KEY
Chapter 3: Communication and Culture
Multiple-Choice Questions
1. “A learned system of thought and behavior that belongs to and typifies a relatively large group of people,
including shared beliefs, values, and practices” represents which of the following terms?
2. __________ is the communication between people from different cultures who have different worldviews.
3. Bill grew up in a small rural town where most of his classmates came from ethnic, religious, and
socioeconomic backgrounds similar to his. However, since he has gone away to college, he has noticed that he
is surrounded by people from many different backgrounds. We would describe Bill’s college environment as
more __________ than the town where he grew up.
4. Naoko’s American friends sometimes get frustrated with her because she prefers to use subtle clues to
communicate that she disagrees or is uncomfortable in a particular conversation. What her friends may not
realize is that her communication pattern reflects the __________ Japanese culture in which Naoko was raised.
5. The United States is classified as which of the following?
6. People from which type of culture perceive themselves first and foremost as members of a group?
7. Liz prefers working on her own rather than in groups, but will tolerate group work if each member’s role or job
is clearly defined, each person is responsible for his or her own work, and each person will be held accountable
by their supervisor for the quality of the work he or she does in the group. Liz’s perspective seems to reflect
which cultural perspective?
8. __________ is the degree to which a culture adapts its behaviors in order to reduce ambiguity and risk.
9. Jim’s dad always tells him things like “The early bird gets the worm” and “We’re burning daylight” in order to
remind him that time is finite and that he should get up early in the morning if he wants to be successful in life.
Jim’s dad is instilling which time orientation?
10. Palestinians use the term “al nachba,” which translates into English as “the catastrophe” or “the disaster,” to
refer to the creation of the Israeli state. Their linguistic choice represents __________ and suggests they are a
__________ culture.
11. The behavioral and cultural traits assigned to men and women, and the way a particular culture defines notions
of masculinity and femininity, is referred to as
12. The theory that holds that we each have a sense of ourselves as a unique individual but also define ourselves
based on our membership in groups is called
13. Andrew met his roommate Danny when they both joined the Independent Filmmakers Club as freshmen, and
they have a large group of mutual friends through that group. More recently, Danny has joined a fraternity and
has been inviting Andrew to join him at the frat’s parties and other events. Andrew has accepted a few
invitations, but feels awkward at the fraternity events because he just doesn’t identify with the other people who
attend. We would describe the filmmakers’ club as Andrew’s __________ and the fraternity as a/an
__________.
14. What branch of the discipline (of communication) focuses on the ways in which communication within and
between groups affects relationships?
15. __________ is a belief that one’s own culture is superior to others’ and the tendency to view other cultures
through the lens of one’s own.
16. Alan believes that school administrators are overly critical and controlling. Consequently, when the Dean of
Students asks to meet with him to discuss what she can do to help him succeed in his classes, he assumes her
goal is to coerce him into dropping out of his classes. We might describe Alan’s perception as
17. __________ theory suggests that if you interact with people from backgrounds different from your own you
will come to understand others better.
True/False Questions
3. Communication researchers have found that even people from very different cultures have nearly identical
5. People from low-context cultures use cues like the time, place, relationship, and situation to interpret messages
6. Collectivist cultures tend to be governed by a clear sense of status and hierarchy, and tend to prize loyalty.
8. An individual in a low power distance culture is less likely to feel anxiety when talking to someone of higher
11. People from individualist cultures are prone to hyperbole when describing their emotional response to events.
16. In order to avoid ethnocentrism we must resist the tendency to feel patriotism as well as cultural or national
17. Stereotypical beliefs about and attitudes toward others may lead us to interact with them in such a way that we
18. One of the best ways to reduce one’s uncertainty and anxiety about interacting with people from other social
groups and cultures is to take the opportunity to interact with diverse groups of people in our social,
19. Effective intercultural communication often requires us to accommodate—to adapt our verbal and nonverbal
Short-Answer Questions
1. Define the term culture.
H = Understanding Culture (p. 52); C = knowledge; D = 1
2. Your __________ is the framework through which you interpret the world and the people in it.
H = Culture Is Learned (p. 52); C = knowledge; D = 2
3. Briefly describe one way in which mediated interaction is changing the way we experience the diverse world
around us.
