Mitchell R. Hammer

Measuring intercultural sensitivity: The intercultural development inventory

Today, the importance of intercultural competence in both global and domestic contexts is well recognized. Bennett (1986, 1993b) posited a framework for conceptualizing dimensions of intercultural competence in his developmental model of intercultural sensitivity (DMIS). The DMIS constitutes a progression of worldview ‘‘orientations toward cultural difference’’ that comprise the potential for increasingly more sophisticatedintercultural experiences. Three ethnocentric orientations, where one’s culture is experiencedas central to reality (Denial, Defense, Minimization), andthree ethnorelative orientations, where one’s culture is experiencedin the context of other cultures (Acceptance, Ad aptation, Integration), are identified in the DMIS. Basedon this theoretical framework, the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) was constructed to measure the orientations toward cultural differences described in the DMIS. The result of this work is a 50-item (with 10 additional demographic items), paper-and-pencil measure of intercultural competence. Confirmatory factor analyses, reliability analyses, and construct validity tests validated five main dimensions of the DMIS, which were measured with the following scales: (1) DD (Denial/Defense) scale (13 items, alpha=0.85); (2) R (Reversal) scale (9 items, alpha=0.80); (3) M (Minimization) scale (9 items, alpha=0.83), (4) AA (Acceptance/Adaptation) scale (14 items, alpha=0.84; and(5) an EM (EncapsulatedMarginality) scale (5 items, alpha=0.80). While no systematic gender differences were found, significant differences by gender were found on one of the five scales (DD scale). No significant differences on the scale

Behavioral categories of intercultural communication competence: Everyday communicators' perceptions

Abstract This paper reports the development of a behaviorally-based inventory of social skills related to impressions of communicative competence, grounded in the perceptions of everyday communicators. The study examined two variables: (a) the cultural context (inter vs. intra) and (b) the locus of the communication (speaker vs. other). Six hundred and two respondents were asked to imagine they had just completed a dyadic interaction, in one of four cultural contexts: with (a) another American, (b) an international student; nationality not specified, (c) a Japanese student, or (d) a German student. They were then asked to describe (a) what they would do and (b) what the other interactant would do in order to create a favorable impression and to be perceived as a competent communicator. Their responses were analyzed using standard content analysis procedures and four general dimensions emerged: one communicative function dimension and three specific behavioral dimensions (nonverbal, content/topic, and conversational management). Respondents identified 20–30 “behaviors” in each of these four dimensions that were fairly consistent for both loci (speaker, other). Most significant was the conceptual distinction made between the function dimension which comprised general statements of impressions (e.g., be friendly, be polite, show interest) and the other dimensions which comprised specific behaviors (smile, talk about topics of mutual interest, ask questions, etc.). Results also indicated that an additional set of competencies appears to be required for intercultural interactions, dealing with language difficulties and topic differences. The findings are examined in relation to previous research and their application to future research and training.

A test of anxiety/uncertainty management theory: The intercultural adaptation context

Anxiety/Uncertainty Management theory, as formulated by Gudykunst and Hammer (1987a), proposes that intercultural adaptation outcomes are based on the two mediating dimensions of uncertainty reduction and anxiety reduction and sixteen secondary variables that systematically influence uncertainty and anxiety reduction. In this paper, the sixteen variables originally identified are categorized into four “fundamental factors”; (interpersonal saliencies, intergroup saliencies, communication message exchange, and host contact conditions). The present study examines this revised Anxiety/Uncertainty Management (AUM) theory of intercultural adaptation. A total of 291 international students at two universities in the United States participated in the study. The study found overall fit of the revised AUM theory vis‐a‐vis the two mediating factors of uncertainty and anxiety reduction, the importance of interpersonal saliencies for uncertainty reduction, and the importance of host contact conditions for facilitating ...

The effects of cross‐cultural training on American managers in a Japanese‐American joint venture

Abstract This research examined the impact of the training on American managers in the following areas: overall technical information exchange, overall contribution to company goals, uncertainty reduction and anxiety reduction. Two types of training were assessed. A quasi‐experimental pretest/posttest comparison group design was employed, and both questionnaire and interview data were gathered. Results suggested that the training significantly affected the managers’ exchange of technical information, uncertainty reduction and anxiety reduction. Training did not, however, significantly affect the overall level of perceived contribution of the managers to company goals. Findings also suggested that the combination of monocultural and joint (interactive) training was more effective than only the monocultural training.

