Intercultural Communication

Catalog description

Credits 3. 3 Lecture Hours. COURSE OVERVIEW. Explores the study of communication across cultural contexts, examining how meaning, identity and relationship-building are influenced by cultural norms, values and/or assumptions. Focuses on verbal and nonverbal interaction styles, language practices, adaptation and culture shock, and the role of history, power and context in shaping interpretation. Course content may draw on examples from everyday life, media, organizational settings and global encounters. Course material and discussion may reference unfamiliar or sensitive cultural perspectives for purposes of comparison and analysis. RELEVANCE AND APPLICATION. Builds practical awareness for communicating in workplaces, teams, service settings and digital environments where differences in expectations or expression may affect collaboration. Supports careers involving client communication, international coordination, education, public service or leadership by strengthening skills in perception-checking, listening and navigating ambiguity. Provides foundations for academic study in communication, cultural studies and global affairs, while supporting civic readiness and ethical intercultural engagement. DEEPENING UNDERSTANDINGS. Builds recognition of how cultural background shapes assumptions. Considers how interpretations can be influenced by habit rather than intent and how misunderstandings may result from differing expectations rather than disagreement. Considers perspectives on “culture” that extend beyond nationality to include age, profession, region, gender, religion or other social frameworks that shape interaction and interpretation. TOPICS AND THEMES. May include study of cultural values and worldviews; verbal and nonverbal communication styles; identity negotiation and stereotyping; intercultural relationships and conflict; migration, tourism or globalization as sites of communication; media and popular culture as representations of cultural difference. Course material may include depictions of unfamiliar cultural practices or contested norms, examined to understand how communication patterns emerge across cultural differences. Prerequisite: Junior or senior classification; also taught at Qatar campus.