Intercultural Communication

Cognitive distribution and human communication

by Stephen J. Cowley

This appeared as:
Cowley, S.J. (2012) Cognitive distribution and human communication / Актуальные проблемы лингвистики и межкультурной коммуникации: Мат-лы Всеросс. науч.-практ. конф-ции c междунар. участием, посвящ. 65-летию ф-та лингвистики и перевода / под ред.С.А. Песиной, И.Р. Пулехи, Ю.Л. Вторушиной, Л.В. Павловой. – Магнитогорск: МаГУ, 2012. – Вып. V. – с. 6-16.

The paper uses examples described elsewhere (Steffensen & Cowley, 2101; Cowley, 2010; 2012) to highlight the... more The paper uses examples described elsewhere (Steffensen & Cowley, 2101; Cowley, 2010; 2012) to highlight the pico-scale of human gestural and vocal communication. This shows how coaction lends unparalleled subtlety to human life as, together, we generate thoughts and actions that are inseparable from bodily coordination. This exemplifies how cognition is distributed as people draw on the (virtual) products of past behaviour to shape future prospects as, unwittingly, they change the circumstances in which they act. Cognitive distribution arises as people use the non-local constraints that dominate folk views of human communication. Given the verbal aspect of language, as Bakhtin saw, speaking (and writing) can renew the voices of others. The thoughts that result, however, are inseparable from interactivity or how bodies perceive, appraise, and re-evoke modes of action that sustain our human forms of life. Finally, having sketched a distributed view of how we communicate in familiar settings, I offer remarks on how scrutiny of human languaging can be pursued in the study of intercultural encounters.

Bensonhurst, Brooklyn: Italian American Victims and Victimizers

by Jerome Krase

This is a draft of an article published as “Bensonhurst, Brooklyn: Italian American Victimizers and Victims.” In The Review of Italian American Studies. 2000: 233-44.

Misyurov D.A. Dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas // Credo New. 2012. №2

by Dmitry Misyurov

The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with... more The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with dominant and the non-dominant elements; universal formula; formula with symbolic weight of elements; tautological formula. For example, it suggests an opportunity to use the dialectical formulas for modeling and artificial intelligence creation, etc.

The EU and the Recycling of Colonialism: Formation of Europeans through intercultural dialogue

by Robert Aman

Published in 'Educational Philosophy & Theory', 2012.

The present essay focuses on problematizing the European Union’s claim that intercultural dialogue constitutes an... more The present essay focuses on problematizing the European Union’s claim that intercultural dialogue constitutes an advocated method of talking through cultural boundaries – inside as well as outside the classroom – based on mutual empathy and non-domination. More precisely, the aim is to analyze who is being constructed as counterparts of the intercultural dialogue through the discourse produced by the EU in policies on education, culture and intercultural dialogue. Within the Union, Europeans are portrayed as having an a priori historical existence, while the ones excluded from this notion are evoked to demonstrate its difference in comparison to the European one. The results show that subjects not considered as Europeans serve as markers of the multicultural present of the space. Thus, intercultural dialogue seems to consolidate differences between European and Other – the ‘We’ and ‘Them’ in the dialogue – rather than, as in line with its purpose, bringing subjects together.

Why your TeamSTEPPS program may not be working

by Timothy Clapper

Clapper, T. C., & Ng, G. M. (2012, in press). Why your TeamSTEPPS program may not be working. Clinical Simulation in Nursing. doi:10.1016/j.ecns.2012.03.007

Co-authored with Grace Ng

Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety ® (TeamSTEPPS) is a patient safety tool developed... more Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety ® (TeamSTEPPS) is a patient safety tool developed by the defense industry and based on four competencies: leadership, communication, situational monitoring, and mutual support. Unfortunately, there are barriers that prevent TeamSTEPPS from reaching its full potential, including: (a) lack of administrative support and resources, (b) lack of training focus to address hierarchal differences and incivility at all levels of health care practice and administration, (c) inadequate TeamSTEPPS instruction and simulation practices, and (d) educators’ resistance to change from crew resource management concepts. Suggestions for improvement include providing command and health care agency emphasis for the TeamSTEPPS program, providing adequate material and personnel resources, designing training that is geared to trainer implementation at the departmental level, prioritizing and saturating training, and striving toward a just culture.

