cultural differences, not to nationality alone. Bilbows (2002) linguistic study of speech acts in business meetings at a Hong Kong airline
corporation concluded that Chinese participants used promises and statements of commitment differently than did Westerners (a category that
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Identity
Objective
identity
Subjective
identity
Personal
identity
Collective
identity
Social
identity
Figure 1.
Cultural
identity
concerns, in addition, what people have learned in the past and how they
plan to influence the future.
Triandis (1989) provided an analogy that highlights the long-term versus short-term contrast between cultural and social identities: Culture is
to society what memory is to the person (p. 511). He goes on to say that
culture is like memory in that it
specifies designs for living that have proven effective in the past, ways of
dealing with social situations, and ways to think about the self and social
behavior that have been reinforced in the past. It includes systems of symbols
that facilitate interaction . . . rules of the game of life that have been shown to
work in the past. When a person is socialized in a given culture, the person
can use custom as a substitute for thought, and save time. (pp. 511-512)
Cultural identity and social identity also differ in their academic domains
and methodologies. The study of social identity often focuses narrowly and
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What components should a broader, more balanced conception of individual cultural identity include? The work of Varner and Beamer (2005) is
a good place to start because they have specified what culture does as well
as what it is. They defined culture as the coherent, learned, shared view
of a group of people about lifes concerns that ranks what is important,
furnishes attitudes about what things are appropriate, and dictates behavior (p. 5). But what constitutes a group of people? A broad, balanced conception of cultural identity includes components related to a persons
membership in groups based on at least six commonalities: vocation,
class, geography, philosophy, language, and biology (see Table 1).
Vocation
Corporate and other vocation-related groups of people constitute cultures that are especially relevant to business, technical, and professional
communication but that are underexplored in studies of cultural identity.
Those who work for a company or other type of organization for a length
of time often, though not always, buy into its values and cultural practices.
Sometimes, even subunits of corporations, such as divisions or departments, create strong cultural affiliations (Kuhn & Nelson, 2002).
Corporate and professional cultures are closely related to language use. In
a study of Swedish, German, and British banks, for instance, Gunnarsson
(2000) showed how discourse created distinct organizational cultures,
which were influenced by both national and industry sector cultures.
Some industries and vocational fields, such as education, agriculture,
engineering, and social work, operate as cultures in that they rank priorities, encourage particular attitudes, and develop traditions. In the hospitality industry, for instance, those in the culinary field often share a
distinctive culture, with allegiances and hierarchies communicated
through symbols such as dress and technical language (Fine, 1996).
Table 1.
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Vocation
Occupational field
Profession or job category
Employing organization
Subunit of organization
Class
Economic class
Social class
Educational class
Geography
Nationality
Region, state, province, or city identification
Density identification (urban, suburban, small town, rural)
Residence (if different from nationality)
Philosophy
Religious identity
Political identity
Identity based on other philosophies
Language
First language
Dialect
Other languages
Biological traits with cultural aspects
Race
Ethnicity
Gender
Sexual orientation
Health
Age
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Some states and provinces have particular cultures. Even some cities, such
as Paris and New Orleans, have distinctive cultures that give residents
common outlooks and traditions. Geographic distinctions related to population densityrural, small town, suburban, or urbancut across
national and regional boundaries and create cultural groups united by attitudes toward time, space, privacy, property, security, and other matters.
Culturally, ranchers in the Argentine pampas and the Russian steppe may
have more in common with each other than with urbanites in Buenos Aires
or Moscow, respectively. Furthermore, place of residence is not synonymous with nationality. People who live in a particular place for some time,
irrespective of citizenship, absorb cultural values and behaviors. In short,
though countries do define cultural groups, so do other aspects of place
that often transcend nationality.
