Intercultural Praxis and Other Cultural Learning Concepts

When I first started to read about intercultural communication and my position in relation to it, I realized that while I have a general grasp on what the idea of culture is, I couldn't pinpoint a conclusive concrete definition of culture. After searching for it, I found that the definition is highly contested and debated.  So, of the many definitions I found, the question arose, which is correct?  Determining the most correct definition is unfortunately subjective, as many different definitions make a strong case from different viewpoints.  My personal theory is that the actual concrete definition of culture is an amalgam of competing theories both from the past, present, and most likely the future.  For the purposes of this, I will provide three definitions extrapolated from my readings. 1 - Culture as a site of shared meaning.  2 - Culture as a site of contested meaning.  3 - Culture as a resource. (Sorrells 2012)

Once I knew the broader definition of the subject matter, I could more fully delve into the sub-genres, concepts, and discipline based jargon that inevitably follows.  One of the first concepts that caught my attention was intercultural praxis.  While the idea is something relatively easily understood, some key words and working parts to the theory require more finite definition.  Intercultural praxis consists of six different and equally important parts, and they are as follows: Inquiry, framing, positioning, dialogue, reflection, and action.  Intercultural praxis as defined by Kathryn Sorrells in her book Intercultural Communication: Globalization and Social Justice, "a process of critical, reflective thinking and acting" (Sorrells 2012).

Let's start with Inquiry. When I say inquiry, I literally mean to inquire or to ask questions.  Asking questions when it comes down to effective communicating is a huge part of better understanding any culture.  I feel as if curiosity is a major key in a subject like this. Next we can look into dialogue, which I believe goes hand in hand with inquiry.  Dialogue goes beyond the questions you might ask, and more into trying to imagine yourself in the shoes of your study. You can ask question after question and learn a substantial amount, but when you start talking with somebody and not at somebody, a sort of mutual understanding is made that you are willing to try and understand or hypothetically experience the other persons opinions and ideas.  This, is of course my interpretation and by no means the best or only one.

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Think for a moment about taking a picture, and all the important things we take into account before we shoot.  Where you are, where the object you're photographing is, how is the lighting etc.  I think of the next two terms much like I would think about photography.  First up we can look at framing as the frame or parameters  we place around any situation.  For example, looking at a close up frame of a situation would be evaluating minute details like the problems with your neighborhood grocery store, while evaluating from a large frame can compare larger issues like the universal problems with grocery stores across the country. Like zooming in and zooming out we have to consider the frames we use when evaluating cultures.

Positioning and framing relate closely to one another as the both require the studier consider themselves as a part of the cultural learning process.  For instance if you are from a family that is very affluent, your view on poverty would be subconsciously affected by your position in society. Where do you, the photographer so to speak, stand.  If I were to go to Africa and  do an ethnographic project on a particular tribe, my position as a Westerner would, to a degree, effect my thoughts about all aspects of their culture.  Try as we might, our positions are far more concrete than our literal physical position, say on the couch or in a room, unlike a photographer we cannot always move or change it.  Positioning also encompasses where the subject of your study is positioned, why might they have certain discriminations or feelings towards a subject.  What is their frame.

It's time for reflection.  Well, defining reflection in regards to understanding culture anyways. Reflection applies to so much more than just thinking about the questions you ask or the answers you receive. Reflection encompasses thinking about why you are asking questions, in essence, why are you curious?  Reflecting and thinking about what your projects will accomplish, then of course, reflecting on the results of your inquiry and framing etc.  Last but not least, we can look at action, perhaps the most important part to intercultural praxis. When we have gained all of this knowledge about other cultures, when we analyze it and break it down to truly understand others, what do we do with this knowledge?  The answer is not simply to document it and write it down, but to act in a way which is morally and socially responsible.  Actually working on thinking and fixing and organizing a solution to said problems is incredibly important.  Of course, the willingness to act does not always translate into the means to do so.  In the words of Francis Bacon "knowledge is power", what we do with that power is completely up to us.

These terms and concepts are just a few of the myriad I have learned in the past week of my studying intercultural communication.  Before, I probably could have told you that culture is important, but I doubt I would have been able to effectively understand the real definition and implications included with that word. Through my very topical study of culture so far, I have learned far more than I could have expected. I expect to learn even more about the concepts I THINK I understand and morph them into concepts that I can grasp and help teach others.  After all, what good is knowledge if I can't use it for something.


REFERENCES:

Sorrells, Katherine (2002).  Intercultural Communication: Globalization and Social Justice. United States.  Sage Publications.