Content area
Full Text
Being able to read the context and decode the message is essential for successful cross-cultural communication.
Humans communicate by using codes, which are the vehicles for the transmission of meaning. Codes exhibit many properties; they are culturally defined and governed by rules. The many types of codes-verbal, nonverbal, paralanguage, and discourse (Cooley, 1983; Gudykunst, 1983)-can be formal or informal, and the rules for using them may change depending on the contexts in which they are used.
Different cultures use different codes to transmit meaning, and different rules may apply depending on different contexts. Acknowledging these explicit and implicit rules does not mean knowing how to use them appropriately across cultures. Clinicians need to be aware of these many codes and contexts in developing the cultural and social intelligence needed to apply these implicit rules.
Transmitting Meaning
Our language is one of the most important codes in transmitting meaning. People from the same cultural group may share the same or similar languages. When people travel, they bring their codes with them. Over time, the patterns of these linguistic codes change and may become difficult to decipher. Those who are exposed to many languages may switch and mix codes. Others may have different levels of proficiency in the languages they use.
In the United States, many people grew up with several different "Englishes." In an article titled "Mother Tongue," bestselling novelist Amy Tan, a Chinese-American, described these forms of Englishes: "I began to write stories using all the Englishes I grew up with: the English I spoke to my mother, which for lack of a better term might be described as simple; the English she used with me, which for lack of a better term might be described as broken; my translation of her Chinese, which could certainly be described as watered-down; and what I imagine to be her translation of her Chinese if she could speak in perfect English, her internal language, and for that sought to preserve the essence, but neither an English nor a Chinese structure. I wanted to capture what language ability tests can never reveal: her intent, her passion, her imagery, the rhythms of her speech and the nature of her thoughts" (Tan, 2003, pp. 256-257).
Nonverbal Codes
Not only...