Corporate strategy and decision making often need to account for cultural differences related to regional or density distinctions. For instance,
food retailers modify the distribution of products according to local tastes,
values, and traditions. Regional distinctions often interact with other cultural differentiators, such as ethnicity. The U.S. grocery industry recognizes that the Hispanic market in Miami is quite different from that in
Atlanta and both are different from that in rural Kansas. Variations in food
preferences and traditions, as well as terminology, require that food retailers distribute products and communicate differently according to region.
Philosophy
Religion and other types of philosophy define cultural groups that cut
across nationality and ethnicity. Roman Catholics around the world, for
instance, are united not only by theological and ecclesiastical views but
also by common commitments, such as serving the poor. The superior performance of Asian Americans on college entrance tests may result from
Confucianisms long-term impact on attitudes toward education and
parental authority (Kristof, 2006). Political and social philosophies, too,
can create cultural groups. For many people, the labor movement establishes a sense of mission and group solidarity. For others, affiliation with
a political party or movement provides cultural ties. The impact of religion and philosophy on business communication deserves further study.
A recent example of how religion can affect business policy and decision
making occurred in the pharmaceutical industry when emergency contraceptive pills became available in the United States. Because of their religious beliefs, some pharmacists refused to dispense the product; the
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By definition, culture is learned, not innate, passed down from one generation to the next. How, then, can a conception of cultural identity
include traits that have some biological basis, such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, health, and age? Each of these traits is simultaneously biological and social. Through social interaction, groups of people
who share a biological trait sometimes develop a coherent, learned, shared
view about lifes concerns that ranks what is important, furnishes attitudes
about what things are appropriate, and dictates behaviorthus, they meet
Varner and Beamers (2005) definition of culture.
Race. Race has more importance in cultural identity than in biological
identity. Based primarily on external physical appearance, race was discredited as a biological concept when it was shown there was more variation within categories than across them (Betancourt & Lpez, 1993). Yet
as Sellers, Smith, Shelton, Rowley, and Chavous (1998) noted in a study
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of racial identity, although race has dubious value as a scientific classification system, it has had real consequences of the life experiences and life
opportunities of African Americans (p. 18). Recently, Harvard professor
Henry Louis Gates Jr., used DNA analysis to trace the complex genetic
ancestry of a group of well-known African Americans. The results, presented in a Public Broadcasting System television documentary, contrasted the social versus biological construction of race (Gates, 2006).
Studies of transracial adoptees and multiracial children have explored how
individuals gain a sense of cultural identity related to race (Richards,
1994). Race thus remains a powerful component of culture.
Ethnicity. Ethnicity is widely acknowledged as a part of cultural identity even though it is an amorphous concept. When Phinney (1990)
reviewed articles on ethnic identity, she found that two thirds did not
define ethnicity. Most scholars relate ethnicity to heritage through genetics and population movements; in this sense, ethnicity involves the traditions and values passed down from previous generations who moved from
one homeland to another. In countries that have had voluntary or involuntary immigration, ethnicity concerns where forbearers came from (e.g.,
African Americans, Japanese Peruvians, Turkish Germans, Russian
Israelis). In places without recent immigration or migration, population
movement may not be a factor in ethnicity (e.g., the 56 ethnic groups in
China; the English, Welsh, Scots, and Irish in Britain). Sometimes, ethnicity is closely connected to religion (e.g., Jews, Amish), language (e.g.,
Quebecois), class (e.g., gypsies, also called Roma), or vocation (e.g.,
Burakumin, descendents of animal slaughterers, executioners, and grave
diggers in Japan). Oftentimes, ethnicity relates to complex and changing
combinations of language, genetics, and religion (e.g., Cherokees,
Yorubas, Tibetans). In many cases, though, ethnic distinctions are blurred
(e.g., Hutu and Tutsi). Most important, as travel and intermarriage have
increased, more and more people now have multiethnic backgrounds. For
these reasons, ethnicity is one of the most complicated components of cultural identity.
