Read more
This book gives a comprehensive introduction to intercultural communication. The reader is introduced to essential concepts in the field, different theories and methods of analysing communication, the importance of verbal and nonverbal languages for bringing about mutual understanding and, finally, the ethical challenges that arise.
The volume also has a practical aspect. The author discusses subjects such as handling encounters with people using foreign languages; incorporating different life styles and world views; the use of interpreters, non-familiar bodylanguage; different understandings of time; relocation in new settings; the use of power and how to deal with cultural conflicts generally.
Published as a general textbook in English for the first time following a very successful original edition in Norwegian, also translated to Russian and French, this richly-illustrated book offers a refreshing and engaging introduction to intercultural understanding
List of contents
Contents: Understanding in a Global World - Culture: Something We Have or Something We Do? - Communication Is Creating Something Together - Process Analysis: Building Bridges - Semiotic Analysis: Interpreting Signs - Hermeneutic Analysis: Understanding - Verbal Communication: Language - Nonverbal Communication: Body Language - Identity: Who Am I? - Context and Reality: Why Are They Doing This? - To Understand Oneself and Others.
About the author
Øyvind Dahl is Norwegian but grew up in Madagascar, where he taught at a teacher training college for several years. He has worked around international development issues in different countries and is now Professor Emeritus at VID Specialized University in Stavanger, Norway. He helped establish the Centre for Intercultural Communication (SIK) at VID and Nordic Network for Intercultural Communication (NIC) together with professional partners from other Nordic countries. He has also been a board member of the Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research in Europe (SIETAR- Europa).
