Research and Theory in Intercultural Communication.

This survey of the state-of-the-art of research and theory in the study of intercultural communication considers the following areas: history of the field, clients, basic assumptions, derivations of the ideas in the field, research methodology, available resources, and predictions for the future. The paper notes that the field of intercultural communication places the highest priority on immediate practicality and intervention; therefore, research and theory are underdeveloped. Such research and theory generally must begin with a recognition on the part of the researchers that understanding the processes of intercultural communication may call for skepticism about what is believed about communication in general. The complexity of any one intercultural communication and the diversity of the intercultural communications of all the subcultures of the world present a great challenge for study. The paper includes a selected bibliography of publications on intercultural communication. (GW)