Gender. Gender, the social manifestation of the physical trait of sex,
creates cultural groups. Women establish networks, organizations, and
traditions that link them through values, attitudes, behaviors, and language
(Inness, 2001; Martin, 1990; Olsson & Walker, 2004). Studies of masculinity have explored parallel cultural connections of men (Ashcraft,
2005; Mumby, 1998; Philipsen, 1990).
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Sexual orientation. Though scientists have not yet established the exact
biology of sexual orientation, they have studied cultural factors (Herdt,
1992). For some gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered persons, groups
defined by sexual orientation unite members and create cultural ties
stronger than those of race, ethnicity, or nationality (Cross, 1991).
Health. Sometimes, groups of people with physical limitations or specific illnesses may fit the definition of a culture. People who are deaf constitute an unusual cultural group because they have their own language, as
well as other commonalities (Padden & Humphries, 2005). Groups such
as cancer survivors and those infected with HIV/AIDS are sometimes
considered cultural in that they unite members through values and action
(Hecht, Warren, Jung, & Krieger, 2005).
Age. Age creates cultural groups in two ways: through historical generations and through life stages. People who came of age during tumultuous
historical periods, such as the Depression, World War II, or the 1960s,
often share political values, social outlooks, and discourse practices that
make them identify with one another as a cultural group. Some life stages
have been characterized as forming cultural groups (Scollon & Scollon,
2001). For instance, youth culture involves special language and music, as
well as values, attitudes, and behavior. The increasing interest in gerontology has led to depictions of the elderly as a cultural group with distinctive features (Noor Al-Deen, 1997).
Cultural factors of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and
health all affect business communication and strategy in significant
ways. Recognizing this more than a decade ago, IBM established networks that connected employees in these categories. The purpose of these
networks included but went beyond functional issues, such as how to
recruit and retain employees and how to avoid discrimination. The networks also provided social and cultural connections within a large organization. IBMs current networks, titled Asians, Blacks, Hispanics/Latinos,
Native Americans, Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender, People With
Disabilities, Women, and Men, continue as active communication channels among employees, between employees and the corporation, and with
outside constituencies. It is interesting that IBM has a network for men,
recognizing that not only people in a minority need cultural connections
and a way to express shared perspectives and concerns.
An increasing number of business organizations are recognizing sexual
orientation as a relevant consideration in corporate strategies, policies, and
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Cultural identity is more than the sum of its parts. Having identified the
separate components of cultural identity, let us consider the phenomenon
as a whole: the unified, coherent sense of self. Cultural identity has
several important attributes (see Table 2), and each is relevant to studies
of intercultural business communication.
1. Cultural Identity Is Affected by Close Relationships
An individuals cultural identity is affected by his or her significant others: close family members and sometimes friends. People gain a sense of
self through relationships with others (Hecht, 1993). A person whose parents have different nationalities or races, for instance, assimilates values
and perspectives of each. People whose spouse or affectional partner has
a different religion or ethnicity gradually adopt some of their beliefs and
attitudes. This process is often unintentional but may lead to a qualitative
psychic transformation (Kim, 1995, p. 178). For this reason, it is important to consider how relationships modify a persons cultural identity.
Table 2.
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This attribute of cultural identity could be applied in intercultural business communication research in several ways. For instance, a study of
managers ability to motivate a culturally diverse workforce could compare the communication of managers whose own families were mixed in
terms of race or religion with those whose families were not. Studies of
expatriates might determine how executives adaptation was related to
spouses cultural backgrounds. In exploring why some business writers
control tone more effectively than others, researchers might investigate
whether intercultural communication at home increases linguistic sensitivity at work. In these types of situations, personal experience might carry
over to the professional realm.
