Understanding Culture

1. Chapter 5
Understanding
Culture
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2. What Is Culture?
Culture is an established, coherent set of
beliefs, attitudes, values, and practices shared
by a large group of people.
Influences include:
nationality, ethnicity,
religion, gender,
sexual orientation,
physical abilities,
and even age.
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3. Culture Defined
• Culture is learned.
• Culture is communicated.
• Culture is layered.
• Culture is lived.
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4. Co-cultures
In any society, there are groups of people who
have more power than others.
Co-cultural Communication Theory: The
people who have more power within a society
determine the dominant culture.
Co-cultures: formed by members of a society
who don’t conform to the dominant culture

5. Co-cultures (cont.)
Members of co-cultures develop communication
practices for dealing with members of the dominant
culture. They may:
• Use overly polite language
• Suppress reactions to offensive comments
• Try to excel to counteract negative stereotypes
• Conform to negative stereotypes in an exaggerated way
• Try to act, look, and talk like members of the dominant
culture
• Openly disparage their own co-culture
• Express co-cultural identity through appearance, actions,
and words

6. Prejudice
Prejudice occurs when stereotypes reflect rigid
attitudes toward groups and their members.
Stereotype Content Model: Prejudice centers on
two judgments made about others: how warm and
friendly they are and how competent they are.
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7. Prejudice (cont.)
Benevolent prejudice occurs when people
think of a particular group as inferior but also
friendly and competent.
Hostile prejudice occurs when people have
negative attitudes toward a group of individuals
whom they see as unfriendly and incompetent.

8. Cultural Influences on
Communication
Seven characteristics shape our intercultural
communication:
1. Individualism versus collectivism
2. Uncertainty avoidance
3. Power distance
4. High and low context
5. Emotion displays
6. Masculinity versus femininity
7. Views of time

9. Individualism versus
Collectivism
People in individualistic cultures value
independence and personal achievement.
People in collectivistic cultures emphasize group
identity, interpersonal harmony, and the well-being
of ingroups.
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10. Uncertainty Avoidance
Uncertainty avoidance is a measure of how
different cultures tolerate and accept
unpredictability.
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11. Power Distance
Power distance is the degree to which people in a
particular culture view the unequal distribution of
power as acceptable.

12. High and Low Context
People in high-context cultures use relatively
vague and ambiguous language to convey
important meanings.
People in low-context cultures tend not to
presume that others share their beliefs, attitudes,
and values. They strive to be clear and direct in
communication.

13. Emotion Displays
Display rules are the cultural guidelines for when,
where, and how people should and shouldn’t
express emotion.
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14. Masculinity versus Femininity
Masculine cultural values include the
accumulation of personal wealth as an indicator of
success, assertiveness, and personal
achievement.
Feminine cultural values emphasize
compassion, cooperation, relationship health, and
quality of life for all people.

15. Views of Time
People with a monochronic
time orientation view time as
a precious resource that
can run out.
People with a polychronic
time orientation view time as
flexible, not as a resource to
be spent, saved, or guarded.
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16. Creating Intercultural
Competence
Intercultural competence: the ability to
communicate appropriately, effectively, and
ethically with people from diverse backgrounds
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17. World-Mindedness
World-mindedness: the ability to accept and
respect other cultures’ beliefs, values, and
customs
Ethnocentrism: the belief that one’s own cultural
beliefs, attitudes, values, and practices are
superior to others’
• It is the opposite of world-mindedness.

18. Attributional Complexity
Attributional complexity: acknowledging that other
people’s behaviors have complex causes
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19. Communication
Accommodation
Communication accommodation theory: People
adapt their communication when they seek social
approval, when they wish to establish relationships,
and when they view others’ language use as
appropriate.