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Chapter 2 Culture and Interpersonal Communication

Culture encompasses the values, beliefs, and customs that are shared by a group of people. Culture can be shared among people by virtue of the cultural institutions they are part of, the life experiences that they have in common, or the opportunities they have to communicate with each other. Cultures form and change overtime, and characteristics of a culture are both shaped by and reflected in communication. Intercultural communication occurs when people communicate with each other based on their membership in a social group, rather than their personal, individual qualities. Ethnocentrism, uncertainty and anxiety, and marginalization are challenges that complicate intercultural communication. A discussion of communication between people of different genders highlights how intercultural communication is relevant throughout people’s lives. This chapter also provides suggestions for finding common ground for across cultures, appreciating cultural diversity, and improving intercultural communication.

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Connect with Theory

Speech codes theory describes the link between culture and communication. The theory recognizes that culture influences the way we communicate with other people and that culture is created and maintained through our communication. According to the theory, culture shapes what people say and do, how they interpret another person’s messages and behaviors, and how they evaluate their own and others’ communication. The theory defines a speech code as a system of words, meanings, assumptions, and rules about communication that is shared by members of a given community. People rely on those speech codes to help them formulate and make sense of messages. For example, if the place you work at has a culture of engaging in small talk before any group meetings, but one morning, your boss skipped all the chit-chat and jumped straight into business, you might think that this was an unusual behavior, and perhaps something serious happened. Having those speech codes in mind can help us understand, evaluate, and explain our own and others’ communication. Another important element of the theory is that communication reflects culture. That is, through communication, we come to learn values, rules, and norms that are salient to a particular culture. For example, during new student orientation, you might start to get a sense of the culture of your college by attending information sessions, talking to other students, and participating in activities. The speech codes theory has been applied to underscore why intercultural communication conflict occurs and how to promote intercultural communication sensitivity and competence (e.g., Chornet & Parr, 2017).

References and other suggested readings:

Chornet, D., & Parr, B. (2017). Speech codes theory applied to problematic situations in intercultural communication: A six-step iterative training cycle. Journal of Intercultural Communication, 43.
Philipsen, G. (1992). Speaking culturally: Explorations in social communication. State University of New York Press.
Philipsen, G. (1997). A theory of speech codes. In G. Philipsen & T. Albrecht (Eds.), Developing communication theory (pp. 119-156). State University of New York Press.
Philipsen, G. (1997). Speech codes theory: Traces of culture in interpersonal communication. In D. O. Braithwaite & P. Schrodt (Eds.), Engaging theories in interpersonal communication: Multiple perspectives (2nd Ed., pp. 293-305). Sage.
Philipsen, G., Coutu, L., & Covarrubias, P. (2005). Speech codes theory: Restatement, revisions, and responses to criticisms. In W. B. Gudykunst (Ed.), Theorizing about intercultural communication (pp. 55-68). Sage.

Communication accommodation theory was developed to explain how and why people adapt their speech and language patterns when interacting with others. The theory proposes that people change their communication patterns as a means to increase or decrease the connection to a conversational partner. In other words, people adjust their dialects and words either in an effort to match with (i.e., convergence) or deviate from others (i.e., divergence). There are many linguistic strategies that people use when communicating with others. For example, you may notice that when interacting with someone from Great Britain, you switch your American accent to a British accent and modify the words you use (e.g., referring to the restroom as the “loo”). When talking to your five-year-old niece, you may use shorter sentences, speak more slowly, and discuss topics that are interesting and appropriate to this age group. When people match the communication behaviors of a conversational partner, it signals liking, closeness, and solidarity. In contrast, people diverge their speech and language patterns as a way to show power, distinction, or cultural pride. For example, in a study that examined stepparent-stepchild interactions, Speer, Giles, and Denes (2013) found that stepchildren’s perceptions of stepparent accommodative behaviors during their typical interactions fostered shared family identity, increased relational closeness, and improved satisfaction with blended family life. The theory provides insight into how communication partners influence each other in the course of interaction.

References and other suggested readings:

Dragojevic, M., Gasiorek, J., & Giles, H. (2015). Communication accommodation theory. In C. R. Berger & M. E. Roloff (Eds.), International encyclopedia of interpersonal communication. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118540190.wbeic006
Giles, H., Coupland, N., & Coupland, J. (1991). Accommodation theory: Communication, context, and consequence. In H. Giles, N. Coupland, & J. Coupland (Eds.), Context of accommodation: Developments in applied sociolinguistics (pp 1-68). Cambridge University Press.
Giles, H., Taylor, D. M., & Bourhis, R. (1973). Towards a theory of interpersonal accommodation through language: Some Canadian data. Language in Society, 2(2),177-192. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0047404500000701
Giles, H., & Soliz, J. (2014). Communication accommodation theory: A situated framework for relational, family, and intergroup dynamics. In D. O. Braithwaite & P. Schrodt (Eds.), Engaging theories in interpersonal communication: Multiple perspectives (2nd Ed., pp. 161-175). Sage.
Speer, R. B., Giles, H., & Denes, A. (2013). Investigating stepparent-stepchild interactions: The role of communication accommodation. Journal of Family Communication, 13(3),218-241. https://doi.org/10.1080/15267431.2013.768248

