Intercultural Communication

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Intercultural communication: a new approach to international relations and

global challenges (sadri, h.a. and ﬂammia, m.) [book review]
Article in IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication · March 2013

DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2012.2237251
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IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION, VOL. 56, NO. 1, MARCH 2013 81
Book Review
Houman A. Sadri and Madelyn Flammia

Intercultural Communication: A New Approach to International
Relations and Global Challenges
—Reviewed by
TYTTI SUOJANEN
Index Terms—Globalization, intercultural communication, international relations.
Coming from a Finnish language and cultural

to thinking about
effectively is related to serious global challenges,
such as those of overpopulation, hunger, depletion
background, I am accustomed of natural resources, global warming, world health
the world in intercultural terms: Finland is a issues, and terrorism.
small, bilingual country and people are used
to using foreign languages. The intercultural The book is divided into four parts. In the first
perspective is automatically present in my technical part, the central concepts and key theories of
communication courses at the University of intercultural communication are introduced. The
Tampere, particularly as we enjoy good cooperation main thread running throughout the book is the
with the Translation Studies Department at the notion of mindful communication:
same university. Therefore, I am always interested
We define mindful intercultural and
in reading about intercultural communication and
international communication as interactions
new ways of incorporating it into my teaching.
with members of other cultures in which an
Houman A. Sadri and Madelyn Flammia have individual strives to understand the cultural
brought together their expertise in international values, beliefs, and norms of other parties and
relations and technical communication, to use that understanding to adapt his/her
respectively, and produced a fresh and topical communication style to achieve a meaningful
treatment of intercultural communication from exchange and a win-win result. [p. 26]
an interdisciplinary perspective. In addition to
scholars and academics, the book is intended The book aims to enhance the reader’s basic
for professionals in business, government, and stance as a culturally aware person and his/her
nonprofit communities. For those who want to use ability to act mindfully in intercultural encounters.
the book for classroom and workshop purposes, a The citizen diplomat is another key issue,
companion website is available for supplementary which underlines the power of the individual
materials. in contributing to peace in the world. They are
ordinary citizens who help shape foreign relations
The book engages the reader from the very by traveling abroad as students, teachers, or
beginning: readers are invited to answer a set of volunteers, or by opening their homes and offices
questions which help them reflect on their current to people from other cultures. Overall, the authors
level of intercultural awareness. At the beginning, advocate for the use of soft power whose effects
the authors earnestly point out the enormous tend to be more enduring than military measures.
importance of intercultural and international
communication: the ability to communicate Part two of the book is devoted to explaining four
different approaches to the study of intercultural
and international communication: the social
Manuscript received June 04, 2012; accepted November 14,
science approach, the interpretative approach, the
2012. Date of publication January 23, 2013; date of current critical approach, and the dialectical approach.
version February 19, 2013. The social science approach assumes that human
The reviewer is with the School of Language, Translation
and Literary Studies, University of Tampere, Tampere 33014,
behavior is predictable and that there is a
Finland (email: tytti.suojanen@uta.fi). describable outside reality. Scholars using this
IEEE 10.1109/TPC.2012.2237251 approach aim to describe and predict human
Book publisher: New York: Continuum International Publishing behavior, and they usually rely on quantitative
Group, 2010, 317 pp. methods. The interpretative approach is based on
0361-1434/$31.00 © 2013 IEEE

82 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION, VOL. 56, NO. 1, MARCH 2013
the assumption that reality is constructed and that concludes with examples of global citizenship,
communication is a subjective experience. Scholars which show that citizens of all types and levels
exercising this approach believe that human can make a difference. We can all endeavor to be
behavior is unpredictable and creative, which is individuals who are open to new information as
studied using qualitative research methods. In well as ideas and environments, in other words,
the critical approach, the historical context of mindful individuals.
communication and the relationship between power
and communication are the focus. This approach The emphasis on the American point of view
stresses subjective reality and the context of is surprising in a book about intercultural
communication. Finally, the dialectical approach, communication. For example, the first two engaging
developed by Martin, Nakayama, and Flores, questions in Part 1 leave out the non-American
brings together the strengths of the three other reader: “Are you a first-generation American
approaches with an emphasis that intercultural (meaning that one or both of your parents came
communication is processual, relational, to the United States from another country)?”;
and contradictory in nature. The dialectical “Does your immediate or extended family practice
approach has six dialectics: cultural-individual, customs and celebrate holidays not practiced or
personal-contextual, differences-similarities, observed by the majority of people in the US?” [p. 2]
static-dynamic, history/past-present/future, In addition, there is an abundance of references to
and privilege-disadvantage. The dialectics are American institutions, organizations, and popular
related to the four building blocks of intercultural culture, etc. This choice of perspective, and the
communication, namely, culture, communication, fact that the intended readers mean American
context, and power. In addition to explaining the readers specifically, is not openly stated until
principles of the four approaches along with their toward the end of the book: “ we will focus
benefits and limitations, the authors give insightful, on those organizations most directly relevant to
concrete examples of each. you, a college student in the United States” [p.
246]. Looked at from the viewpoint of a wider
Part three discusses the various processes international audience, it might have been easier
and technologies related to intercultural and for the reader to start exercising the mindful
international communication. Chapter 5, entitled approach, if the American perspective had been
“Verbal Communication,” covers linguistic stated at the beginning of the book, or if the book
differences, issues of translation, multilingualism, itself practiced the mindful perspective that the
and the language of conflict management. Chapter authors emphasize.
6 deals with nonverbal communication and
examines the influence of cultural values on body The book is highly rich in detail, and the work is
language, gestures, and the conception of time and an invaluable source of information for the reader
space. Chapter 7, entitled “Visual Communication,” who is looking for a holistic picture of intercultural
discusses how culture influences perception and and international communication on a global level.
the use of graphic images. Part three ends with a On the other hand, its wide scope does not permit
chapter on mass communication with an emphasis a more in-depth treatment of many issues, such
on the relationship between the media and power, as linguistics or translation. There is a fair degree
and the global impact of US popular culture. of repetition in the book, which makes skimming
and browsing through the book easy, but which
The fourth and final part of the book focuses on might cause some frustration for the chronological
ethical dimensions related to culture. Aspects reader. However, for classroom purposes, the
of ethnocentrism and the connection between book is ideal as it offers numerous theoretical
ethics and power are discussed, and the authors viewpoints. Adopting the authors’ positive and
introduce the idea of contextual relativism, which convincing idea of a mindful communicator will be
is an attempt to negotiate the tension between a fruitful starting point for students and anyone
universalism and relativism. Those who take the else interested in intercultural and international
contextual relativist approach “do not believe communication. In addition, the references are
that it is impossible for them to take an ethical placed at the end of each part, making the book
stance in relation to the behavior of members of even more reader-friendly. With its highly readable
other cultures, but strive to avoid doing so from text style, the book is a truly comprehensive
an ethnocentric perspective” [p. 264]. The book account of intercultural communication.
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See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

Intercultural communication: a new approach to international relations and

Article in IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication · March 2013

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Houman A. Sadri and Madelyn Flammia

Index Terms—Globalization, intercultural communication, international relations.

Coming from a Finnish language and cultural

0361-1434/$31.00 © 2013 IEEE

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