Intercultal Communication

Critical Incident Analysis Paper

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This paper is about a critical incident, which involves some sort of intercultural interaction.

Critical episode (One that involves cultural difference or intercultural communication)

1. Describe the incident and your feelings in detail

1. When and where it happened

This happened when I first started university in APU. In my second week of university, my trashcan/bag was full and I wanted to throw the trash. Though I wanted to throw it, I didn't understand some of the rules of throwing trash. So I just generally put everything in what I thought was right and decided to throw the trash.

1. What actually happened

When I was on my way to throw the trash, my RA stopped me and he told me that I separated everything wrong. He told me to go through all the trash and separate them again. Due to the fact that it was in the hallway, which is public, I found it to be very embarrassing and I felt as though I was being emotionally harassed. Though I did what I was told to do, I showed various non-verbal behaviors to express my emotions regarding the situation.

1. What were your feelings, thoughts and understanding at the time and after the incident

After this incident I realized that my RA was not being or trying to be mean to me but just following the rules of Japan. What got to me most was the tone that my RA used, I felt that it was condescending and his behavior was as if he was ordering me, not asking. Due to the fact that he did not communicate well I took a lot of offence to his actions. At the time I felt very insulted and humiliated due to the fact that I had to separate trash in front of people, but after the incident I understood that the trash couldn’t be thrown away unless it is properly separated. A few days later I confronted my RA about the situation and he apologized for speaking in that kind of tone. He said that he was having a bad day and it showed in the way he spoke towards others.

1. Analyze the incident using two approaches, theories or concepts you learned in class or textbook

1. Two approaches, theories or concepts which are suitable and comparable to understand the incident

The two approaches that are suitable and comparable for this incident are communication styles and non-verbal codes. I think that these theories are most suitable for this incident due to the fact that every culture, community, and person has different communication styles when you are asking someone to do something.

1. Explain each approach, theory or concept you applied

The first approach is communication styles. There are 5 types of commination styles regarding this approach, which are assertive, aggressive, passive-aggressive, submissive and manipulative. In this situation My RA used kind of an aggressive communication style that was demanding and intimidating thus turning the situation into something that wouldn't have caused a problem. If he were to have used an assertive communication style, I would have responded to the situation much better, as that style focuses on being respectful and emotionally expressive.

The second approach is non-verbal codes, which involve meaning from actions without the use of words. Non-verbal communication can be deliberate or unintentional. Non-verbal cues are culture-bond and are usually shown or used when where is conflict. In this situation my RA could not recognize my non-verbal cues thus we was not able to understand that I was very unhappy with the situation. As I am someone who is said to wear my emotions, I thought that my RA would notice my expression of discontent and navigated the situation better.