Elements for Intercultural Communication

Abstract

In the first place the concepts of multiculturality and interculturality are explained clarified. It is pointed out that the same social objectives are not always pursued under such labels. Multiculturality refers to a situation of cultural coexistence, while interculturality refers to the relationships among different cultures.To make feasible these cultural interrelationship an intercultural competence must be acquired. One must not fall into the fallacious belief that communication is a perfect conveyor of information. Communication is a process of generating meaning, which, in the case of intercultural communication takes on specific characteristics. The point is to be aware of these characteristics and to achieve the goal of efficient communication. To that effect, the participants must be endowed with both a cognitive and emotional competence, the intercultural traits of which are thereby explained by the author. Appropriate intercultural behavior is the result of the synergy of both such competences. Lastly, the aims of intercultural communication are refelected upon, aims which should imply significantchange in multicultural societies today.