Interpersonal relations: The challenge of the 80's

Abstract

I trust that you, like me, are thrilled to be living in what must be considered the most exciting, dynamic and challenging era of this century. But like you, I am not that naïve to realise that it is an easy one free of problems. Never before in the lifetime of man has the need for a better understanding of communication and culture and their effect on interpersonal relations been so essential. Intercultural relations hinges on effective intercultural communication and for this to happen it is essential to understand the terms culture and communication. Culture can be defined as learned behaviours of a group living in a geographical area - i.e., behaviours related to knowledge, values and beliefs, attitudes, religions, concepts of self and the universe, hierarchies of status, spatial relations, time concepts, ethnicity, language, etc. Culture is variable, everchanging, gradually but continuously, and to further complicate understanding, there are individual differences within any given culture. Communication is, of course, the act of communicating - the act of understanding and being understood. Intercultural communication, therefore, is the act of communication when the message sender is from one culture and the message receiver is from another culture. Successful intercultural communication is the establishment and sharing of common meanings in the sender- receiver (Meanings are in people, not in messages). This process is obviously complicated and influenced by cultural factors, such as those mentioned above, not to mention language differences and patterns of thinking