A cross-cultural investigation of age stereotypes and communication perceptions of older and younger workers in the USA and Thailand

by Shaughan Keaton

McCann, R. M., & Keaton, S. A. (in press, 2012). A cross-cultural investigation of age stereotypes and communication perceptions of older and younger workers in the USA and Thailand. Educational Gerontology.

In this paper, we assess younger worker perceptions of older and same age worker stereotypes and communication in... more In this paper, we assess younger worker perceptions of older and same age worker stereotypes and communication in Thailand and the USA. We find that older workers were generally seen by younger workers as more uncomfortable with new technology, less flexible and more cautious on the job, and more loyal (and having fewer absences) to the organization than younger workers. As compared to younger American workers, younger Thai workers agreed more with “negative” stereotype items that older workers made more mental mistakes, were slower to adapt to new technology, were more fearful of technology, and were less flexible at work, but they also agreed more with “positive” stereotype items that older workers are absent less, have a better attitude toward work, and have a higher level of commitment to the organization than younger workers.  In terms of their communication, younger Thai workers perceived both other younger Thai workers and older Thai workers as exhibiting more avoidant communication than their counterparts from the USA.  The younger Thai workers also perceived members of their own age in-group as communicating in a more non-accommodating manner than younger American workers.  Implications for the aging process across cultures and the workplace are discussed.

Student representations of intercultural competence during an international study experience

by Jan Van Maele

Van Maele, J. & Mertens, K. (2012). Student representations of intercultural competence during an international study experience. Presented at Intercultural Communication in International Contexts – training and development, practice and research. Third BAAL SIG Intercultural Communication seminar, May 17-18, 2012, Milton Keynes, UK.

Although the Erasmus Programme is celebrating its 25th anniversary, the effects of international study experiences... more Although the Erasmus Programme is celebrating its 25th anniversary, the effects of international study experiences have only recently drawn a wider interest from researchers in the field (Dervin, 2009). This presentation addresses the question of how intercultural competence (IC) is conceived by a mixed group of home and international students in a postgraduate programme in development studies, in which the authors deliver a module on intercultural communication.
The study aims to discover the explicit and implicit meanings that students (n=23) attribute to IC through a combination of content analysis (presence, prominence) and discourse analysis (modality, metaphor). Data was collected at the beginning and towards the end of the programme in three forms: (1) written definitions of IC in response to open questions; (2) oral clarification of positions on a series of statements regarding IC; and (3) written narrative accounts of recent intercultural encounters (Hoffman, 2009). Next, students were invited for an interview at which they commented on the findings, relating observed changes in their representation of IC to events and experiences in and outside the classroom.
In conclusion, the authors reflect on how the research outcomes have informed their practice as teachers of intercultural communication.

eLearning and Continuing Education in Healthcare: the Hospitalitas Project

by Stefano Tardini

La Comunicazione Interculturale in Sanità, un Percorso d'Apprendimento Online: il Progetto Hospitalitas

by Stefano Tardini

Communication gaps in seventeenth century Britain: Explaining legal Scots to English practitioners

by Joanna Kopaczyk

Through a detailed etymological, lexicographic and semantic analysis, this paper addresses communication gaps... more Through a detailed etymological, lexicographic and semantic analysis, this paper addresses communication gaps resulting from two different legal traditions after the English and the Scots had found themselves ruled by the same monarch. I look at one of the earliest glossaries of Scots legal terms, a relatively unknown appendix to Sir George Mackenzie's The Institutions of the Law of Scotland from the 1690s, comprising 184 genre-specific Scots lexical items and expressions. I work within a pragmaphilological approach, analysing what seemed unknown to the ears and eyes of English lawyers, and for what reason it was glossed. The final results are intriguing: 40% of the glossary is linked with the Scottish legal system and terminology, 49% belongs to non-legal regional vocabulary, and 11% provides insight into conceptual gaps between the Scots and the English, not necessarily in the area of the law.

Interculturalism in Practice: Québec's New Ethics and Religious Culture Curriculum and the Bouchard-Taylor Report on Reasonable Accommodation

by David Waddington

Pre-print version of book chapter. Co-authored with Bruce Maxwell, Kevin McDonough, Marina Schwimmer, and Andrée-Anne Cormier.

