Acquisition of Integrated Language-Culture Competency in a Multi-Cultural Work Place

• Author: Itami, C.
• Position: British and American Literature program in Applied Linguistics Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences. Meisei University
• Pages: 291-298

Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov

Series VII: Social Sciences • Law • Vol. 6 (55) No. 2 - 2013

ACQUISITION OF INTEGRATED

LANGUAGE-CULTURE

COMPETENCY IN A

MULTI-CULTURAL WORK PLACE

Chihoko ITAMI1

Abstract: This paper examines data collected in a multi-cultural work

place. It investigates the process of participants learning by doing and

rigorously examines connections between language learning and cultural

practices. The key concept is that participants acquire integrated

competencies necessary for intercultural business practitioners in the actual

field where multicultural participants work together through engaging in

performing an authentic activity. The finding indicates that learning in the

field is not about absorbing or imparting knowledge but gaining

understanding of the world through participating in relevant activities.

Key words: learning by doing, competency, multicultural work place.

1 British and American Literature program in Applied Linguistics Graduate School of Humanities and Social

Sciences. Meisei University.

1. Introduction

Globalization has made Japanese

business activities different from those in

the past. There are more frequent and

multi-modal dialogues. Thus a compelling

need exists for university graduates who

are competent to work in multicultural

environments. Global business

practitioners need to integrate multiple

competencies of knowledge and skills.

Such competencies relate to various fields

of disciplines including management,

linguistics and intercultural

communication. However, only a handful

of past studies identified the composition

of necessary competencies for working in a

multi-cultural environment (e.g. Okamoto,

2008).

Previous investigations have identified

issues in language and intercultural

communication in Japan. For example,

turns taken in business conversation by

Japanese people are usually much fewer

than non-Japanese (Du-Babcock &

Tanaka, 2013). The issues of language and

intercultural communication in Japan is

affected by various aspects such as cultural

assumptions (Yamada, 1992; Yotsukura,

2003), management systems (Sumihara,

1993), pragmatic differences (LoCastro,

1987), communication strategies (Tanaka,

2008), and education systems (Nakane,

2007).

Nakane (2007) argues that in Japanese

educational systems, teachers usually

emphasize written communication, classes

follow a teacher-centred structure, and use

a simple Initiation-Response-Feedback

pattern. Consequently, students tend to be