Maysaa Khalil and Mohamad Kawtharani
Intercultural communication is a regulation that reviews communication crosswise over various societies or social gatherings, or how culture influences correspondence. It also includes understanding the distinctive cultures, languages and traditions of individuals from various nations. For this assignment, we chose to compare Spain to Lebanon. Spain is a highly-developed country and as regarded as one of the most advanced countries in the world. Lebanon, however, is still considered a third world country due to the any problems it faces. Comparing these 2 countries would be interesting because of the many differences and the few similarities between them.
Language:
In Lebanon, the main language is Arabic, but there are secondary languages that are also used, which are mostly English and French. However, Spaniards speak their native language as a primary language, Spanish, in addition to English as a secondary language.
Food:
Some of the most famous Lebanese dishes are tabbouleh, hummus, falafel, kibbeh... In Spain, their favorite foods are tapas, paella, gambas ajillo... In terms of food, Spain and Lebanon are very different. Furthermore, in Lebanon, the 2 leading beer companies are Beirut Beer and Almaza, while in Spain, the top 2 are Inedit and Estrella Galicia 1906.
Currency:
In Lebanon, the Lebanese pound, often referred to as the Lebanese lira, is used everywhere. However, the US dollar is accepted almost everywhere in Lebanon. In Spain, the euro is the currency that is used, and the US dollar is also accepted almost everywhere.
Government:
Lebanon is a semi-presidential parliamentary democratic republic, with Michel Aoun as the current president. Spain is a kingdom (it's officially called The Kingdom of Spain) with King Felipe VI as the current head of state. Spain is also a member of the United Nations, whereas Lebanon isn't.
Religion:
The main two religions in Lebanon are Islam and Christianity, with the Druze minority religion. In Spain, however, Roman Catholic Christianity is the largest religion, despite practical secularization being strong. Most Spaniards, especially young ones, choose to ignore the Catholic teachings in morals, politics or sexuality.
The Importance of Intercultural Communication:
Intercultural communication is interaction between people from different cultural backgrounds, verbally and non-verbally. It is, in other words, defined as situated communication between individuals of groups of different linguistic and cultural origins. It is very important to every single individual, and it is pretty much underrated anywhere in the world. One of its many advantages is teamwork. It helps employees and workers to communicate with each other and learn from each other's personal experiences without any misunderstandings. The influence of culture on people is quite clear with successful intercultural communication. It strengthens teamwork as employees respect the cultural backgrounds and experiences of each other. Another advantage is effective leadership. Present day associations are made out of assorted individuals, and supervisors are relied upon to lead their groups by making comprehension of the organization's arrangements while pleasing the differing perspectives of his group. Global business edge, productivity and proficiency are also benefits from intercultural communication.
Obstacles Facing Intercultural Communication:
There are many obstacles stopping intercultural communication from developing further. The most important of them are anxiety, ethnocentrism, stereotype, prejudice and language.
The first barrier, anxiety, is when a person feels anxious because of not knowing where he/she is expected to do, he/she feels anxious and won't be included in the communication transaction.
Secondly, ethnocentrism is one of the most important of these barriers. Ethnocentrism is the criticism and negative thoughts towards other cultures that are different than your own, and thinking that yours is superior.
Stereotypes are thoughts a person previously had about a certain culture that might be negative or positive. They are often problematic because they are over generalized and exaggerated.
Prejudice is similar to stereotypes, although it is usually negative and unfair towards that receiving party. It is basically the biased and unfair thoughts towards people that belong to a specific religion, race, nationality...
Language is probably the most obvious barrier. People who don't speak the same language find it hard to communicate and understand each other. Misunderstanding often happen between people who don't share the same language, or between people who have imperfect command of the language.
Language:
In Lebanon, the main language is Arabic, but there are secondary languages that are also used, which are mostly English and French. However, Spaniards speak their native language as a primary language, Spanish, in addition to English as a secondary language.
Food:
Some of the most famous Lebanese dishes are tabbouleh, hummus, falafel, kibbeh... In Spain, their favorite foods are tapas, paella, gambas ajillo... In terms of food, Spain and Lebanon are very different. Furthermore, in Lebanon, the 2 leading beer companies are Beirut Beer and Almaza, while in Spain, the top 2 are Inedit and Estrella Galicia 1906.
In Lebanon, the Lebanese pound, often referred to as the Lebanese lira, is used everywhere. However, the US dollar is accepted almost everywhere in Lebanon. In Spain, the euro is the currency that is used, and the US dollar is also accepted almost everywhere.
Government:
Lebanon is a semi-presidential parliamentary democratic republic, with Michel Aoun as the current president. Spain is a kingdom (it's officially called The Kingdom of Spain) with King Felipe VI as the current head of state. Spain is also a member of the United Nations, whereas Lebanon isn't.
Religion:
The main two religions in Lebanon are Islam and Christianity, with the Druze minority religion. In Spain, however, Roman Catholic Christianity is the largest religion, despite practical secularization being strong. Most Spaniards, especially young ones, choose to ignore the Catholic teachings in morals, politics or sexuality.
The Importance of Intercultural Communication:
Intercultural communication is interaction between people from different cultural backgrounds, verbally and non-verbally. It is, in other words, defined as situated communication between individuals of groups of different linguistic and cultural origins. It is very important to every single individual, and it is pretty much underrated anywhere in the world. One of its many advantages is teamwork. It helps employees and workers to communicate with each other and learn from each other's personal experiences without any misunderstandings. The influence of culture on people is quite clear with successful intercultural communication. It strengthens teamwork as employees respect the cultural backgrounds and experiences of each other. Another advantage is effective leadership. Present day associations are made out of assorted individuals, and supervisors are relied upon to lead their groups by making comprehension of the organization's arrangements while pleasing the differing perspectives of his group. Global business edge, productivity and proficiency are also benefits from intercultural communication.
Obstacles Facing Intercultural Communication:
There are many obstacles stopping intercultural communication from developing further. The most important of them are anxiety, ethnocentrism, stereotype, prejudice and language.
The first barrier, anxiety, is when a person feels anxious because of not knowing where he/she is expected to do, he/she feels anxious and won't be included in the communication transaction.
Secondly, ethnocentrism is one of the most important of these barriers. Ethnocentrism is the criticism and negative thoughts towards other cultures that are different than your own, and thinking that yours is superior.
Stereotypes are thoughts a person previously had about a certain culture that might be negative or positive. They are often problematic because they are over generalized and exaggerated.
Prejudice is similar to stereotypes, although it is usually negative and unfair towards that receiving party. It is basically the biased and unfair thoughts towards people that belong to a specific religion, race, nationality...
Language is probably the most obvious barrier. People who don't speak the same language find it hard to communicate and understand each other. Misunderstanding often happen between people who don't share the same language, or between people who have imperfect command of the language.
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