Cultural and intercultural aspects in second-language learning

Despite the complexity of defining the term “culture”, anthropologist Hofstede (1991, 4) proposed the following definition, which I consider highly appropriate: “Culture is a catchword for all those patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting” that “lie within the social environments in which one grew up and collected one’s life experiences”.

According to this definition, culture is the totality of ways of life and how they are intrinsically and reciprocally connected with language. Indeed, culture is necessary for language teaching, to contextualize the linguistic system – which is not an artificial element (Celentin, Serragiotto, in Dolci, Celentin, 2000, 110-111). Hence, one should analyse and consider the potential similarities and differences between the source culture and the target one. One of the main objectives of language teaching, indeed, should be the learners’ process of acculturation to the target culture, conscious of and respecting the diversities yet without losing their personal or cultural identity.

However, the encounter among diverse cultures often leads to intercultural difficulties.

Implicit cultural variables may undermine communication and potential harmony.

Regarding such problems, Balboni (in Caon, Balboni, 2008, 124-125) identified a model of intercultural communicative competence, starting with a communicative competence model, divided into three categories: language, extra-linguistic codes and cultural values.

All of these might be responsible for misunderstandings and unsuccessful communicative acts. I focus here on features which are strongly related to culture and the intercultural context, putting the verbal language aside temporarily. However, regarding critical linguistic issues, I would like to highlight that language is always to be considered in its context. In the socio-pragmatic dimension, language in use is characterised and affected by several features which vary among cultures. These features include ways of relating to others to achieve respectful and thus successful communicative events (Balboni, in Caon, Balboni, 2008, 127-128).

Extra-linguistic codes refer to the conscious – or more frequently, unconscious – use of body language and the communicative function of objects. Several unintentional

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behaviours are often taken for granted and considered natural and universal, whereas they are related to personal and cultural worlds. This leads to misunderstandings and intercultural problems. Extra-linguistic competence is made up of kinesics, proxemics, and objectemics and vestemics. I briefly analyse these cultural codes, to provide a better overview of the main intercultural misunderstandings:

- Kinesics: this term refers to body language, including body movements, postures, facial expressions, eye contact, smells and noises and, above all, gestures. Gestures represent one of the main characteristics of communication events involving Italian people. Therefore, when acting in intercultural contexts, people need the knowledge on one hand, and a conscious use of gestures on the other hand. Body language communicates despite the speaker’s will, unconsciously expressing and revealing something about the speaker (Balboni, Caon, 2015, 54-55).

- Proxemics: this refers to the use of physical space, including the distance between interlocutors and their positioning in relation to each other. Again, the tolerable distance is determined by cultural norms, which can mean people involuntarily endanger the intimacy of others. The interlocutors should keep themselves at arm’s length, considering not only their physical positioning but also that physical contact is often seen as an unnecessary intrusion. The use of proxemics in relation to communication between men and women is particularly important, especially when interacting with Muslim communities. In this case, close attention should be paid to potential signals of disagreement, to avoid embarrassment and detachment (Celentin, Serragiotto, in Dolci, Celentin, 2000, 116).

- Objectemics and vestemics: these terms refer to objects and clothes unconsciously conferred with the power of conveying messages, either social, religious or ethnic.

They can communicate various features of participants, such as their prosperity, social class, and respect for the interlocutor. Since the meaning and value of these objects vary from culture to culture, the speakers should consider the message and the concept of themselves they want to communicate (Balboni, Caon, 2015, 68).

To sum up, considering that non-verbal visual elements are noticed before auditory ones (Balboni, in Caon, Balboni, 2008, 129), I deem that knowledge and awareness regarding the

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messages that interlocutors would like to convey through extra-linguistic codes, especially their body language and belongings, are crucial. Furthermore, such awareness remains central within intercultural communicative events. The meaning and “grammars” of such codes are cultural rather than natural, and thus misunderstanding is a particularly risky consequence.

In a similar way, the “software of the mind” introduced by Hofstede (in Balboni, in Caon, Balboni, 2008, 124-125) is constituted by cultural factors which affect communication.

According to Balboni and Caon (in https://www.immi.se/intercultural/nr35/balboni.html, consulted on 05/09/2019), “we are unaware of the existence of many cultural values, which we consider natural and therefore shared by all potential interlocutors”. Hence, intercultural contexts lead to different cultural identities coexisting and confronting each other (Malizia, 2005, 24-25). Among the multiplicity of cultural values and beliefs, researchers have identified certain crucial ones. They include the following topics (Balboni, in Caon, Balboni, 2008, 131-133):

- the concept of time, especially referring to punctuality;

- the concept of space and the dyad between private and public;

- hierarchy, respect, status;

- the concept of family and belonging groups;

- the personal concept of loyalty and fair play;

- the concept of knowledge and learning;

- values referring to well-being or to sexual and religious areas;

- “metaphors we live by” (Lakoff, Johnson, in Balboni, Caon, 2015).

To conclude, multiculturality and interculturality characterise the context of language classes that include people from different countries of origin. Therefore, learners might use different linguistic and extra-linguistic codes, and above all that each leaner is intrinsically determined by his or her own cultural values. The role of the teacher should be central for limiting and avoiding critical intercultural problems, with awareness of the coexistence of diverse perspectives and conceptions of the surrounding world. To cope with such issues and to allow the adequate cohabitation of multiple culture-related elements, intercultural communicative competence and the necessary relational competences should be developed. These topics are discussed in the next section.

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