From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Intercultural competence is the ability of successful communication with people of other cultures. This ability can exist in someone at a young age, or may be developed and improved due to willpower and competence. The bases for a successful intercultural communication are emotional competence, together with intercultural sensitivity.

Interculturally competent is a person who captures and understands, in interaction with people from foreign cultures, their specific concepts in perception, thinking, feeling and acting. Earlier experiences are considered, free from prejudices; there is an interest and motivation to continue learning.

Contents 1 Basics 2 Typical examples of cultural differences 3 Requirements 4 Cultural differences 5 Assessment 6 External links 7 See also 8 Organizations

Cultures can be different not only between continents or nations, but also within the same company or even family: every human being has their own history, their own life and therefore also (in a certain extent) their own culture (geographical, ethnical, moral, ethical, religious, political, historical) resp. cultural affiliation or cultural identity.

The perception is different and often selective[1]:

• In Arabic countries the odors (of condiments, coffee etc.) are often perceived in more differentiated ways than in, for example, North America.

• In Asian countries the conception of time is rather past-oriented (ancestors, values), in Latin American countries as well as southern European countries, rather present-oriented, and in western Europe as well as North America rather future-oriented (achieving goals).

• Behavior and gestures are interpreted differently:

• Showing the thumb held upwards in Latin America, especially Brazil, means "everything's ok", while it is understood in some Islamic countries as a rude sexual sign.

• "Everything ok" is shown in western European countries, especially between pilots and divers, with the sign of the thumb and forefinger forming an "O". This sign means in Japan "now we may talk about money", in southern France the contrary ("nothing, without any value"), in some Latin American countries, Eastern Europe and Russia it is an indecent sexual sign.

• In North America as well as in Arabic countries the pauses between words are usually not too long, while in Japan pauses can give a contradictory sense to the spoken words. Enduring silence is perceived as comfortable in Japan, while in India, Europe and North America it may cause insecureness and embarrassment. Scandinavians, by Western standards, are more tolerant of silent breaks during conversations.

• Laughing is connoted in most countries with happiness - in Japan it is often a sign of confusion, insecurity and embarrassment.

• In the UK, Ireland and Commonwealth countries the word "compromise" has a positive meaning (as a consent, an agreement where both parties win something); in North America it may, at times, have negative connotations (as both parties lose something) (this phenomenon tends to happen highly competitive atmospheres).

• If invited to dinner, in some Asian countries and Central America it is well-mannered to leave right after the dinner: the ones who don’t leave may indicate they have not eaten enough. In the Indian sub-continent, European and North American countries this is considered rude, indicating that the guest only wanted to eat but wouldn’t enjoy the company with the hosts.

• In Mediterranean European countries, Latin America, and Sub-Saharan Africa, it is normal, or at least widely tolerated, to arrive half an hour late for a dinner invitation, whereas in Germany this would be rude.

• In Africa, saying to a female friend one has not seen for a while that she has put on weight means she is physically healthier than before and had a nice holiday, whereas this would be considered an insult in Europe, North America and Australia.

• In Africa, avoiding eye contact or looking at the ground when talking to one's parents, an elder, or someone of higher social status is a sign of respect. In contrast, these same actions are signals of deception or shame (on the part of the doer) in North America and most of Europe.

• In Persian culture, if a person offers an item (i.e a drink), it is customary to not instantly accept it. A sort of role play forms with the person offering being refused several times out of politeness before their offering is accepted. This tradition is known as 'tarof' which in Persian literally means 'offer'.

• In African, South American and Mediterranean cultures, talking and laughing loudly on the streets and public places is widley accepted whereas in Western European and Asian cultures is considered rude and may be seen as a mark of self centeredness and attention seeking.

Basic needs are sensitivity and self-consciousness: the understanding of other behaviors and ways of thinking as well as the ability to express one’s own point of view in a transparent way with the aim to be understood and respected by staying flexible where this is possible, and being clear where this is necessary.

It is a balance, situatively adapted, between three parts:

1. knowledge (about other cultures, people, nations, behaviors…),
2. empathy (understanding feelings and needs of other people), and
3. self-confidence (knowing what I want, my strengths and weaknesses, emotional stability).

Cultural characteristics can be differentiated between several dimensions and aspects (the ability to perceive them and to cope with them is one of the bases of intercultural competence), such as:

• Collectivist and individualist cultures;
• Masculine and feminine cultures;
• Uncertainty avoidance;
• Power distance;
• Monochrone (time-fixed, "one after the other") and polychrone (many things at the same time, "multi-tasking") aspects;
• Structural characteristics: e. g. basic personality, value orientation, experience of time and space, selective perception, nonverbal communication, patterns of behavior.

For assessment of intercultural competence as an existing ability and / or the potential to develop it (with conditions and timeframe), the following characteristics are tested and observed: ambiguity tolerance, openness to contacts, flexibility in behavior, emotional stability, motivation to perform, empathy, metacommunicative competence, polycentrism.

• The Swedish Empathy Center Organizes knowledge about empathy across disciplines
• Intercultural Competence Assessment Assessment tool developed under the support of Leonardo da Vinci II program
• Key Competencies A complex project about the most important key competencies within the enlarged Europe - performed in the framework of a Leonardo da Vinci Pilot project

• Convention (norm)
• Coolitude
• Cross-cultural communication
• Cultural assimilation
• Cultural competence
• Cultural diversity
• Cultural pluralism
• Etiquette in Africa
• Etiquette in Asia
• Etiquette in Australia and New Zealand
• Etiquette in Canada and the United States
• Etiquette in Europe
• Etiquette in Latin America
• Etiquette in the Middle East
• Faux pas
• Interaction
• Intercultural communication principles
• Interculturalism
• Intercultural relations
• Interpersonal communication
• Luc Cagadoc
• Multiculturalism
• Norm (sociology)
• Proxemics
• Social identity
• Transculturation
• Worldwide etiquette

• Centre for Intercultural Training and Research, http://www.intercultural.org.uk
• Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research, http://www.sietar.org
• Young Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research, http://www.youngsietar.org (for students and young professionals)
• Thai-Maori Musical Exchange Project
• Artemisszió Foundation, http://www.artemisszio.hu/index_en.htm