Page 36 - Reading Between the Sign Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters

The Study of Culture 21

To take only one example, the author of Culture and the Clini-
cal Encounter endeavors to sensitize health providers not to as-
sume that communication strategies are universal. She points out
that
Silence and the word yes lead to numerous misunder-
standings. Neither necessarily signifies agreement. Si-
lence can mean “I do not agree with what you are say-
ing, but I am too polite to say so.” Yes can mean “I am
listening but not promising or agreeing” [or] “I do not
understand what you are saying, but I acknowledge you
are trying to tell me something, and I am grateful for
that.…” (Gropper 1996, 2)
Until a few hundred years ago, only a very small percentage
of the world’s inhabitants had to contend with the challenges of
communicating with representatives of another culture. Most
people lived their entire lives in the same place where they grew
up. Apart from a foray of marauding neighbors, a visit from a
group of tourists, or a few missionaries dropping by, the bulk of
communication took place between people who shared a com-
mon culture. Thanks to air travel, vast social and political changes,
and the explosion of technology, those days of relative isolation
are now gone forever.
In the world of tomorrow we can expect to live—not
merely vacation—in societies which seek different val-
ues and abide by different codes. There we will be sur-
rounded by foreigners for long periods of time, work-
ing with others in the closest possible relationships. If
people currently show little tolerance or talent for en-
counters with alien cultures, how can they learn to deal
with constant and inescapable coexistence? (Barnlund
1989, 5)
The answer to this question may lie in a relatively young field,
not much older than the profession of sign language interpreting,
called intercultural communication. Let us examine its roots and
the topics it considers, and see how the perspective it offers may
provide a key to understanding not only the imminent global vil-
lage but, closer to home, the challenges we face as sign language
interpreters.

02 MINDESS PMKR 21 10/18/04, 11:22 AM