One thing I know for sure is that I will never forget the Ling family and all the wonderful Sundays that I spent with them. The Ling's are such wonderful, caring people and they taught me more than I could ever ask for. On the surface, the visits may have seemed like simple ESL lessons yet they were so much more. When fluent language is not a valid option for communication, it teaches the value of all the other aspects of communication. Until taking this course I had never given much thought about all the details of interpersonal communication, however when given the opportunity to experience intercultural communication first-hand; these details become extremely present and of the utmost importance.
Some themes I noticed over the course of my visits with the Ling's were various aspects of nonverbal language, the uses of the perception process and a confirmation of the linguistic relativism theory. The main thing that I noticed about nonverbal language is that it is in many ways universal and can convey messages across cultures in ways that verbal language can not. A simple facial expression can emote a powerful message even when words fail. A smile or look of confusion would quickly clear up any misunderstandings of what someone was saying. Seeing the Ling family use the selection, organization, interpretation and negotiation steps of the perception process in many of my visits was really quite unique. I was able to see how a person takes new material, in this case a new language, and attempts to make sense of it in terms of their own realities. Perception varies across cultures as well as across individuals. Ester and Lion did not always make sense of things in the same way but were still able to eventually work out the same concept. I also came to the conclusion that linguistic relativism as opposed to linguistic determinism plays a key role in how people communicate across cultures. Language does predispose us to perceive the world in a particular way, yet it does not set limits on our understanding of the world and of each other. The Ling family was able to laugh at the jokes in the film Finding Nemo in the same manner that Liz and I did. This alone shows that language is not a barrier but simply just one of many lenses through which we view the world.
This experience will shape my future interpersonal and intercultural experiences by serving as a positive memory to look back on and be reminded of all the elements to keep in mind when communicating with others. In all aspects of my life this experience will remind me to be mindful of the various backgrounds, perceptions and realities of others. It will remind me to not be ethnocentric and to take into account that how I see the world may be very different than the way others do. I will know that this diversity is a positive thing and that it does not have to be a limitation or barrier to communication. As a Psychology major, I am fascinated by how humans think and expect to work with people from many different cultures in my future career. I also plan to travel and experience other cultures first hand and so this course has definitely helped prepare me to be a competent intercultural communicator.
No comments:
Post a Comment