Transforming Diversity In Canadian Higher Education: A Dialogue of Japanese Women Graduate Students

by Chikako Nagayama

2007. Published in Teaching in Higher Education 12(5-6).

In this paper, we shed light on the dynamic nature of "diversity" in higher education from the perspectives... more In this paper, we shed light on the dynamic nature of "diversity" in higher education from the perspectives of four Japanese women graduate students seeking possibilities through different ways of knowing. Using an autoethnographical methodology embedded in a dialogue format of "zadankai", we examine the stereotypes of Japanese women that are activated both inside and outside of academic institutions. Stereotyping propagates racist, patriarchal and heterosexist norms. The examination of the mechanisms in which stereotyping silences Japanese women reveals the micro and macro politics of identity. Our collective dialogue demonstrates the processes in which silenced Japanese women graduate students reclaim their holistic agencies to peel the layers of superficial notions of diversity and address the creative and flexible nature of "difference" and "diversity" in knowledge production. We hope this paper will encourage minority groups amongst students, educators, and administrators to engage in various ways of knowing and address the issues of "diversity" in higher education.

Charlatans Chicanery

by Mohamed Eno

Thr poem is an excerpt from my forthcoming volume Guilt of Otherness

The volume is under review with a subject area expert and a literary critic. The volume is under review with a subject area expert and a literary critic.

call for papers-Metamorphosis of the Arab World-Political Geography and Alternative Maps

by barış çoban

Metamorphosis of The Arab World:
Political Geography and Alternative Maps

Editors: Barış Çoban, Barış Erdoğan

The so-called "Arab Spring", recent social movements in the Arab world, which can also be described as the "return of the oppressed", have attracted international attention on the Middle East and Arab world. The Middle East, North Africa and Turkey have been profoundly affected by this political and social metamorphosis. The objective of this project is to discuss “metamorphosis of the Arab world” in the context of international relations, politics, sociology, economics and communications and so on by the contribution of several academicians, researchers, politicians and journalists.
The geography of the Arab world is in a process of metamorphosis and consequently traditional structure of the Arab world, its power structure, power relations, politics and social relations have been fluctuated by the hand of the global super power(s). In fact, “All that is solid melts into air", this expression summarizes clearly what is happening in the Middle East and North Africa. The possible outcomes and/or result of this ongoing process are vague, and it needs to be discussed with its all aspects.
As a result, our focus is on “metamorphosis” of the Middle East and the Arab world, since it simultaneously means “metamorphosis” of the world. This book project aims to address and discuss transformation and subsequent reformation of societies and changes in the political geographies and mental maps of the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey from past to present with a multi-voice and multi-layer approach.

(Papers can be submitted in English, French and Turkish)
Deadline for Abstracts: June 10, 2012
Deadline for Full Paper: December 25, 2012
(Please use APA style)

E-mail:
barishc@gmail.com
baris.erdogan1974@hotmail.com,

Editors:
Barış Çoban (Assoc. Prof. Dr., Department of Communication Studies, Dogus University, Turkey)
Barış Erdoğan (Assist Prof. Dr., Department of Political Sciences, Yeni Yuzyil University, Turkey)

Métamorphose du monde arabe:
Géographie politique et des cartes alternatives
Editeurs: Barış Çoban, Barış Erdoğan
Les mouvenents sociaux recents apparus dans une large partie du monde arabe, appellés communement «printemps arabe», peuvent également être décrit comme le «retour de l'opprimé», ont attiré l'attention internationale sur le Moyen-Orient et le monde arabe. Le Moyen-Orient, l'Afrique du Nord et la Turquie ont été profondément touchés par cette métamorphose politique et sociale. L'objectif de ce projet est de discuter «la métamorphose du monde arabe » dans le contexte des relations internationales, politique, sociologie, économie et communication et ainsi de suite par les biais de la contribution de plusieurs universitaires, chercheurs, politiciens et journalistes.
La géographie du monde arabe est dans un processus de métamorphose et par conséquent la structure traditionnelle du monde arabe, sa structure de pouvoir, les relations de pouvoir, la politique et les relations sociales se sont gravement écroulés par la main de la(des) puissance(s) mondiale(s). En fait, «Tout ce qui est solide se dissout dans l'air", cette expression résume bien ce qui se passe au Moyen-Orient et Afrique du Nord. Les résultats possible et / ou résultat de ce processus en cours sont vagues, et ils doivent être discuté dans tous ses aspects.
Par conséquent, nous nous concentrons sur la métamorphose du Moyen-Orient et du monde arabe, puisqu'elle constitue à la fois la métamorphose du monde. Ce projet a pour objectif d'aborder et discuter de la transformation et la réforme de ces sociétés ainsi que les modifications de la géographie politique et cartes mentales du Moyen-Orient , de l'Afrique du Nord et de la Turquie du passé au présent, avec un multi-voix et une approche multicouche.
Transmission des propositions et date limite
Vorte propositions doit etre transmise a baris.erdogan1974@hotmail.com ou barishc@gmail.com au plus tard le 10 juin 2012. Les articles peuvent être rédigés en anglais, français ou en turc

