Interactional Competence for professional communication in intercultural contexts

Epistemology, analytic framework and pedagogy

Bibliographic Data

ID12112953
AuthorsDavid Wei Dai (0000-0002-3575-131X, UCL Institute of Education, University College London, London, UK, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume37
Issue4
Pages435-455
Publication date2024-05-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueLanguage Culture and Curriculum (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0790-8318 • E-ISSN: 1747-7573
PublisherRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/07908318.2024.2349781
OpenAlexW4396955317
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited28

In the twenty-first-century working professionals need to possess strong Interactional Competence to handle professional communication in intercultural contexts (PCIC).However, the relationship among the three PCIC constituentsculture, workplace and interactionis undertheorized in current research.This leaves PCIC practitioners oftentimes uncertain of how to better define and develop their communication skills.This article seeks to address the gap by first analysing the two dominant PCIC epistemologies: the inference-based, psychological-positivist approach and the practice-based, interactional-constructivist approach.I then propose an analytical PCIC framework to differentiate the inference we make about one another and the practice we observe in each other.Using authentic PCIC training materials analysed through Sequential-Categorial Analysis (combining Conversation Analysis and Membership Categorization Analysis), I argue the concept of Interactional Competence can bridge inference and practice, offering a route to assisting researchers in analysing PCIC, educators in developing PCIC training materials, and practitioners in refining their PCIC skills.Pedagogical applications of the PCIC framework are also presented.I conclude the paper with theoretical, methodological and practical implications for PCIC, where we constantly see grounds for inclusion and exclusion articulated around notions of culture and professional identities

Competence (human resources · Cultural competence · Epistemology · Intercultural communication · Intercultural Competence · Linguistics · Pedagogy · Sociology · Discourse Analysis in Language Studies · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology

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