2. Cultural Identity Changes Over Time
Cultural identity has both variable and stable components. The terms
salience and centrality convey this difference (Sellers et al., 1998). As
day-to-day situations and contexts change, some components of cultural
identity become more or less salientimportant and relevant in the short
term. When a business practitioner must negotiate a contract in a foreign
country rather than at home, he or she may suddenly feel that nationality
is more salient than other aspects of cultural identity. Encountering an ethical or moral dilemma in negotiating the contract, his or her religious identity may become salient. Even when day-to-day conditions change, other
components of cultural identity remain centralimportant and relevant to
a persons core identity in the long term. For instance, the business practitioner may feel that his or her gender and educational class are always at
the heart of his or her identity.
Cultural identity evolves. In the course of a lifetime, many people move
from one economic class or professional field into another. Some people
change nationality or religion. Though no one changes native language,
many come to use new dialects or languages in daily life. All these types
of changes affect peoples cultural identity. For instance, a person who is
born into a lower economic class but who through education reaches a
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companies, for example, line managers in operations are more likely than
staff managers in benefits to rise to top executive leadership positions.
In multinational corporations, language choice is inextricably linked to
power, control, and strategy. In a study of language use in a Finnish company that had subsidiaries in 40 countries, Charles and Marschan-Piekkari
(2002) found that employees who were most fluent in the official corporate language (English) or the headquarters native language (Finnish)
accrued power but also were burdened as communication was centralized.
Nickersons (1998, 2000) study of Dutch subsidiaries of British companies revealed that corporate headquarters sometimes asserted control by
requiring certain language choices. In an analysis of multiple languages
used in meetings of an Italian companys international distributors,
Poncini (2003) discovered that even simple shifts in language can serve
instrumental and interpersonal purposes in multicultural business meetings (p. 30). The ability to use different languages thus represents a
strategic resource (p. 30), she concluded.
Even when communicators use their native language, they convey
power differences through linguistic choices that reflect cultural values.
For instance, in her study of Finnish business writers, Yli-Jokipii (1994)
found that those with higher institutional power were much more likely to
use certain linguistic behavior, such as circumlocutions that conveyed
respect and allowed readers to maintain face. Bargiela-Chiappini and
Harris (1997) showed how British and Italian corporate meeting participants who had explicit, visible power and status interrupted others and
were interrupted themselves more often than those with lower corporate
power and status.
The field of intercultural business communication needs more investigations into the connections between culture, language, and power.
Source credibility studies, for instance, could look into power differences
related to professional cultures and their status. Would more employees
sign up for maximum contributions to retirement savings plans if they
received persuasive messages from the chief financial officer rather than
the chief human resources officer? Studies of group dynamics could consider the impact of race, ethnicity, age, and gender. In virtual teams, when
such cultural factors are less visible, how do members communicate differently, and do they have more equal influence on group decisions?
Studies of interpersonal communication could investigate how communication changes when someone with automatic, unearned privilege works
closely with someone who lacks such privilege. In such a dyad, can certain speech acts counterbalance unearned privilege? Questions such as
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these provide a significant opportunity for business, technical, and professional communication research.
4. Cultural Identity May Evoke Emotions
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In intercultural business communication courses and executive programs, participants can reflect on how cultural identity affected their
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Geography
Nationality
Region, state,
province, or city
identification
Density identification
(urban, suburban,
small town, rural)
Residence (if different
from nationality)
Class
Economic class
Social class
Educational class
Vocation
Occupational field
Profession or job category
Employing organization
Subunit of organization
1. Specifics of
My Cultural
Components
Components
of Cultural
Identity
2. Impact of
Significant
Others
Table 3.
3. Changes,
Salience, and
Centrality
4. Power
and
Privilege
5. Feelings
and
Attitudes
6. Awareness
and
Communication
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Other
Biological traits
with cultural
aspects
Race
Ethnicity
Gender
Sexual orientation
Health
Age
Language
First language
Dialect
Other languages
Philosophy
Religious identity
Political identity
Identity based on other
philosophies
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professional and personal communication in the past; then, they can plan
for future situations in which cultural identity will have an impact.