ECHEANCIERS
- Date limite de réception des propositions : 10 juin 2012
- Date limite de réception des articles : 25 décembre 2012
Information technique
Les propositions, d’un maximum de deux pages, en format Microsoft Word ou PDF, 12 points, devront contenir: le titre de la proposition; le sujet; le nom de l’auteur ou des auteurs; l’institution ou organisation à laquelle vous êtes attaché
Articles
- les articles ne pourront dépasser, avec leur bibliographie, 30 000 caractères, espaces non compris;
- ils devront inclure un résumé de 150 mots maximum qui devra être présenté en français, en anglais ou en turque;

Editeurs :
Dr. Barış Çoban, maitre de conférence, le département de communication, l’Universite de Doğuş, Turquie.
Dr. Barış ERDOGAN, maitre de conférence adjoint, le département des relations internationales l’Université de Yeni Yüzyıl, Turquie.

Arap Dünyasının Dönüşümü:
Siyasetin Coğrafyası ve Alternatif Haritalar

Editörler: Barış Çoban, Barış Erdoğan

Arap ülkelerinde yaşanan ve “Arap Baharı” olarak adlandırılan, “bastırılmış olanın geri döndüğü” kitle hareketleri sonrasında tüm dünyanın gözü yeniden Ortadoğu ve diğer Arap ülkelerine odaklandı. Ortadoğu, Kuzey Afrika ve Türkiye yaşanan siyasal ve toplumsal bu dönüşümden derin bir biçimde etkilenmekte. Bu sürecin uluslararası ilişkiler, siyaset, sosyoloji, ekonomi ve iletişim vb. alanları bağlamında tartışılmasını amaçlayan bu kitap projesi, farklı disiplinlerden akademisyen, araştırmacı, siyasetçi ve gazetecilerin katkılarından oluşacaktır.
Söz konusu coğrafyada bir yılı aşkın bir süredir küresel iktidar(lar)ın da farklı biçimlerde müdahil olduğu toplumsal hareketler geleneksel iktidar yapılarını, siyaset biçimlerini ve toplumsal ilişkileri parçalamakta. Ortadoğu ve Kuzey Afrika’da “katı olan her şey buharlaşmakta”. Bu coğrafyada kurulma aşamasında olan yeni düzende siyasi ve sosyal aktörlerin bu buharlaşmanın ardından nasıl bir katılaşma süreci izleyeceği ise şimdilik belirsiz ve üzerinde çok boyutlu olarak düşünülmesi gereken bir konu.
Sonuç olarak, odak noktamız Ortadoğu’nun ve Arap Dünyasının dönüşümüdür, çünkü bu dönüşüm eşzamanlı olarak dünyanın dönüşümüdür. Bu kitap projesi Ortadoğu, Kuzey Afrika ve Türkiye coğrafyası bağlamında tarihten günümüze siyasal ve zihinsel haritaların değişimi ve toplumların dönüşümünü çoksesli, çok katmanlı bir yaklaşımla ele almayı ve tartışmayı amaçlamaktadır.

(Makaleler Türkçe, İngilizce, Fransızca dillerinde yazılabilir)
Makale Başlığı ve Özeti Gönderimi Son Tarih: 10 Haziran 2012
Tamamlanmış Makale Gönderimi Son Tarih: 25 Aralık 2012
(Makaleler APA formatına göre yazılacaktır.)

İletişim:
barishc@gmail.com
baris.erdogan1974@hotmail.com

(Barış Çoban, Doç. Dr. Doğuş Üniversitesi, Fen-Edebiyat Fakültesi, İletişim Bilimleri Bölümü)
(Barış Erdoğan, Yrd. Doç. Dr., Yeni Yüzyıl Üniversitesi, İktisadi İdari Bilimler Fakültesi, Uluslararası İlişkiler Bölümü)

call for papers-

Metamorphosis of the Arab World-
Political Geography and Alternative Maps
more call for papers-

Metamorphosis of the Arab World-
Political Geography and Alternative Maps

Métamorphose du monde arabe:
Géographie politique et des cartes alternatives

Arap Dünyasının Dönüşümü:
Siyasetin Coğrafyası ve Alternatif Haritalar

Slavery and Colonialism: The Worst Terrorism on Africa

by Mohamed Eno

Co-authored with Omar A. Eno, Mohamed H. Ingiriis, and Jamal M. Haji; Published in African Renaissance, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2012.

Humans need not justify terrorism of any kind, regardless of whether one is Muslim, Christian or Jew, because it is... more Humans need not justify terrorism of any kind, regardless of whether one is Muslim, Christian or Jew, because it is the axis of evil and devastation of mankind. However, the deliberate use of the term terrorism in recent decades was carefully selected, mainly, against a certain religion (Islam). The idea was then globally politicized by the Western world. Leaving that scholarly view in its own right, we disagree with the opinion raising terrorism as the devil’s just-born child of evil, when in reality Africans had been terrorized for centuries as slaves and human chattel. Hence the basis for the concept of this thesis: conceptualizing the episode of ‘terrorism’ and ‘terrorist’ from the broader perspective of its practice from the Middle Passage or the Atlantic Slave Trade. To portray that argument and broaden the scope of the debate over this critically sensitive subject, we divided the discussion into three sections: an examination of what constitutes terrorism and terrorist; history of terrorism and terrorists from an Africa perspective; and the ideological constraints within the subject of terrorism as practiced by the US and its Western allies.

What symbols

by Dmitry Misyurov

This article contains 12 questions about the symbols. What are your thoughts in response? This article contains 12 questions about the symbols. What are your thoughts in response?

Open Innovation Research Management and Cross-Cultural Leadership

by Richard Wayman

This article addresses issues facing researchers of a major center for information and communication sciences as we... more This article addresses issues facing researchers of a major center for information and communication sciences as we simultaneously develop a knowledge-work force from many cultures, mixing genders and personal/professional orientation in new ways, and also face new research paradigms that reflect globalization of knowledge and more open structures of scientific and business innovation.
We work to integrate cross-cultural communication theory on the interpersonal level to research and development (R&D) management and leadership on the organizational level. We argue that the new paradigm of “Open Innovation,” popularized by Henry Chesbrough, can be seen as an organizational adaptation based on “cultural hermeneutics.”
This theory-based approach in the article explores the concept we term “cultural hermeneutics.” This theory analyzes human interpretation of what is understood contextually within the process of communication across cultures. We then explore open innovation theory as a changing paradigm for research management, especially in organizational cultures. The practice-based approach in the article emphasizes practical challenges of changing to an open innovation approach for research and development leaders.
Finally, a praxis section (the integration of theory and practice) emphasizing practical application of the theories we have explored, concludes the article and recommends actions to make research management more effective through open innovation and cross-cultural leadership.
Contains tables, illustration, and references.

ACM Computing Classification System Descriptors: K. Computing Milieux; K.6 Management of Computing and Information; K.6.1 Project and People Management.
Other keywords: open innovation; innovation management; business model or strategy research; research and development management.

