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2011/2 Provisional Module Catalogue - UNDER CONSTRUCTION & SUBJECT TO CHANGE
 Module Code: LIN2004 Module Title: INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION
Module Provider: Language & Translation Studies Short Name: LIN2004
Level: HE2 Module Co-ordinator: DLASKA A Prof (Lang & Trans)
Number of credits: 15 Number of ECTS credits: 7.5
 
Module Availability
Semester 2
Assessment Pattern
Unit(s) of Assessment (SITS MAB)
Weighting Towards Module Mark( %)
Research proposal (1500 words)
40%
Two-hour final exam
60%
Qualifying Condition(s) 
A weighted aggregate of 40% is required to pass the module.
Module Overview
This is a Level 2 module for students across LTS offerings of degree programmes. It is taught in English language, over the autumn semester, three contact hour per teaching week. Attendance is compulsory.
Prerequisites/Co-requisites
Successful completion of HE 1 or equivalent.
Module Aims
This module introduces students to theories of culture and some of the main issues of intercultural communication. It aims to prepare students for the linguistic and cultural encounters of their placement year by enabling them to participate in the society whose language they study and to operate confidently and flexibly within different linguistic and cultural contexts. Moreover, the module aims to prepare students to plan and conduct their own research projects, including ethical considerations, quantitative and qualitative methods, data collection and analysis.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this module, students will
  • have gained knowledge of some of the ways in which culture is defined; 
  • have developed an understanding of the main theories of intercultural communication and of how culture relates to language use;
  • be able to analyse instances of intercultural communication and identify reasons for intercultural communicative breakdown;
  • have developed an understanding of intercultural issues in professional settings;
  • become conscious of stereotypes and prejudices;
  • have developed an awareness of their own cultural bias in intercultural communication;
  • be equipped to deal with conflict and mediate between the target culture(s) and their own culture(s);
  • be equipped to deal with culture shock;
  • be able to communicate with representatives from other cultures, using both verbal and non-verbal means of expression;
  • be able to use sociolinguistic terminology appropriately and apply it to real-life examples;
  • be able to apply research methods in social science
  • be able to design a research project on an aspect of intercultural communication or other topic areas with due consideration for ethical aspects
Module Content
The following areas are indicative of topics to be covered:
 
Issues in Intercultural Communication:
  • What is culture? Definitions and approaches
  • Stereotypes and prejudice
  • Culture shock: Symptoms, phases, treatment
  • Dimensions of cultural difference: Hofstede and other models
  • Language and Intercultural Communication
  • Analysing intercultural encounters: Methods and practice 
  • Dealing with cultural differences: Strategies and skills
  • Intercultural communication in professional contexts
Research methods:
  • Quantitative and qualitative research methods in intercultural communication:
  • Ethical aspects of research in intercultural communication
  • Designing a research project and writing a research proposal
  • Data analysis: Bias, observer’s paradox, tools, ethics
Methods of Teaching/Learning
The course will combine a generic lecture for students of all languages (2 hours per week) and a tutorial in the specific languages (1 hour/week).
In the lecture, which also features class discussion, students will learn about the theory of intercultural communication and relevant research methods. In the tutorials, students will apply what they have learned in a practical manner and hone their foreign language competence. They will include the analysis of case studies, role plays, and exercises in data collection and analysis.
Selected Texts/Journals
Recommended reading
 
General – Intercultural communication
Bowe, H. and Martin, K. (2007). Communication across Cultures: Mutual Understanding in a Global World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Holliday, A., Hyde, M. and Kullman, J. (2004). Intercultural Communication – an advanced resource book. London, Routledge.  
Kotthoff, H. & Spencer-Oatey, H. (eds.) (2007). Handbook of Intercultural Communication. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.
Spencer-Oatey, H. & Franklin, P. (2009). Intercultural Interaction. A Multidisciplinary Approach to Intercultural Communication. Basingstoke: Palgrave.  
 
General – Research methods and sociolinguistics
Coupland, N. and Jaworski, A. (eds.) (1997). Sociolinguistics: A Reader and Coursebook. Basingstoke: MacMillan.
Holmes, J. (3rd ed. 2008). An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. London: Pearson/Longman.
Mesthrie, R., Swann, J. Deumert, A. and Leap, W.L. (2nd ed.) (2009). Introducing Sociolinguistics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Macaulay, R. (2009). Quantitative Methods in Sociolinguistics. Basingstoke: Macmillan.
Meyerhoff, M. (2006). Introducing Sociolinguistics. London: Routledge.
Johnstone, B. (2000). Qualitative Methods in Sociolinguistics. Oxford: OUP.
Milroy, L. and Gordon, M. (2003). Sociolinguistics: Method and Interpretation. Oxford: Blackwell
Wray, A. and Bloomer, A. (2006). Projects in Linguistics: A Practical Guide to Researching Language. London: Hodder Education
 
German
Eismann, V. (2007), Erfolgreich in der interkulturellen Kommunikation. Berlin: Cornelsen Verlag.
Erll, A. and Gymnich, M. (2007), Interkulturelle Kompetenzen: Erfolgreich kommunizieren zwischend en Kulturen. Stuttgart: Klett.
 
French  
Vivez les affaires (vidéo), Patrick Guédon, Hachette 2002
Manwatching, Desmond Morris, Grafton, 1977
The Human Animal, Desmond Morris, BBC Books, 1994
Savoir-vivre avec les Français : Que faire ? Que dire ?, Odile Grand-Clément , Hachette, 1996
Sacrés Français ! Un Américain nous regarde, Ted Stanger, Editions Michalon, 2003
Sixty Million Frenchmen Can’t be wrong, Jean-Benoît Nadeau & Julie Barlow, Robson Books, 2003
Les Nouveaux Anglais : clichés revisités, Anne-Catherine Poirier, Alvik éditions, 2005
Au secours les Anglais nous envahissent !, José-Alain Fralon, Editions Michalon, 2006
Le Dossier of Hortense de Montplaisir or How to Survive the English, Translated by Sarah Long, John Murray Publishers, 2007
Living and Working in France, David Hampshire, Survival Books, 2006

Spanish
CRIT, Grupo, (2003), Claves para la comunicación intercultural. Análisis de interacciones comunicativas con inmigrantes. Universitat Jaume I OLIVERAS, A., (2000). Hacia la competencia intercultural en el aprendizaje de una lengua extranjera, Madrid, Edinumen.
POYATOS, Fernando, (1994), La comunicación no verbal. I. Cultura, lenguaje y conversación. Istmo. POYATOS, Fernando, (1994), La comunicación no verbal. II. Paralenguaje, kinésica e interacción. Istmo. RAGA GIMENO, Francisco, (2005), Comunicación y cultura. Propuestas para el análisis transcultural de las interacciones comunicativas cara a cara. Iberoamericana/Vervuert.
 
English
Jandt, F.E. (2007), An Introduction to Intercultural Communication: identities in a global community. London: Sage.
Spencer-Oatey, H. & Franklin, P. (2009). Intercultural Interaction. A Multidisciplinary Approach to Intercultural Communication. Basingstoke: Palgrave.  
Last Updated
7.4.11