Language and Culture in Context - A Primer on Intercultural Communication

Reviewed by Fran Hassencahl, Associate professor, Old Dominion University on 7/27/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This book is indeed a primer and covers the fundamental theories, but not in depth. The supporting examples are helpful. It is most suited for lower-level and community college classes. The first things I look for in a textbook are the table of contents and the bibliography. The text does not have an index. The text does supply at the end of each chapter, a list of the sources used, a glossary, a helpful list of activities, and TED talks. Some chapters have further reading and films listed. I am concerned about the author’s heavy reliance on secondary as opposed to primary sources. Teachers and students would have access to journals but would be less likely to have access to these textbooks. I also find that the author of a given textbook has journal articles that are the most useful explanation of his or her thoughts, but these are not used for this text.
4

Content Accuracy rating: 4

In general, the text is accurate; I found a few errors.
On page 1.2.5 the author refers to twentieth-century genocides and gives three examples. I believe that the genocide was in Turkey, not Armenia. Armenians were the victims of this endeavor.
On 1.2.7 where he explains citizen journalism, I think he should emphasize the inaccuracies they perpetrate and that they often have a hidden agenda. This was the case with reports on the fruit/vegetable vendor in Tunisia and the reports on some of the events in Egypt. The goal was to persuade not to inform. (I team-taught a course on the Arab Spring.)
On page 5.2.3 there seems to be some confusion in the text and picture caption. Veiling usually refers to wearing the niqab and hijab in the Gulf. The Gulfies and many Shias also wear the abaya which covers their whole body. When shopping kids identify their mothers by their footwear! In other Middle Eastern countries and Indonesia, most women wear just the hijab which covers a woman's hair for the most part. This is also referred to as veiling.
On page 2.2.2 I wondered whether Salzman in the sidebar was an anthropologist or sociologist. He writes for a small conservative newspaper in Northern Virginia. I wondered because it continues the myth of Islam’s spread only by the sword. Trade and political events also fed into its spread. Generally, we refer to the groups in the Maghrib as Berbers rather than Bedouins. Salzman's definitions of tribalism are all harmful, forgetting that during this time no centralized government took care of widows and orphans and that tribes also reflect linguistic differences with people not understanding a neighboring Berber language.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

I think updating the text would not be difficult since many of the issues like refugees and the textbook’s descriptions of the slavery experience are not going away soon. This book is online and simplifies that process.

Clarity rating: 4

I would rethink the discussion of identity, which leaves out religion, geography, and class. His discussions of social media and some of the solutions need updating and expansion. This area of social media interface is coming into focus in communication textbooks. I applaud that attention is paid to social media in this text.

Consistency rating: 5

I did not find problems in this area.

Modularity rating: 5

I disliked the numbering system in the modules and find old-fashioned page numbers more useful.
I wish the pictures were larger.
Key terms in the text that are also in the glossary are highlighted for easy finding.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Since many instructors supplement the textbook with additional readings and assign chapter reading differently than the text, I do not see the overall organization of chapters to be an issue.

Interface rating: 5

I did not encounter problems with interface

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not proofread these chapters, but I did notice a typo on page 1.3.2 in the sidebar. “Le Monde discussion fora ??, by contrast.”

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Since colleges and universities are now mining the Latino market and as the text states, they are a growing group in the US, it would be good to see some more examples that incorporate Latinos. Latinas, Latinx. The continuing discussion about what to call those who used to be called Hispanics would also be useful in Module 3.

Comments

In module 3 on Language, considerable attention is given to the importance of knowing a second or third language, but it gets more page time than the discussion of language. I would like to see a discussion of relational orientations and language. Unfortunately, few students now take a foreign language. The MLA reports on language keep showing decreases. Knowing a second language is useful, even if one cannot fully carry on a conversation. Native speakers appreciate your effort, and it makes your life easier. The only complete survival sentence I can say in Arabic is “Please do not put sugar in my coffee or tea.”

Reviewed by Cecilia Salvatore, Professor, Dominican University on 12/11/22

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The book is truly a primer, in that it provides a mere introduction to various topics. It works for a course on multicultural and organizational communication in a non-Communication Studies department in that it introduces students to the topics that will be relevant in their field or profession. As a primer, therefore, it is sufficiently comprehensive.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

The sources are accurate. It would have been nice to present more perspectives on other cultures from people from those cultures.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

I like the fact that the author presents basic concepts that have proven relevant through time -- e.g., Stuart Hall's concepts of low-context and high-context.

Clarity rating: 4

The book is clear enough in introducing various concepts and theories. It is up to the instructor to expand on these concepts and theories with additional and ancillary resources.

Consistency rating: 5

The book provides the same level of information in each section.

Modularity rating: 5

I like this book for the simple reason that it covers the topics the way I cover them in my class. Some topics are missing; nevertheless, I can see how I can work with the modularity of this text.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

I like this book for the simple reason that it covers the topics the way I cover them in my class. Some topics are missing; nevertheless, I can see how I can work with the modularity of this text.

