| Facework Competence, or
a type of what I am generally calling Intercultural Communication
Competence (ICC), is a measure of one's ability to communicate
with people different than oneself - culturally, personality-wise(self
construals), or gender-wise(power difference). ICC "can
be evaluated by the criteria of interaction appropriateness, effectiveness,
adaptability and satisfaction" (Ting-Toomey
& Kurogi, 201). Generally to have ICC one must
acquire:
Cultural Knowledge, which begins with learning the information
on this website related to dealing with those different than ourselves,
specifically about differences in the following:
Mindfulness, otherwise known as analytical empathy, requires
a creative shift in one's vantage point, thinking, and assumptions about
the other. "If the conflict parties can realize their 'opponents'
act out of motivations and values as multi-dimensional as their own, then
a collaborative dialogue between the conflict parties has a chance"
(Ting-Toomey & Kurogi,
203).
One must not be a routine thinker, but rather a creative one who cultivates
mindfulness by: 1) enjoying the flow of the present moment & interactions
with others, 2) "being alert to complexity and distinction,"
3) practicing divergent thinking, 4) showing sensitivity to different
contexts, 5) living in the present, 6) having a curiosity about one's
immediate surroundings, etc. (Ting-Toomey
& Kurogi, 204). See Csikszentmihalyi
and Langer for more about these invaluable
creative characteristics.
Interaction Skills, including those in the chart below and those
specifically listed on the Communication Strategies
page should be learned by memory and practiced. After looking at the Communication
Strategies page work through the Practice Scenarios
to see how much information you have acquired.
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Five Basic & Learnable Interaction Skills
(Ting-Toomey
& Kurogi, 204-205)
These skills lay the
groundwork for ICC, which requires knowledge
and the
successful implementation of these skills, as well as
more specific techniques. |
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 Mindful
Listening
Listening responsively in Chinese,
"ting", means "listening with your ears, eyes,
and ones heart" to content, non-verbal cues, tones, movements,
pauses, as well as relational, and other identity messages.
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Mindful Observation
Use ODIS analysis rather than snapshot/quick
evaluations.
To Observe, Describe, Interpret, & Suspend Evaluation
will allow you to think outside the box and put the cultural
knowledge you've learned into practice.
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Facework Management
This is again allowing you to use the
information learned from this site. "Facework Management
Skills refer to the use of culture-sensitive identity support
messages that enhance self-face and/or other-face." (Ting-Toomey
& Kurogi, 205) Giving-Face to the other is the
basic conflict strategy, which means to not embarass or humiliate
the other, especially in public. Also leave room for the other
to protect social/personal identity.
SEE Communication Strategies
for specific skills for both Cultural ICs & Self Construals.
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Trust-Building
Elements of trust and one's own trustworthiness
are judged differently according to power-distance.
In a small power-distance society trustworthiness is based
upon charismatic traits, persuasive words, etc. Whereas in
a large power distance culture it relates to one's roles and
status in reputable organizations and consistency over the
time. Whatever the situation however, we must take a risk
to trust, develop good working relationships, and become trustworthy
- striving "to match their expectations with our behavior
on a consistently dependable basis."(Ting-Toomey
& Kurogi, 207).
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Collaborative Dialogue
Collaborative dialogue results from
the cumulative utilization of all the skills above and deliberate
effort.
Again it is recommended to see the Communication
Strategies Page for specific skills. |
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