Contents

 

Acknowledgments / 9

Introduction / 11

 

Chapter 1: Intercultural encounters / 17

1.1 Intercultural encounters – Facts / 17

1.2 Intercultural encounters as awareness-raising situations / 21

1.3 Intercultural encounters as interaction, mediation, and negotiation / 22

1.3.1 Intercultural encounters as mediation / 25

1.3.2 Intercultural encounters as negotiation / 26

1.4 Intercultural encounters – The linguistic dimension / 27

1.4.1 Intercultural encounters as language-in-action situations / 28

1.4.2 Intercultural encounters as culture bumps – Cross-cultural pragmatics / 30

1.5 Intercultural encounters as problem-solving tasks / 33

1.6 Intercultural encounters as emotion-generation situations / 34

1.6.1 Empathy / 37

1.6.2 Perspective-taking and sense-making / 38

1.6.3 Identity and self-construals / 39

1.6.4 Communication apprehension / 40

1.6.5 Willingness to communicate / 41

1.6.6 Self-disclosure / 42

1.6.7 Cultural differences in self-disclosure / 43

1.6.8 Stereotypes / 44

1.6.9 Culture shock / 45

1.7 The intercultural continuum / 46

1.7.1 Interculture, interlanguage / 47

1.7.2 Cultural intelligence / 48

1.7.3 Intercultural competence / 49

1.7.4 Intercultural sensitivity and other conditions for intercultural learning / 52

1.7.5 Learning – unlearning – relearning / 53

1.8 Obstacles to intercultural communication / 54

1.9 Intercultural encounter as a trigger for reflection / 56

1.9.1 Intercultural encounter as an example of experiential learning / 57

1.9.2 Intercultural encounter as a part of a sociocultural proces / 57

1.10 Research on intercultural competence / 58

1.10.1 Projects on intercultural competence and training – An overview / 58

1.10.2 Ways of studying intercultural competence / 59

 

Chapter 2: Narrative inquiry – Background / 61

2.1 Homo narrans and narrative intelligence / 62

2.2 Narrative’s moments – A record of one’s own experience (individual’s perspective) / 64

2.3 Tell me your story – Approaches to narrative analysis (researcher’s perspective) / 67

2.3.1 Narrative inquiry: The elements of a good story / 70

2.3.2 Cultural aspects in the narrative analysis / 72

2.4 Narrative and intercultural learning – The critical incident theory / 73

2.4.1 What is critical about critical incidents? / 74

2.4.2 Critical incidents and intercultural communication / 76

 

Chapter 3: The scheme of the research study / 81

3.1 Research objectives / 81

3.2 The subjects / 83

3.2.1 Poland and Turkey – Rationale for choosing the research partners / 86

3.3 Research tools and procedures / 88

3.3.1 Discussion-generating tasks / 88

3.3.2 The questionnaire for students / 89

3.3.3 Intercultural Sensitivity Scale / 90

3.3.4 Written narrative task: Narrative about intercultural encounters / 92

3.4 Narratives – Analysis and evaluation procedures / 93

3.4.1 Content analysis / 93

3.4.2 Statistical analysis: LIWC software – Brief characteristics / 93

3.5 Stages of the research project / 98

3.6 Data evaluation procedures / 101

 

Chapter 4: Narratives – Data presentation and analysis / 103

4.1. Statistical analysis of the narratives – General characteristics / 103

4.2 Content analysis of the encounters / 109

4.2.1 Topical analysis – Background about the nature of the encounters / 109

4.2.2 Intercultural encounter as an experience raising students’ language awareness / 114

4.2.3 Intercultural encounter as an opportunity to communicate / 118

4.2.4 Intercultural encounter as a lesson in culture / 123

4.2.5 Affectivity in intercultural encounters / 124

4.3 From “Haha” to “aha” – Intercultural encounters as an incentive to reflect, restructure, and learn from the experience / 126

4.3.1 Knowledge extension / 126

4.3.2 Self-knowledge / 128

4.3.3 Redefinition and modification of stereotypes / 129

4.3.4 Change of attitudes / 131

4.4 Intercultural encounters – Reflection for action – Teacher’s perspective / 133

4.5 Structural analysis / 137

 

Chapter 5: Questionnaires and scales – Data presentation and analysis / 139

5.1 Questionnaire – Background (biographical) information / 139

5.2 Intercultural profile – Data analysis / 147

5.3 The analysis of Cross-Cultural Adaptability Inventory (CCAI) / 163

5.3.1 Emotional Resilience / 163

5.3.2 Flexibility and Openness / 165

5.3.3 Perceptual Acuity / 167

5.3.4 Personal Autonomy / 169

 

Chapter 6: Conclusions / 173

6.1 Answers to the research objectives / 173

6.1.1 Differences between the groups of Polish P1, Polish P2, and the Turkish subjects / 173

6.1.2 The students’ perception and self-assessment of the sociocultural competence / 177

6.1.3 Culturally determined aspects of language use / 178

6.1.4 Communication and miscommunication / 179

6.1.5 Cultural sensitivity and cultural knowledge / 179

6.1.6 Intercultural encounters and affect / 180

6.1.7 Narrativisation and reflection / 183

6.1.8 Perspective-taking / 184

6.1.9 The students’ intercultural experiences and adaptability / 186

6.1.10 Learning outcomes: Me as a FL teacher vs. me as a language learner / 187

6.2 Evaluation of the research project / 192

6.3 Implications for further research / 193

 

Appendix / 197

1. Research scenario for intercultural encounters / 197

2. Iceberg Theory of Culture (supplementary materials implemented during the research – Theoretical training, Step 1) / 199

2a. The Iceberg Theory of Culture – Modified version – Theoretical training, Step 1) / 200

3. The Form technique (Supplementary materials implemented during the research – Theoretical training) / 201

4. Culture Quiz / 202

5. Questionnaire: Intercultural Encounters (Supplementary materials implemented during the research – Data collection procedure, Step 2) / 203

6. Narrative task (Supplementary materials implemented during the research – Data collection procedure, Step 3) / 207

7. LIWC2007 Output Variable Information – detailed data presentation: Polish P1 group, Polish P2 group, Turkish group / 208

 

Bibliography / 213

Streszczenie / 241

Zusammenfassung / 243

• Title: The Anatomy of Intercultural Encounters. A Sociolinguistic Cross-Cultural Study
• Author: Grażyna Kiliańska-Przybyło
• ISBN: 978-8-3226-3017-4, 9788322630174
• Date of issue: 2017-08-18
• Format: Ebook
• Item ID: e_0m63
• Publisher: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego