¶ … Communication plays a vital role in human interaction. Unfortunately, communication is not always as adept as it should be between people. This fact is usually exacerbated when people from disparate cultures are attempting to communicate with one another, particularly when they are not as well informed about one another's culture as they could be (Barna, 68). As a result, there are a number of negative occurrences that people may experience due to complications in intercultural communication. LaRay Barna's essay, "Intercultural Communication Stumbling Blocks" addresses several points that may cause difficulty with communication between people of different cultures. Many of these issues are characterized by assumptions and a degree of ignorance on the part of one or both people that result in a decidedly narrow perspective on their parts.
One of the many valid points that Barna raises regarding obstructions between an easy facilitation of cultural communication is the presence and purpose of stereotyping. It is interesting to note that the underline cause for many stereotypes is not necessarily malignant. The author states that the overriding purpose of the innate assumptions and close-mindedness that result in stereotyping (which can take myriad forms) is to "reduce the threat of the unknown by making the world predictable" (70). Furthermore, Barna notes that many stereotypes are engendered by preconceptions, some of which may be known to be applicable to certain cultural groups.
Despite what may be desirable outcomes or intentions for stereotyping, there are many instances in my own experience in which negative circumstances have arisen expressly because of someone basing their opinion about me or my family and friends about stereotypes. An excellent example of this fact occurred earlier this summer, when my friends and I went into a gas station one night to make a few purchases. One of my friends happened to be talking on...
Even though Bill has not been in the country for not that long, our friend Daniel has been residing here for the better part of 10 years. He speaks English fluently and without an accent, and people who know him think he was born in the country. However, I think because of their physical appearances, which are quintessentially Asian for the most part, and due to the fact that Bill was speaking a foreign language when they walked into the store, the employee working there assumed that we were both foreigners and could not speak the language with a degree of proficiency. The employee immediately started talking to them in a loud voice with exaggerated gestures, as if he was prepared for them not to understand what he was talking about. Daniel simply asked him, "why are you shouting?" As he paid for his soda, and the employee looked quite shocked. His preconceived notions about their proficiency in English showed how he had stereotyped them, and nearly made for an embarrassing situation because other customers began to look at them strangely, as well.
Barna makes another good point when she discusses the effect of high anxiety on intercultural communication. This can present a fairly formidable obstacle, because it is difficult for people to function normally, let alone communicate so, when they are intimidated, nervous, or otherwise anxious. The author makes a fairly salient point when she mentions the fact that anxiety is somewhat different than the other stumbling blocks for the simple fact that it simply reinforces the difficulty provided by the others (Barna, 71). The author's implication is that anxiety usually works in tandem with other communication issues, to inevitably make things worse.
There is a fair amount of veracity in this notion as a review of my own experience indicates. I was working as a tutor a couple of years ago and I had a new assignment at…
