An Exploration of Ireland and Intercultural Communication

  References  ( 2021, October 8).  Ireland - Business Travel . International Trade Administration | Trade.gov. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from  https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/ireland-business-travel Abbott, R. (2020, April 11). Ireland's Great Hunger and the Irish diaspora . YouTube. Retrieved May 2, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMNqaNERDr4  Adams, S. (2016, March 15).  Learn to speak Irish (or at least pretend you can) for St. Patrick’s Day with these phrases . PennLive. Retrieved March 13, 2022, from https://www.pennlive.com/entertainment/2016/03/speak_irish_st_patricks_day_gaelic.html Aftering.com. (2014, October 19).  How Irish people want to die . aftering.com. Retrieved April 10, 2022, from http://www.aftering.com/how-irish-people-want-to-die/ BBC News. (2020, March 9).  Coronavirus: Irish St Patrick’s Day Parades cancelled . BBC News. Retrieved January 24, 2022, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-5180655...

  Implicit Cultural Tests and their Impact on Intercultural Communication When I examine Ireland’s culture, I should understand how my prejudices and stereotypes present challenges for intercultural communication (Samovar, 2017, pp.391-392). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, claimed that when people interact with other cultures, they should “[make] an extra effort to appreciate and understand those [cultural] differences” (Samovar, 2017, p.388). This idea framed intercultural communication as a conflict between pre-determined biases and cultural respect (Samovar, 2017, p.391-392). For example, I took the Religion and Gender-Career Implicit Attitude Tests because I wanted to understand how my views on family, gender, careers, and religion would affect my cross-cultural interactions with an Irish citizen (“You Have Completed This Study”). Because of these tests, I recognize that if I traveled to Ireland, I may share their attitudes about traditional gender an...

  How Culture Influences Ireland’s Educational System and Curriculum An Overview of Ireland’s Educational System Ireland fuses together public and private schools to create a robust education system, which affects how Irish citizens understand their cultural roles (“Education, 2019; Samovar, 2017, p.357). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, argued that cultural beliefs affected how countries “value and approach education” (Samovar, 2017, p.361). This idea framed education as a tool that societies use to advance their cultural traditions (Samovar, 2017, p.361). For example, Irish students may attend ten years of “compulsory education” in religious state-funded primary schools, state-funded “community colleges [or] schools, voluntary secondary schools,” private schools and “post primary curriculum” schools, which consists of a “three-year junior cycle, [an] optional transition year [and] a two to three year senior cycle” (“Education,” 2019). This diverse edu...

  Irish Cultural Healthcare Practices Ireland’s Healthcare Beliefs: A Fusion of Traditional Values and Modern Medicine   Ireland fuses modern healthcare technology with traditional spiritual remedies, which affects how they prevent and treat illnesses (Heavey, 2019; Specia, 2021). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, asserted that “healthcare providers [should] understand that contemporary healthcare [is multi-faceted]” (Samovar, 2017, p.367). This idea framed healthcare practices as a conflict between modern science and cultural values (Samovar, 2017, p.367). For example, Ireland maintains a mixed public and private healthcare system that allows people to access medical care from doctors based on a “scientific [and] biomedical perspective” (Heavey, 2019; Samovar, 2017, p.369). However, the article titled “A Physical and Spiritual Approach to Healing,” argued that healthcare professionals should consider a “more holistic approach to understanding suffe...

  Irish Business Practice Ireland practices informal business cultural customs , which demonstrates the connection between business and personal relationships (“Business Travel,” 2021). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, asserted that although “social contexts are similar across cultures, the rules in those contexts are dissimilar” (Samovar, 2017, p.341). This idea framed business communication as customs and rules that depend on cultural contexts and values (Samovar, 2017, p.341). For example, if I attended an Irish business meeting, I should shake people’s hands and engage in “small talk” because it demonstrates trust and builds relationships (“Business Travel,” 2021; “Business Culture,” 2022). The Culture Atlas’ article “Business Culture” reinforced this notion when they argued that Irish business “meetings [are] set in semi-social settings” where businesspeople emphasize “socialization and building rapport” (“Business Culture,” 2022). This article implied...

  Importance of Understanding Intercultural Communication When people examine Ireland’s culture, they should contextualize Irish nonverbal signals, which benefits intercultural communication (“Ireland Business Culture”). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, asserted that someone should “understand how each situation might influence the meaning given to” nonverbal signals (Samovar, 2017, p.335). This idea framed nonverbal language as signals that people assign meaning to based on cultural values (Samovar, 2017, p.335). For example, when I greet someone from Ireland, I should maintain direct eye contact while shaking their hand and limit “personal displays of affection” (“Etiquette Tips to Know Before Traveling to Ireland,” 2019). This greeting symbolizes trust between me and an Irish citizen, which supplies nonverbal communication “feedback” (“Etiquette Tips to Know Before Traveling to Ireland,” 2019). Samovar reiterated this notion when he claimed that “feedbac...

Official Languages of Ireland and Their Influence on Cultural Perceptions Ireland’s Official Languages Ireland maintains English and Irish as its official languages, which influences how citizens perceive their role in the world (“Ireland, 2022; Samovar, 2017, p.272). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, asserted that language defines how people “perceive certain portions of the world” (Samovar, 2017, p.272). This idea framed verbal language as a tool that people use to assign denotative and connotative meanings to their surroundings based on cultural values (Samovar, 2017, p.270). For example, the Irish phrase dia dhuit means both “hello” and “God be with you” in English (Adams, 2019). Even though the Catholic Church’s influence is declining in Ireland, these religious connotations suggest that Ireland uses religion as a lens to understand their world (Williams, 2004). Dr. Kevin Williams, author of “References to God are Part of our Language and Culture” reitera...

 Major Historical Events in Ireland  Timeline of Ireland's History  "A Chronology of Irish History" “The Potato Blight” During the mid-1840s, Ireland experienced a national “potato famine” that decimated its economy and society, which exacerbated tensions between Ireland and Britain (Mokyr, 2021). Clare Kilbane, author of “The Irish Potato Famine,” argued that “tenant farmers” experienced social stagnation because of laws (e.g. the “Penal Laws”) that limited upward mobility and promoted discrimination from “Protestant merchants and landowners” (Kilbane, 2020, p.6). Because of this social stagnation, “tenant farmers” relied on “potatoes” as inexpensive and “easy to grow crops” (Mokyr, 2021; Kilbane, 2020, pp.6-7). However, this reliance limited the “genetic variety” of these crops, which allowed “blight” to destroy the Irish “potato” yield and alter their society (Mokyr, 2021). Dean M. Braa, author of “The Great Potato Famine and the Transformation of Irish Peasant Socie...

Overview of Ireland's Dominant Worldview While Ireland promotes religious freedom in their Constitution, many Irish citizens identify as “Roman Catholic,” which demonstrates the influence of one dominant “worldview” on Irish culture (“Irish Culture,” 2022; Samovar, 2017, p.103). Larry Samovar, author of Communication Between Cultures, asserts that “a culture’s worldview" provides people with a framework to answer "major assumptions about life" (Samovar, 2017, p.104). “Worldview” encompasses a person’s attempt to answer life’s fundamental questions (Samovar, 2017, p.104). For example, about “76%” of “Irish Catholics” accept that “God created the universe” (McGarry, 2012). This belief suggests that some Irish citizens see the basic tenets of Catholicism, such as Jesus’ “resurrection,” as key to understanding their role in the world (McGarry, 2012). Tom Inglis, author of “Church and Culture in Catholic Ireland,” reinforces this notion when he argues that “the majority o...