Anxiety/uncertainty management theory emphasizes that people are not always motivated to reduce uncertainty and that uncertainty isn’t inherently bad. In the face of illness or cancer, for example, having some uncertainty about one’s health condition can keep hope alive. For some people, uncertainty is preferable to the potential knowledge because maintaining some level of uncertainty means continued hope. The theory highlights that instead of focusing on reducing uncertainty, people use various communicative and psychological strategies to manage it. People may seek information to feel more secure about something or rely on the social support of others to regain hope in times of high uncertainty. People may also choose to manage their uncertainty by balancing their needs for certainty. For example, Brashers and colleagues (1999) found that people living with HIV learn to adapt to their chronic uncertainty by focusing on short-term plans and goals rather than being consumed by longer-range and more uncertainty-producing goals. Brashers (2001) argued that the emotional responses to uncertainty that people experience depend on their appraisal of ambiguous situations. If people perceive uncertainty as dangerous and leading to harm, they are likely to experience negative emotions. If people think uncertainty is a preferred state (i.e., when not knowing is better than knowing), positive emotions are likely to occur. When it doesn’t really matter if people know or not know about an issue, it may lead to neural emotional responses. Indeed, the central premise of anxiety/uncertainty management theory is that uncertainty is neither inherently good nor bad; rather, people manage uncertainty resulting from situations that are unfamiliar, complex, or unpredictable.

References and other suggested readings:

Afifi, W. A., & Matsunaga, M. (2008). Uncertainty management theories: Three approaches to a multifarious process. In L. A Baxter & D. O. Braithwaite (Eds.), Engaging theories of interpersonal communication: Multiple perspectives (pp. 161-173). Sage.
Babrow, A. S., & Striley, K. M. (2014). Problematic integration theory and uncertainty management theory. In D. O. Braithwaite & P. Schrodt (Eds.), Engaging theories in interpersonal communication: Multiple perspectives (2nd Ed., pp. 103-114). Sage.
Brashers, D. E. (2001). Communication and uncertainty management. Journal of Communication, 51(3), 477-497. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2001.tb02892.x
Brashers, D. E., Neidig, J. L., Cardillo, L. W., Dobbs, L. K., Russell, J. A., & Haas, S. M. (1999). “In an important way, I did die.” Uncertainty and revival among persons living with HIV or AIDS. AIDS Care, 11(2), 201-219. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540129948090
Knobloch, L. K., & McAninch, K. G. (2014). Uncertainty management. In C. R. Berger (Ed.), Handbooks of communication science Volume 6: Interpersonal communication (pp. 297-319). Walter de Gruyter.
Nishida, T. (2015). Anxiety/uncertainty management (AUM) theory. In C. R. Berger & M. E. Roloff (Eds.), International encyclopedia of interpersonal communication. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118540190.wbeic046

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Selected Writings by Communication Studies majors at California State Prison

Los Angeles County, City of Lancaster

In the fall of 2016, the Department of Communication Studies at California State University, Los Angeles, began offering classes inside a maximum security prison facility to offer incarcerated persons the opportunity to achieve a bachelor’s degree in Communication. In spring of 2017, selected assignments and essays produced by those students in response to prompts from this textbook were published in Colloquy: A Journal of the Department of Communication Studies, California State University, Los Angeles. In the time since, the program created The Prison BA Journal to share the students’ work with others. In addition, collaboration between the Lancaster State Prison’s Communication Studies students and students in Cal State LA’s Animation Option brought to life student essays through animation and narration.

Dr. Kamran Afary, faculty advisor to the program and Assistant Professor of Social Justice Communication, describes the impact of learning about interpersonal communication on his students: “I have seen its life transforming effect on my students in their interpersonal relationships with each other and in repairing relationships with their families.” Through the generosity of the program, we can share their work with all students learning from this textbook.

This website shares reflections and animations created in response to Pause and Reflect prompts, organized by chapter, as well as selected essays, poems, and presentations that address other topics or course assignments. Here is just a sample of what you will find: https://vimeo.com/showcase/7155653

We hope you will take the time to learn about interpersonal communication through the words of these students: https://www.prisonbajournal.org/ipccompanion