An Introduction to Intercultural Communication: Identities in a Global Community

An Introduction to Intercultural Communication equips students with the knowledge and skills to be competent and confident intercultural communicators. Best-selling author Fred E. Jandt guides readers through key concepts and helps them connect intercultural competence to their own life experiences in order to enhance understanding. Employing his signature accessible writing style, Jandt presents balanced, up-to-date content in a way that readers find interesting and thought-provoking. The Tenth Edition gives increased attention to contemporary social issues in today’s global community such as gender identifications, social class identity, and immigration and refugees. Included with this title: The password-protected Instructor Resource Site (formally known as SAGE Edge) offers access to all text-specific resources, including a test bank and editable, chapter-specific PowerPoint® slides.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgments About the Author Part 1: Culture as Context for Communication Chapter 1: Defining Culture and Communication Sources of Identity Religion and Identity National Identity Class and Identity Gender and Identity Race, Skin Color, Ethnicity, and Identity Civilization and Identity Culture Subculture Ethnicity Co-Culture American Indians Subgroup and Counterculture Microculture and Community Communication Cultural Definitions of Communication Confucian Perspectives on Communication Western Perspectives on Communication The Media of Intercultural Communication Human Couriers and Intermediaries Telephone Internet Social Media Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 2: Intercultural Communication Competence Intercultural Communication Competence Intercultural Communication Ethics Multiple Cultural Identities Third Culture Multiculturalism Postethnic Cultures Barriers to Intercultural Communication Anxiety Assuming Similarity Instead of Difference Ethnocentrism Stereotypes and Prejudice Stereotypes Negative Effects on Communication Case Study: Asian-Americans Prejudice Racism Case Study: India Case Study: The Roma Case Study: Koreans in Japan Case Study: White Privilege Hate Speech Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Part 2: Communication Variables Chapter 3: How Culture Affects Perception Perception Sensing Effect of Culture on Sensing Perceiving Selection Japanese/English Difficulties With Speech Sounds Organization Grouping Like Objects Together Interpretation Case Study: Dogs as Pets or as Food Case Study: Weather Vane as Christian Cross Case Study: Airport Security High Versus Low Context The Concept of Face Case Study of Communication Between High and Low Context Countries—China and the United States Communication Challenges Between High-Context China and Low-Context United States Historical Context Economy Population Current Issues in Chinese-U.S. Relations Territorial Sovereignty Taiwan Tibet Hong Kong South China Sea Airspace Human Rights Human Rights and Free Speech Broadcast Media and the Internet Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 4: Nonverbal Communication Nonverbal Behaviors Nonverbal Communication Functions Types of Nonverbal Communication Proxemics Territoriality Kinesics Chronemics Paralanguage Silence Haptics Artifactual Communication Olfactics Knowing Culture Through Nonverbal Messages Case Study: The Wai in Thailand Case Study: Nonverbals in High-Context Koreas Nonverbal Misinterpretations as a Barrier Case Study: U.S. Military Use of Symbols in Afghanistan Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 5: Language as a Barrier Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Development of the Hypothesis Vocabulary Grammar and Syntax Criticisms of the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Linguistic Relativism Case Study: Arabic and the Arab Culture Translation Problems Vocabulary Equivalence Idiomatic Equivalence Grammatical-Syntactical Equivalence Experiential Equivalence Conceptual Equivalence Human and Machine Translators Pidgins, Creoles, and Universal Languages Pidgins Creoles Esperanto Language as Nationalism Kiswahili in East Africa The Spread of English India South Africa Australia and New Zealand Canada United States Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Part 3: Cultural Values Chapter 6: Dimensions of Nation-State Cultures Hofstede’s Research Criticisms of Hofstede’s Research The Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner Dimensions Cultural Dimensions Individualism Versus Collectivism Power Distance Uncertainty Avoidance Long-Term Versus Short-Term Orientation Indulgence Versus Self-Restraint Masculinity Versus Femininity Happiness Environmental Sustainability Evolving Cultural Dimension Case Study: Singapore Case Study: Japan as a Homogeneous Culture Geography and History Population and Economy Cultural Patterns Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 7: Values and Identity: Dominant U.S. Cultural Patterns Using Value Orientation Theory Origins of U.S. Cultural Patterns Pre-16th-Century Indigenous Americans European Enlightenment Regional Differences Resulting From Immigration Forces Toward the Development of a Dominant Culture Value Orientation Theory What Is a Human Being’s Relation to Nature? The Individual-and-Nature Relationship Science and Technology Materialism What Is the Motivation for Human Activity? Activity and Work Efficiency and Practicality Progress and Change What Is the Temporal Focus of Human Life? What Is the Character of Innate Human Nature? Goodness Rationality Mutability What Is the Relationship of the Individual to Others? Individualism Self-Motivation Social Organization Popular Acceptance of Dominant U.S. Cultural Patterns Forces Toward the Development of Regional Cultures The New Regions Social Class Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 8: Religion and Identity Hinduism Buddhism Japan Christianity Islam The Prophet Muhammad The Quran Views on Religion and Freedom of Thought Religious Practices Islam in the United States The Arab States Saudi Arabia Geography Discovery of Oil Ruling Saud Family and Conservative Wahhabism Media Regional Instability Dominant Cultural Patterns Human Being–Nature Orientation Activity Orientation Time Orientation Human Nature Orientation Relational Orientation Communication Barriers Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 9: Culture and Gender Status of Women United Nations Studies World Economic Forum Study Health and Survival Educational Attainment Economic Participation and Opportunity Political Participation Comparison of Individual Countries and Areas Nordic Countries Mexico China Japan South Korea India Arab States Role of Women Marriage Nonbinary Gender Identities Examples Cultural Status Gender Expression and Communication Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Part 4: Cultures within Cultures Chapter 10: Migration and Acculturation A World of Migration Immigration and National Identity Israel Europe Refugees Muslim Immigration Brazil First Wave Second Wave Third Wave Recent Immigration United States Colonial Policies on Immigration U.S. Policies on Immigration Contributing Countries Prior to 1800 Contributing Countries Since 1800 Immigration and Individual Identity Culture Shock Stages of Culture Shock Symptoms Reverse Culture Shock Predictors of Acculturation Effect of Media and Transportation Advances Categories of Acculturation Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 11: Communities: Cultures Within Cultures Marginalization: The Hmong History Cultural Patterns Separation: Koreans in Russia Separation: The Amish History Diversity Among the Amish Values Worldview Activity Orientation Human Nature Orientation Relational Orientation Indigenous Cultures Assimilation: United States Melting Pot Concept Integration: United States English-Speaking Cultures Asian-American Cultures Spanish-Speaking Cultures Hispanic Culture Within the U.S. Culture Values Cultural Identity and Media Print Radio Television Spanish-Language Internet and Social Media Spanish Language and Marketing Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 12: Identity and Communities Argot Specialized Vocabulary Argot and Identity Argot and Boundaries Argot and Meaning Community’s Media and Values Examples British Punk Corporate Cultures Case Study: Southwest Airlines Case Study: Google Sexual Orientation Identities Worldwide Attitudes About Homosexuality and Same-Sex Marriage Cultural Bases for Attitudes Sexual Orientation as a Basis for a Community Sexual Orientation and Othering Consequences of Othering Media and Othering Rejecting All Labels From Separation to Assimilation Evidence of Separate Status Integration or Assimilation of Communities Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Part 5: Applications Chapter 13: The Impact of Cultures on Other Cultures Colonialism Hawai‘i Australia Cultural Imperialism Development Communication Opinion Leadership and Change Agents Adopters Change Agent Ethics Cultural Icons Cultural Hegemony Japanese Icon in Mexico South Korea’s Cultural Exports Case Study: Quality Circles Case Study: Vietnamese Nail Technicians U.S. Cultural Icons Coca-Cola® Disney McDonald’s KFC Starbucks Spam® Nike Adapting the Message Case Study: Marketing Gerber Baby Foods Worldwide Case Study: Religious Missionary Work in New Guinea Examples of Glocalization Summary Discussion Questions Key Terms Chapter 14: Future Challenges Religion Class Gender Race, Skin Color, and Ethnicity Civilization Nation Future Challenges to Identity Challenges to Culture Challenges to the Environment Challenges From Immigration Challenges From Economic Disparity Challenges With Diversity The Promise of New Media A Final Word Summary Discussion Questions Key Term Glossary References Index

