Numerous examples from the historical practice of interaction between cultures show that the process of intercultural communication itself has a conflict potential from the very beginning. On the way to mutual understanding in communication, people, faced with various ethnocultural interests and differences, are forced to achieve a more complete and adequate knowledge of themselves and their partners. To do this, they often have to revise some of the values of their own culture.
In the process of cross-cultural communication, people face numerous limitations, called cross-cultural communication barriers. The main barriers that reduce the effectiveness of interactions are the differences in cognitive schemes used by representatives of different cultures (features of language and nonverbal systems, elements of public consciousness)1. There are also ethno-cultural barriers generated by social factors associated with the belonging of communication participants to different socio-cultural groups. A particular type of barrier in cross-cultural communication is the psychological barrier, which is a psychological reaction to specific manifestations of other cultures.
Barriers are challenging to overcome in disrespect for other views, an intolerant attitude to the norms of another culture. Which values are essential to people and have a significant influence, and which are not considered that important, depends on the culture. Their structure and significance determine the uniqueness and peculiarities of the culture2. Most of the features of one’s own culture, as a rule, are not realized and are taken for granted. Awareness of the values of one’s own culture comes only when meeting with representatives of other ethnicities when different cultures interact and differences in their value orientations are revealed.
No culture or society is homogeneous in its composition. Most often, they are a mosaic of different ethnic cultures and subcultures. At the same time, each of them is characterized by its norms and rules of communication, value orientations, and worldview. However, it must be remembered that “the light of Christ enlightens all,” and “we are all brothers and sisters in Christ” (Mt 12:50) descended from Adam and Eve.
References
Hausman, Daniel. “Culture and Preference Formation.” In Cultural Values in Political Economy, edited by P. Joginder Singh, 33-48. Redwood City: Stanford University Press, 2020.
Khukhlaev, Oleg, Valentina Gritsenko, Anna Makarchuk, Olga Pavlova, Natalia Tkachenko, Shushanik Usubian and Valeria Shorokhova. “Development and Adaptation of the Integrative Intercultural Competence Survey.” Psychology. Journal of the Higher School of Economics 18, no. 1 (2021): 71-91.
Siewert, Frances, ed. Amplified Bible, Classic Edition. Michigan: Zondervan, 2015.
Footnotes
- Oleg Khukhlaev et al., “Development and Adaptation of the Integrative Intercultural Competence Survey,” Psychology. Journal of the Higher School of Economics 18, no. 1 (2021): 80.
- Daniel Hausman, “Culture and Preference Formation,” in Cultural Values in Political Economy, ed. P. Joginder Singh (Redwood City: Stanford University Press, 2020), 47.