Episode 32 – What is Intercultural Competence?

Japan Intercultural Institute
Japan Intercultural Institute
Episode 32 - What is Intercultural Competence?
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We often hear we should develop “intercultural competence”. But what does this mean? Is this a single quality or a range of abilities? In this episode, Joseph Shaules and Daniel Glinz dig into this buzzword. They find competing definitions and idealistic assumptions. They explore the gap between the idea of intercultural competence, and the messy reality of intercultural situations. And they discuss the transformative potential of cultural learning from the brain-mind perspective.

Episode 31 – Values

Japan Intercultural Institute
Japan Intercultural Institute
Episode 31 - Values
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Where do your feelings of right and wrong come from? Are values shaped by culture? In this episode, Joseph Shaules and Ishita Ray explore the hidden cultural “logics” of values. They discuss three approaches to understanding cultural values, argue that from the brain-mind perspective values are a feeling, and that moral intuitions are part of our animal nature . . . but reflect culture as well.

Episode 30 – Ethnocentrism

Japan Intercultural Institute
Japan Intercultural Institute
Episode 30 - Ethnocentrism
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Is ethnocentrism learned from our environment? Is it a natural part of how our mind works? Many intercultural educators believe that ethnocentrism is learned . . . but is this true? In this month’s Deep Culture Podcast, Emre Seven and Joseph Shaules explore what brain and mind sciences can tell us about ethnocentrism. We hear about caste labeling from Ishita Ray, and Daniel Glinz tells us how language learning can expand our cultural self. 

Episode 29 – Culture and Emotion

Japan Intercultural Institute
Japan Intercultural Institute
Episode 29 - Culture and Emotion
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Are emotions the same everywhere in the world? In this episode, Zeina Matar and Joseph Shaules explore the challenge of adjusting to different emotional “logics” across cultures. We look at research into whether “basic” emotions are the same around the world, and argue that emotion is a “constructed” . . . and thus highly cultural, experience.  

Episode 28 – The Complexity of Culture

Japan Intercultural Institute
Japan Intercultural Institute
Episode 28 - The Complexity of Culture
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People often talk about culture in simple terms–as when someone says: I want to learn about ‘the culture’. In fact, culture is a highly complex phenomenon. In this episode, Joseph Shaules and Ishita Ray discuss how complexity theory can help us understand the dynamic nature of culture. They touch on emergent properties, fractals, and the “simplification bias” – our tendency to experience complexity in simple ways. We also hear from Emre Seven and Zeina Matar and explore the challenges of developing a more complex understanding of culture.