Interface rating: 5

The book and sections are easy to navigate.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The book is not overly technical, but sufficient for college students.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

The text covers cultures from around the world. It does need more examples and diverse perspectives.

Reviewed by Jeremy Aldrich, Adjunct Instructor, James Madison University on 7/13/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

Examining intercultural communication through a variety of lenses, the text is a broad introduction to a variety of themes including cultural identity, the language learning process, verbal and nonverbal communication styles, and cross-cultural conflict. The breadth of the coverage lends this textbook, or portions of it, to courses outside of merely communication classes in areas such as linguistics, diversity, and business.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content presented is adequately accurate although the author appears to vacillate between promotion and critique of concepts such as Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory and the idea of “culture shock”.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The references and examples are relevant to an undergraduate audience. The studies cited include a range of dates including recent innovations in the field. The inclusion of a section considering each chapter’s theme in the context of technology-mediated communication dates the text (for example, assuming college students use Facebook).

Clarity rating: 5

The text is clear and generally well-written. Some of the sidebars lack important context to understand them or their connection to the chapter themes. As with many textbooks, there is a great deal of bolded vocabulary that is sometimes only briefly explained without elaboration and which does not cycle back in later chapters.

Consistency rating: 3

Each chapter includes objectives, two major topics each with several subtopics, a link to technology-mediated communication, and an extensive list of related resources and links with a heavy emphasis on related TED Talks. There is some lack of consistency in text formatting and in use of punctuation. The captions for illustrations need significant revision, with some being cut off and many needing captions which more clearly relate to their placement in the text. The illustrations at the beginning of each chapter would benefit from captions.

Modularity rating: 4

The subtopics in each chapter range from one to two pages in length, and could be remixed or excerpted easily.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Because the text is a survey of many topics, the flow between chapters is necessarily disjointed but within each chapter the subtopics flow well.

Interface rating: 4

On Libretext this textbook loaded very slowly but on the author’s website it was a basic and accessible interface with options to download the text as PDF, Word, or EPub format and an online tutorial including instructor videos and self-graded review sections.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

No grammatical errors were noted, although some formatting inconsistencies previously discussed were present.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The author takes care to present ideas and concepts as factually and neutrally as possible. The text is geared towards a White, mainstream US culture audience and might benefit from explicitly incorporating other cultural perspectives as the starting point rather than as points of contrast.

Reviewed by Bonniejean Alford, Instructor (Part-time) and Identity Strategist, College of DuPage on 4/19/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

Overall, this presents as a uniquely organized Introduction to Sociology Text. However, upon further examination, it does seem to be missing key aspects of culture – such as religion, stratification, and politics. While these aspects, as well as others, are sprinkled in, they lack a depth that would require an instructor to use another book or two in addition to this one. For a higher level more focused course on language and culture, this text is fairly comprehensive, shy some issues noted below.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

Overall, the context is accurate and does a solid job of addressing multiple cultures and providing unbiased portrayals of said cultures. I find some issue in how they defined identity. Or, more specifically, how they failed to define identity. They provide discussion of cultural identity and social identity, but only on the surface. And they do not provide a general discussion of the term as a whole. These two important parts of culture are relevant but leaves out other key aspects. For the remainder of the book, I found myself fixated on this omission and wanted to see it more fleshed out.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

I think this text is solid when it comes to relevance. It utilizes current sources that can easily be swapped out. I especially liked how they included a disclaimer that some of the material they share may be outdated but is included to inspire discussion. It let me, as a reader, know that the material provided is part of an ongoing and continual dialogue both within academia and beyond.

Clarity rating: 5

The material is easily understood. It uses field specific language where necessary. Overall, it provides a clear understanding of nearly all relevant terms.

Consistency rating: 5

This text maintains consistency throughout. The pedagogy applied is unique and centered around one aspect of culture and then expanded out, relating back to that central point. While it does leave out some deeper aspects of certain parts of the cultural context, as noted above, this may be purposeful. If using it for Introduction to Sociology, just take note that additional material may be needed.

Modularity rating: 5

The sections of the course are easily separated into clear divisions. While they build on each other, they can stand on their own, complete with their own references and expandable material.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 3

I am not sure about this organization. While it does follow a logical path, it wasn’t until Chapter 3 that we are even introduced to language. If the book is about language and culture – then language should be brought up first. The preface, that seemed odd coming before the table of contents, started seemingly in the middle of the story in a way that left me confused. In fact, I read it a second time before I moved on, as I wasn’t sure what it was preparing me for.

Interface rating: 3

In many places the in-text offset materials and images were not laid out in a pleasing manner. In fact, some were split across pages in an unnecessary manner. In the end, this is simply a layout and design problem and should be fixable. A note – I downloaded and reviewed offline. This may have caused the distortion. However, it should be laid up in a manner to not have this happen no matter the format.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not notice any glaring grammatical issues. I was focused on content, so there may have been something small I missed, but it wasn’t relevant enough to warrant notice, let alone mention.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The text makes a good faith effort to be inclusive and address as many varying examples as possible.

Comments

Overall, I think this is a good text, though I think it needs a clearer path as to what its intended use is.