Layer-Based_Troubleshooting

by Richard Wayman

In the following paper, we propose a new theory of human communication that adds context and value to the... more In the following paper, we propose a new theory of human communication that adds context and value to the Shannon-Weaver SEMDR model of communication. We distinguish and define a family of communication concepts, following the logical implications of the application of the unifying principle of biology: evolution. This leads us to the concept of meta-evolution, or the literal evolution of ideas, and leads us to our definition of human communication: the process by which individuals interact in a society to create an enduring culture.
This meta-evolutionary theory includes both the contextual framework for human communication and a layered series of communication ‘filters’ (encoding/decoding) that add value to the generalized logic of the Shannon-Weaver SEMDR model. We elaborate on each of the filters (technology, tradition, and personality) in later sections of the paper. First, we examine the technology filter, which consists of both content knowledge and medium used. Next, we utilize Geert Hofstede’s four fundamental differentiating dimensions of cultures to examine the tradition filter, which describes the impact of an individual’s culture’s traditions on the expression of an idea. Finally, we utilize the Myers-Briggs personality type indicator to examine the personality filter, which describes the impact of an individual’s personality on his or her expression of an idea.
Following this discussion, we turn to practical applications. First, we propose recommendations for using this theory to achieve effective communication, including a layer-based approach to communication troubleshooting. The paper concludes with a case study of the role of the personality filter in project management.

Keywords: Communication Approaches; Troubleshooting communication problems; Motivation of human communication; Communication filters; Geert Hofstede; Shannon-Weaver Communication Model; SEMDR Communication Model; DiSC Assessment; Myers-Briggs; Effective Communication; Meta-evolution; Layer-Based Model of Communication

Index terms: A.m [Miscellaneous]; H.1.1 [Models and Principles]: Systems and Information Theory---Information theory; H.1.2 [Models and Principles]: User/Machine Systems---Human information processing; General Terms: Human Factors, Management, Theory

Creating Stories, Mapping Memories: Nicolas Bouvier at Intercultural Crossings

by Lénia Marques

Chapter published in "Intercultural Crossings: Conflict, Memory and Identity", ed. Lénia Marques, Maria Sofia Pimentel Biscaia and Glória Bastos, P.I.E. Peter Lang, 2012, pp. 177-188.

From the introduction of the chapter:
"The story of Nicolas Bouvier (Geneva, 1929-1998) is one that starts... more From the introduction of the chapter:
"The story of Nicolas Bouvier (Geneva, 1929-1998) is one that starts before his most marking long journey to Asia. The story of the traveller is merged with the story of his journeys and, above all, with the experiences of “Otherness”. In this sense, travelling is an intercultural crossing that enables the encounter between different cultures performed by the traveller (the “Self”) and by the “Other”."

Beef and Lamb, Chicken and H** - Censorship and Vocabulary Teaching in Arabia

by Paul Hudson

Published in Anderson, D. & Sheehan, R. (eds) (2011) Foundations for the Future: Focus on Vocabulary: Emerging Theory and Practice for Adult Arab Learners, Abu Dhabi: HCT Press, pp125-135

Most English teachers working in the countries of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council, comprising of Bahrain, Kuwait,... more Most English teachers working in the countries of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council, comprising of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) will probably at some point in their careers have heard the word haram (forbidden under Islam) from their students while dealing with certain topics in the classroom. The continued use of ‘mainstream’ English language course books, such as Cutting Edges, Headway and Interchange, especially in Higher Education in the region, means that teachers and students will encounter lexis relating to issues that could be considered ‘unsuitable’, ‘un-Islamic’ or ‘against the local culture and traditions’. This could range from the simple inclusion of words such as 'beer' or 'ham' in a basic food and drink lesson to the mention of 'dating', 'kissing' or 'cuddling' in a unit on dating and romance. How each individual teacher deals with such issues will depend on many factors: their rapport with their students, the guidelines set by the management of the institution where they are teaching, the political and cultural situation in the country where they are working, their own previous teaching experience or their own beliefs about the purpose of English teaching and the role of culture. However, what cannot be denied is that for those who get this wrong in the classroom, the ramifications can be very serious indeed.
This article will examine the issues surrounding censorship in vocabulary teaching in the GCC. Based on a quantitative enquiry into students’ attitudes towards culture, religion and English teaching in the United Arab Emirates, and an ongoing qualitative enquiry into ‘native-speaker’ teachers’ attitudes towards the local culture and how it influences their teaching, it will outline the areas of potential conflict and how these can be dealt with in the classroom. At a time when the internet, satellite television and the growing cosmopolitanism of the region means that students are faced with daily exposure to culturally ‘sensitive’ issues outside of the classroom, the persistence of a censorial approach to the teaching of vocabulary in Higher Education in the region is an area of interest for all those involved.