Research, mission statements, and international student advising offices

Abstract Four major lines of research on sojourner adaptation are reviewed and their influence on the development of mission statements in international student advising offices in American universities are posited. It is suggested that two lines of research are historically important in the sense that inferences derived from research on the “problems” of foreign student adaptation provided a basis for the establishment of international student advising offices whereas research on culture shock, stages of adjustment, and cross-cultural counseling led to a significant expansion of the mission of these “newly created” departments to include a host of counseling activities and more “psychologically” based orientation programs. The latter (more recent) lines of research are important because they provide empirical support for including in the mission statements of international student advising offices the notion of culture learning and the important role communication plays in facilitating adaptation. The paper concludes by discussing the training implications that derive from these four lines of research .

The Influence of Ethnicity, Gender, and Dyadic Composition On Uncertainty Reduction in Initial Interactions

Uncertainty reduction theory (Berger and Calabrese, 1975; Berger, 1975, 1979; Berger and Bradac, 1982) is one of the major frameworks employed in the study of interpersonal communication. This theory focuses on how communication is used to gain understanding in interpersonal relationships with uncertainty as the central construct of the perspective. The original explication of the theory (Berger and Calabrese, 1975) presented 7 axioms and 21 theorems that specify the interrelationships among uncertainty, amount of communication, nonverbal affiliative expressiveness, information seeking, intimacy level of communication context, reciprocity, similarity, and liking.

The influence of cultural and situational contexts on Hispanic and non‐Hispanic communication competence behaviors

This study investigates the influence of context on judgments of communication competence behaviors in two different cultural groups in the United States. Two hundred and twenty‐five Hispanic Americans and 209 white non‐Hispanic Americans were asked to rate the relative importance of communication behaviors in creating impressions of communicative competence in four different contexts: An intracultural social situation, an intracultural task situation, an intercultural social situation and an intercultural task situation. Exploratory factor analysis and subsequent confirmatory factor analyses confirmed similar factor structures for both culture groups on eight verbal and nonverbal dimensions of competent behaviors. Results of multiple analysis of variance tests revealed similarity and differences between the two groups in their judgments of communication competence behaviors. Specifically, both groups reported that Language Adaptability and Cultural Topics were more important in intercultural than intracu...

An Exploratory Study of Message Affect Behavior: A Comparison between African Americans and Euro-Americans.

This article presents the results of an investigation wherein Rogan and Hammers language intensity/message affect coding metric was used for evaluating variability in the emotional language of Euro-Americans and African Americans responding to a freeresponse scenario. Overall, the findings from this study indicate that there are significant differences in the level of affect present in messages communicated by African Americans compared with messages communicated by Euro-Americans. Specifically, the EuroAmerican respondents employed significantly greater language intensity and significantly more positive message valence compared with more negatively valenced and neutral language intensity used by African American respondents. These findings provide additional insight into traditional, qualitatively derived assumptions regarding the affective communication patterns of Euro-Americans and African Africans. The results also serve to bolster the applicability and validity of Rogan and Hammers coding metric.

Determinants of the Sojourner's Attitudinal Satisfaction: A Path Model

This paper develops a sequential model that specifies the interrelationships among six major variables which determine a sojourners attitudinal satisfaction with living in another culture. Attitude theory and previous findings on sojourners adjustment provided the theoretical foundation for the model. The paper argues that a sojourners general cross-cultural attitude can be separated into its three components: (1) the affective component—the perspective the sojourner uses to evaluate intercultural interactions; (2) the cognitive component—the stereotypes the sojourner has of host nationals; and (3) the conative component—the behavioral tendencies that the sojourner has toward interacting with host nationals. It is theorized that these three components interact together to influence the amount and type of interaction that the sojourner has with host nationals. Further, the nature of this interaction influences the sojourners attitudinal satisfaction with her or his stay in the host culture. Finally, th...

Latino and Indochinese interpretive frames in negotiating conflict with law enforcement: a focus group analysis

Abstract Incidents involving conflict and violence are routinely encountered by law enforcement. The intercultural dynamics of these types of threatening situations have not been systematically investigated. More specifically, little research has focused on the cultural dimensions of conflict negotiation in the United States between Indochinese and Latinos in interaction with law enforcement. This paper examines conflict negotiation strategies in terms of “interpretive frames” of Indochinese and Latino respondents within the United States in their interactions with police. The paper begins with a review of research that has investigated Indochinese and Latino conflict communication. Next, the focus group methodology used in the study for obtaining insights into interpretive frames of conflict negotiation of the Indochinese and Latino participants is discussed. A total of 18 Indochinese participants (organized into three focus groups) and 21 Latino respondents (comprising three focus groups) participated in the study. In addition, one Indochinese and one Latino “verification” group (consisting of some of the original focus group members) were formed to determine the degree to which the identified interpretive frames made sense as a robust explanation of conflict negotiation from the cultural perspectives of the respondents themselves. Results from the study reveal both a rich set of “emic” or culture specific frames of conflict negotiation within each of the cultural groups as well as useful “etic” or culture general interpretive frames for comparing Indochinese and Latino conflict negotiation strategies with law enforcement.