Critical Incidents for Intercultural Communication - NorQuest College

Facilitator and Activity Guide7 Multicultural Health Brokers Co-op, 2004.Historical and PoliticalContextCurrent Context:Here and NowPersonal FactorsCulture as an iceberg 8Facilitator and Activity GuideDraw an iceberg on the board and ask participants to brainstormabout what elements of culture are visible above thesurface and those that are hidden below. The facilitator canalso list the elements below on the board and ask participantsto place them in the appropriate place—above orbelow.Visible (above): facial expressions, religious rituals, paintings,literature, gestures, holiday customs, foods, eatinghabits, music, styles of dressInvisible (below): religious beliefs, importance of time, values,beliefs about child rearing, concept of leadership, conceptof fairness, nature of friendship, notions of modesty,understanding of the natural world, concept of self, generalworld view, concept of personal space, rules of social etiquette,etc.8 See Storti, C., Bennhold-Samaan, L., and U.S. Peace Corps, 1997.9 Image adapted Schmitz, 2003.Page 22Critical Incidents for Intercultural CommunicationCritical Incidents for Intercultural Communication Page 23