COMM 340 – Intercultural Communication

In the contemporary and globalized world, characterized by conflicts and by increasing processes of distinction, dealing with intercultural differences is a fundamental skill for each human being.
The role of intercultural communication will be analyzed and discussed as a strategic tool that we should learn to use to better comprehend what is our role in the world.

Given that communication is a complex and multilayered concept, the course will offer a variety of theoretical approaches from different disciplines (sociology, cultural studies, media studies and communication studies) and methods of analysis to comprehend the deep and relevant relationship between communication and culture(s), and to understand how differences influence people’s thinking, relation and social behavior.

Students will critically deal with a variety of substantive fields of application of intercultural communication principles, such as the media, fashion, food, tourism, music etc. and they will analyze the relationship between communication, culture, and identity change. Students will be encouraged to engage critically with questions around communication across different cultures, through research and writing.

The course will challenge students to perceive and understand human diversity by exploring diversity within a context of constantly changing global systems, and to answer to the following question: how do people understand one another when they do not share a common cultural experience?

Students will be encouraged to apply theoretical skills to reality and to their own experience as human beings living abroad, and to analyze Italian culture and Florence as study subjects as well.

During the course, students will be encouraged to express their positions and ideas through writings, presentations, and in-class discussion. Based on opportunities available in Florence, the course will try to fully integrate the students’ abroad experience in their learning process.

The use of several educational tools, such as readings, visits, lectures, guest lectures, will allow students to understand how different theoretical perspectives approach problems related to communication between/among different cultures.

Course Objectives and Learning Outcomes