H = Mediated Interaction (pp. 54‒55); C = comprehension; D = 2
4. Contrast the differences between high- and low-context cultures.
H = High- and Low-Context Cultures (p. 56); C = comprehension; D = 3
5. Provide an example of a high-context culture.
H = High- and Low-Context Cultures (p. 56); C = comprehension; D = 2
6. Define and give an example of a collectivist culture.
H = Collectivist and Individualist Orientations (p. 57); C = knowledge and comprehension; D = 2
7. What term do we use to describe the degree to which members of a culture adapt their behaviors to reduce
uncertainty and risk?
H = Comfort with Uncertainty (p. 57); C = knowledge; D = 2
8. In your own words, what is the difference between a masculine and a feminine culture?
H = Masculine and Feminine Orientations (p. 58); C = knowledge and comprehension;
D = 2
9. Briefly describe the approach to power distance found in the United States.
H = Approaches to Power Distance (p. 59); C = comprehension; D = 2
10. What do we mean when we say that a culture has a polychronic time orientation, and what is an example of a
culture that fits this description?
H = Time Orientation (p. 59); C = knowledge and comparison; D = 2
11. Describe one way in which your own generation’s attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors differ from those of your
parents.
H = Co-Cultural Communication (p. pp. 61‒63); C = comprehension; D = 1
12. List an example of one group you consider to be your own ingroup, and one that you consider to be one of your
outgroups.
H = Social Identity and Intergroup Communication (pp. 64‒66); C = application; D = 2
13. What is the difference between ethnocentrism and discrimination, and how are they related to one another?
H = Intercultural Communication Challenges (pp. 67‒68); C = comprehension and synthesis; D = 3
14. What are the three changes that intercultural communication training programs focus on?
H = Improving Intercultural Communication (p. 68); C = knowledge; D = 2
15. What do we mean when we caution not to overaccommodate?
H = Accommodate Appropriately (p. 71); C = knowledge; D = 2
Essay Questions
1. Explain what we mean when we say that culture is both learned through communication and expressed through
our own communication. Provide an example of something the media have taught you about your culture, and
describe one way in which you express that cultural attribute.
C = comprehension and application; D = 2
2. Citing specific examples to support your answer, explain why it is important to develop intercultural
communication skills.
C = comprehension and evaluation; D = 1
3. Reflecting on your own experiences, explain and illustrate how interacting with others from different ethnic,
racial, religious, or other cultural backgrounds has helped you to understand your own culture more clearly and
be a more competent intercultural communicator.
C = analysis, synthesis, and evaluation; D = 3
4. Synthesizing what you know about perception, what connections would you draw between concepts like
ethnocentrism, discrimination, cultural myopia, stereotyping, prejudice, selective perception, fundamental
attribution error, behavioral affirmation, behavioral confirmation, and self-fulfilling prophecies?
C = synthesis and analysis; D = 3
5. Based on what you learned throughout this chapter, why do you think intercultural communication competence
is considered more important today than it was a generation or two ago?
C = synthesis and evaluation; D = 3
6. Describe and illustrate social identity theory using yourself as an example. How do the groups you identify with
affect the way you perceive yourself and others? Can you identify ways in which your perception and behavior
may change depending on which group you are with at a given moment?
C = comprehension and application; D = 3
7. Scenario: When Monica arrived in Nepal for her Peace Corps assignment, she realized she had forgotten the
medication she takes for her painful migraine headaches. Luckily, she was able to get a new prescription sent to
a local pharmacy. Unfortunately, when she went to pick up the medication on a weekday afternoon, the
pharmacy was closed and no hours were posted on the window. Frustrated, she went to a café next door
complaining, “They don’t know anything about customer service—he doesn’t even keep regular business
hours!” A short time later, the pharmacist greeted her with the filled prescription—the server at the café had
phoned him at home and he rushed over to get her the medication.
Question: How does what you learned about individualist/collectivist cultures and time orientation inform your
understanding of this scenario? Was ethnocentrism or discrimination a factor? What might intergroup contact
theory suggest might be the outcome, for Monica, of this intercultural exchange?
C = analysis and synthesis; D = 3
8. Your friend Jasmine has signed up to study abroad in Japan. Based on what you’ve learned about high– and
low-context cultures, individualist and collectivist orientation, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, time
orientation, and masculine and feminine cultures, what information would you share to prepare her for the
cultural differences she should expect?
C = synthesis and analysis; D = 3
9. Pulling together what you learned in Chapters 1, 2, and 3, what advice would you give to someone who wants
to improve his or her intercultural communication competence?
C = synthesis, analysis, and evaluation; D = 3