Intercultural Communication & Ideology

A cutting text that offers a critical approach to current theories and practices of intercultural communication, and invites students and professionals to explore alternative concepts and to become aware of cultural prejudices.

Taking on issues normally left in the margins, Intercultural Communication and Ideology revises the way we think of intercultural communication by insisting that we consider its ideological component. In this brilliant and engaging book about culture and the interstices that comprise the grounds for our interactions, Adrian Holliday shows us the necessity for a cosmopolitan process that expands the basis of our intercultural work.
- Molefi Kete Asante, Temple University

"Adrian Holliday’s highly readable and thought provoking volume is a welcome addition to the existing body of work on intercultural communication and ideology... With its comprehensive coverage of studies in the field and critical discussion of dominant theoretical paradigms, this refreshing book provides a valuable resource for both students and experienced researchers but also everyone interested in intercultural communication. An authoritative and open minded book the field will embrace."
- Jo Angouri, University of the West of England

Although communication is central to the humanities and social sciences, the inter-cultural level is often, peculiarly, left out of accounts. So what is intercultural communication? How does it relate to global processes and questions of identity?   This comprehensive book examines the main features of intercultural communication. It critically examines the main positions in the field. It addresses intercultural communication within the context of global politics, both addressing the specific problems that derive from Western ideology and setting out an agenda for research.

The book investigates categories of cultural action and itemizes the machinery for the illumination of inter-cultural processes. Holliday shows how a dialogue between national structures and creative universal cultural skills can be carried on in new locations, relating intercultural communication to theories of multiculturalism, cosmopolitanism and globalization, while also exploring how ideology permeates inter-cultural processes and develops an alternative ′grammar′ of culture.