The first step is for each participant to use the model to create an individual cultural snapshot, a profile of oneself at the present moment, recognizing that cultural identity is always in flux. This personal document
need not be shared with others. After a discussion of the model of cultural
identity, each participant records the specific details about his or her cultural background by answering the following questions related to each
column (see Table 4):
1. How would you define your current cultural identity in terms of each
component?
2. How do your significant others cultural backgrounds differ from yours in
ways that have affected you? Significant others may include parents,
spouse/partner, or other relatives or friends with whom you are very close.
3. How has your cultural identity changed with time? Which components
have high importance in the immediate situation (salience)? Which
components have stable, long-term importance in defining who you are
(centrality)?
4. Which cultural identity components currently give you power or privilege
or have done so in the past? Which ones create prejudice against you or
lessen your power?
5. About which components of your cultural identity do you feel positive
today? Negative? Neutral? Ambivalent? How have these feelings changed
with time?
6. Of which cultural identity components are you highly conscious? Mostly
unconscious? Which components do you communicate openly to others?
Though most components of culture fall into one of the six categories,
additional possibilities exist; thus, the model provides an other category.
For example, a person deeply involved in a sport, a philanthropy, or an
avocation may consider this important enough to constitute part of his or
her cultural identity (Shockley, 2005).
The completed snapshot has several important benefits. Most important,
it symbolizes an individuals uniqueness. When all the elements are taken
into account, few others could have exactly the same cultural identity. Thus,
cultural identity differentiates individuals from one another as much as does
personality, style, or other elements of personal identity. The completed
snapshot also represents a unified, integrated cultural identity. Though each
component may be proportionally more or less salient at a given time, the
total always equals 100%. In addition, the snapshot visually demonstrates
that nationality is but one of many components of cultural identity.
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Table 4.
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1. How would you define your current cultural identity in terms of each component?
2. How do your significant others cultural backgrounds differ from yours in ways that have
affected you? Significant others may include parents, spouse/partner, or other relatives or
friends with whom you are very close.
3. How has your cultural identity changed with time? Which components have high
importance in the immediate situation (salience)? Which components have stable, long-term
importance in defining who you are (centrality)?
4. Which cultural identity components currently give you power or privilege or have done so
in the past? Which ones create prejudice against you or lessen your power?
5. About which components of your cultural identity do you feel positive today? Negative?
Neutral? Ambivalent? How have these feelings changed with time?
6. Of which cultural identity components are you highly conscious? Mostly unconscious?
Which components do you communicate openly to others?
The second pedagogical step is reflection. After using the model to create their individual cultural snapshots, participants recall specific intercultural communication challenges they have faced in their academic or
professional careers and analyze how factors of cultural identity affected
what they thought, felt, and did. This type of reflection helps link cultural
identity to specific communication practices. Some elements of culture
may influence communication very little, others a great deal. These differences vary from person to person. What is important is for each person
to look within and recognize the impact of culture on his or her own
behavior, interaction, and language. Participants are usually happy to
share examples in class discussion.
The third step is to apply the model to future intercultural challenges, perhaps by using cases or simulations. For instance, if a class is studying the
Intercontinental Resort Bali case (Rogers & Dufey, 2003), each participant
can analyze how cultural identity affects how he or she would handle the
aftermath of the terrorist attack if he or she were the resorts general manager. If the class is participating in an intercultural simulation, participants
can use the model to explain their own interactions and communication.
This model of cultural identity complements other approaches to teaching intercultural communication. Through Delphi panels of international
business practitioners and experts, Martin and Chaney (1992) developed a
detailed plan for an international business communication curriculum. The
reflective self-analysis described earlier supplements the external-analysis
approach of this curriculum. The model also fits into the intercultural learning approach proposed by Beamer (1992), the cross-talk system created by
Kenton and Valentine (1997), and the international communication training
programs discussed by Leininger (1997). The teaching application I have
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