International conferences: Significant measures of success

This article reviews the literature on evaluating international conferences identifying significant factors which contribute to measured success. Extensive previous research over the last twenty years has identified criteria for evaluating success which continue to be ignored as international conferences repeat the same mistakes. More systematic research is needed. A framework of 25 evaluation measures is described for future research on the assessment of international conferences.Responses to three items of a questionnaire sent out by the East-West Culture Learning Institute as part of a project studying international conferences are also discussed, relating to evaluation measures, problems of evaluation and potential benefits of evaluation. Guidelines and suggestions are provided synthesizing the available research toward planning more successful international conferences in the future. In conclusion, six issues are identified for further clarification in future research on international conferences.     

The social adjustment of Filipino nonmigrants,emigrants, and immigrants to Hawaii

This study compared the social adjustment of a group of Filipinos who had initiated definite arrangements to emigrate to Hawaii (emigrants) with another group of Filipinos from the same communities as the emigrants who expressed no intention to emigrate (nonmigrants). These two samples were then compared with a group of recent Filipino immigrants to Hawaii. Social adjustment was measured by the Katz Adjustment Scales, relative's rating form, in terms of clusters of symptomatic and social behavior. The results showed that the immigrants in their social adjustment were less emotionally expressive than the emigrants, who were in turn, less expressive than the nonmigrants. However, significant cluster score differences obtained primarily between the Philippine samples and the immigrants, while there was a general lack of significance between the nonmigrants and the emigrants. The overall decline in the level of emotional expression of the immigrants was attributed to their adherence to the paramount Philippine value of social acceptance as their modal means of adjustment to the immigration experience. Thus, the direction and nature of changes in the emotional expression of Filipino immigrants follow from their culture and its integral norms and values rather than being derivative of processes of acculturation.     

Intercultural marriages: An intrareligious perspective

This study examines 108 intercultural and 62 intracultural, intrareligious marriages in Hawaii in terms of inferred causality or internal and external variables affecting the satisfaction of the relationship. Personal questionnaires were conducted privately by an interculturally trained interviewer with each marriage partner. Intercultural couples reported significantly more external problems (intercultural experiences attributed to extended family members, relatives, friends and community), greater assimilation pressures on the female towards accepting the husband's culture and greater negative responses toward intercultural marriage per se than intracultural couples. Responses were in concurrence with the idea that for an intercultural, intrareligious marriage to suceed it demands considerable more sacrifice, patience, and commitment.     

On communication among “unequals”

This analysis was stimulated by the problem in international development of communication between development personnel and members of the populations with whom they work. Building on the work of Bateson and the Ardeners, I propose a theoretical framework that incorporates the “inarticulateness of women” (as discussed by Ardener) and a similar phenomenon I have observed in situations of contact between people of unequal status, in general. Three ethnographic examples of the dynamics of communication between “unequals”¹ and the resulting “inarticulateness” are then provided: one between rural and urban dwellers in Iran: one between women and men from two subcultures in rural America; and one among male and female scientists from different countries and different scientific paradigms. I conclude with a set of policy recommendations, that follow from the proposed theory.     

Expanding the role of the interpreter to include multiple facets of intercultural communication

Intercultural communication difficulties include language factors handled well by interpreters, but the problems also include factors such as non-verbal behavior, different bases for making attributions about others, and biases stemming from the ingroup-outgroup distinction. Interpreters could expand their role by incorporating these additional facets of intercultural communication into their work. The job enlargement could have such beneficial effects as greater satisfaction, productivity, and pride in the profession. The enlargement would also increase the visibility of the profession, especially at a permanent organization where interpreters and elected representatives could form stronger relationships than those common at ad hoc meetings held in different places.     