About the Author :
Fred E. Jandt was born of second-generation German immigrants in the multicultural south-central region of Texas. After graduating from Texas Lutheran University and Stephen F. Austin State University, he received his doctorate in communication from Bowling Green State University. He has taught and been a student of intercultural communication for more than 4 decades, developing his experience through travel and international training and research projects. While professor of communication at The College at Brockport, State University of New York, his reputation as a teacher led to his appointment as SUNY′s first director of faculty development. He has retired as professor and branch campus dean after having been named outstanding professor. He has also been a visiting professor at Victoria University of Wellington, in New Zealand. He has extensive experience in the areas of intercultural and international communication, negotiation, mediation, and conflict management. He was one of the first scholars to introduce the study of conflict to the communication discipline with his text Conflict Resolution Through Communication (Harper & Row, 1973). He has subsequently published many other titles in this area, including the successful trade book Win-Win Negotiating: Turning Conflict Into Agreement (Wiley, 1985), which has been translated into eight languages; a casebook on international conflict management, Constructive Conflict Management: Asia-Pacific Cases (SAGE, 1996), with Paul B. Pedersen; Conflict and Communication, Third Edition (Cognella, 2025); and Negotiation and Mediation (Cognella, 2025). For several years, he conducted the training workshop “Managing Conflict Productively” for major corporations and government agencies throughout the United States. Jandt continues to train volunteers who are learning to become mediators in the California justice system and served as an elected trustee of the Desert Community College District.

Review :
"This newest edition is in line with the superior quality of earlier editions. Impressive in scope, sure to generate class discussion, and with material presented in an interesting manner." "This text is one of my favorites in the field because it helps students see just how much intercultural communication impacts their daily lives." "The activities contained in each chapter are particularly valuable and lead to self-reflection. The items for group discussion are plentiful and well organized, leading to interactive and meaningful dialogue in the classroom. The prominent emphasis on historical and global issues, and how they affect intercultural communication, distinguish this textbook from other Intercultural Communication textbooks." "This text offers an in-depth and sophisticated look at the many facets of culture." "This book is easy to read and digest, well organized, and your students will like it." "I have used the Jandt text since I began teaching my course in International and Intercultural Communication, and I continue to use it because it only gets better with age."