The effects of attitudinal versus religious similarity on the neighborhood preferences of Lebanese university students

The main purpose of the present study was to assess the relative importance of attitudinal versus religious similarity on the neighborhood preferences of Lebanese university students shortly after the 1975–1976 war in Lebanon.It was expected that neighborhood preference for a stranger would be affected by: (1) attitudinal similarity — dissimilarity on an important political issue and by (2) the number of strangers involved.The subjects were 169 Lebanese undergraduate students at the American University of Beirut (67 Christians, 96 Muslims, with six subjects not mentioning religious affiliation). In terms of political ideology, 38 subjects were conservative while 131 were liberal and, with respect to displacement during the war, 81 subjects stated that they were displaced while 88 subjects indicated that they remained in their original neighborhoods. Finally, with respect to ethnic (or national) origin, 118 subjects considered themselves as “Arabs” while 48 indicated that their origin was something “other” than Arab, with the remaining three subjects not responding to this item.The results showed that, irrespective of the background characteristics of the subjects, (1) strangers of a different religion who had the same attitudes on an important political issue were significantly more preferred as neighbors than coreligionist strangers who had opposite attitudes on the same issue, and (2) neighborhood preference was significantly greater for one than for many strangers. However, although one stranger was significantly more preferred as a neighbor than many, this preference was found to be stronger under the opposite attitude — same religion condition.     

Toward a unified conception of intercultural communication: An integrated systems approachVers un approche systemique et unifié de la communication interculturelle

Intercultural Communication theorizing appears to be divided into two schools, one stressing the personal psychological level, the other stressing the interpersonal process level of the communication vehicle itself. Neither is in itself sufficient for future theory building in the field. Towards a unifying systemic approach in intercultural, different theoretical perspectives are briefly reviewed in regard to these schools and a conception entailing intrapersonal (cognitive), interpersonal (interpretive) and systemic (synthetic) categories are derived. This approach clarifies and integrates some present theoretical insights of the field into a more comprehensive whole.     

Measuring cross-cultural adjustment: The problem of criteriaLa evaluación del ajuste transcultural: El problema de criteriosL'évaluation de l'adaptation inter-culturelle: Le problème des critères

The nature of the adjustment process for individuals crossing cultural boundaries has not been adequately described in past research, and this leads to difficulty in selection and training of personnel for overseas assignments. This article critically reviews research on criterion measures of overseas adaptation, and raises a series of theoretical issues to be considered in future research. In addition, methods for measurement of cross-cultural adjustment are proposed, and it is suggested that practitioners and researchers in this field could benefit from a careful definition of criteria.     

The 5th annual SIETAR conference in Mexico city: An evaluation

The 5th Annual Conference of the Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research (SIETAR), in Mexico City, was evaluated using both scaled and open-ended questions. Analysis of the scaled responses suggested that the participants found the conference to be personally enjoyable, professionally worthwhile, well organized and intellectually stimulating. Overall, the conference was rated very favorably. On the other hand, however, negative evaluations were received regarding the quality of the presentations, the travel agent, the translations and direct benefits in the areas of intercultural training and research. Demographic analyses indicated that North Americans, researchers and university and government people rated the conference most favorably. Seven recommendations for future conferences were derived from the summarized open-ended responses.     

Readjustment problems of Brazilian returnees from graduate studies in the United States

This is a pilot study on the readjustment problems of Brazilians returned from graduate study in the United States. Subjects were 31 former LASPAU scholars who were interviewed by the senior author after they were back in Brazil. The family and professional problems they experienced as they tried to readjust to life in their country were investigated, as well as the intensity of these problems and the adequacy of coping, as perceived by the respondent. Taped interviews were coded independently twice, over a 16-month interval. High reliability levels were obtained. Results indicated that returnees had little difficulty adjusting to life with their families except for experiencing some value conflict with them and some lack of privacy. Most of their problems were related to their professional life. In that category they reported that they found some difficulty adjusting to the system as a whole and to their role as professors. Lack of intellectual stimulation, lack of facilities and materials, excessive red tape, lack of opportunity and time to do research was fairly common for most, and they felt these were moderately serious problems. In most cases returnees felt they were coping adequately.     

Stereotyping Hispanics: The differential effect of research method,label, and degree of contact

One hundred Anglo university students were asked to rate a number of ethnic/national groups (American, Chicano, Mexican American, Hispanic, Puerto Rican, Japanese, and German) on a Semantic Differential and to openly produce traits they identified with each group. As expected, the freely produced traits differed from those obtained in another study which used the Katz and Braly technique with students from the same university. Furthermore, differential evaluations were found for Chicanos and Mexican Americans in which the latter group was perceived more positively in the Evaluative Dimension, but not in terms of Potency or Activity. Also, as expected, having a member of the group as a friend produced the highest correlations with a positive perception of the group as a whole.     

Media and criticism in China: The case of the “cultural revolution”

This paper analyzes the role of the media in China during the cultural revolution 1966–1976. In particular, the authors examine the two elements that contributed to the ease with which the “Gang of Four” subverted the media to their own political ends. They contend that the media's history and culture were the two principal elements which allowed the “Gang of Four” to usurp both media and state power. Criticism represented a special cultural genre that established the legitimacy of one group to remove another from power. The authors demonstrate the inherent possibility of usurpation of the media when truth is dominated by personality.     

Sociolinguistics: The implications of a sociological approach in examining the counseling relationshipSociolinguistique: Les insinuation d'une approche sociologique en examinant le rapport de conseil

This article discusses basic concepts of sociolinguistics and considers their relationship to the counseling process. Essentially, it suggests that interviewing be examined in the light of (1) language as a cultural phenomenon and (2) the interactions between individuals and society. When reconceptualized in this way, counseling can benefit from the systematic knowledge of a related field and counselors will be helped to communicate more competently.     

The perception of transcendent interest: Communication and identification in an emergent community

The interrelationships among five variables were analyzed in an effort to understand the process of community formation in a culturally plural metropolitan environment. The variables—perception of transcendent interest, perception of commonality, cooperative interaction, maintenance adaptation, and growth adaptation—were formulated by explicating and synthesizing the concepts of community, community identification, and coorientation. The perception of transcendent interest, described as the focal point of identification, and the basis of an emerging community, was found to correlate significantly with all the other four variables, but to be best predicted by cooperative interaction and maintenance adaptation. The study offers insight into the processes of acculturation and cultural group formation in a plural system.     

The impact of intercultural contact on host families

This paper reports the results of programmatic research focusing upon the host family component of the Council of International Programs (CIP) exchange program that brings human service professionals to the United States each year. The study shows that four major dimensions of intercultural contact identified in intercultural literature (personal development, intimacy, international networks, and better understanding of foreign affairs) are clearly promoted through the CIP host family experience. The study supports the usefulness of a host family component as part of intercultural exchange programs.     

Cultural styles of persuasion

The study explores the hypothesis that persuasion can be carried out in a combination of three basic styles: the factual-inductive, the axiomatic-deductive, and the affective-intuitive. The weight of each of these three basic styles differs from culture to culture. The paper begins with the presentation of some earlier research on this question. The styles adopted by the representatives of the United States, the Soviet Union, and the Arab countries in the course of debates in the Security Council of the United Nations are then analyzed. The analysis confirms the hypothesis of there being in each case a dominant style as described above. The results of the study should be considered as preliminary: there exists a possibility of bias among the judges; the sample, even though sufficiently large for statistical purposes, is limited to the discussion of one dispute; the style of other nationalities is not investigated. It is hoped that additional results will be presented in the near future.     

The role of observational learning in the development of personal spaceEl rol del aprendizaje por medio de observación en el desarrollo del espacio personal.Le rôle de l'apprentissage observationel dans le développement de l'espace personnel.

Considerable research has been done on personal space, its determinants, methods of measurement, and traits of personality related to it. It is quite certain that personal space aspects are learned, and this accounts for the cultural differences found. This study was an attempt to consider the role of vicarious learning in establishing and changing children's personal space. A second purpose of the experiment was to gather some data on Brazilian boys and girls' personal space dimensions. Subjects: Forty-eight boys and 48 girls attending fifth grade with a mean age of 11 years and five months. Method: Personal space of subjects was measured twice using the Pedersen Personal Space Measure (a simulated pencil and paper measure of personal space). Between the two measurements subjects were submitted to one of the four experimental conditions: Group I saw a model being punished for invasion of personal space; Group II saw the model being rewarded; Group III saw no consequences happen to the model; and Group IV had no exposure to models. Results: The differences between the first and second measurements of personal space revealed that the four groups differed significantly: Group I increased personal space; Group II and group III decreased it; While group IV did not change. The hypothesis that vicarious learning influences the formation and modification of personal space was thus confirmed. As for the exploration on Brazilian children's personal space, it was found that although there were no differences due to sex of the subject, both boys and girls kept significantly smaller distances from girls than from boys, probably revealing social influences.