Universität zu Köln

Ye, Yingying (2025). Re-examining Intercultural Competence: Three Case Studies in Chinese Higher Education. PhD thesis, Universität zu Köln.

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Abstract

The present research aims to re-examine intercultural competence within the context of Chinese higher education. Intercultural competence is regarded as a critical skill in 21st-century China due to the increasingly globalized world, which facilitates interactions among individuals from different countries shaped by different values, beliefs, and experiences. China commenced research on intercultural competence in 2000, with theoretical frameworks originating from abroad. Predominant understandings of intercultural competence in China emphasize the individual, neglecting external factors and not considering these as integral to the role individuals play. Additionally, this perspective overlooks the social action aspects of communication and the outcomes of co-constructed (inter)actions, which are foundational to our comprehension of intercultural competence. Furthermore, intercultural competence is perceived as a tangible reality, encompassing actual experiences of cultural interactions and engagements encountered by individuals from various countries. Interpreting these so-called realities, knowledge, and culture through a static, fixed perspective without recognizing the necessity for interpretation and examination leads to stereotyping and biases. Moreover, the educational system in China presents intercultural knowledge as natural and neutral. However, serving China's strategic policies inherently includes political purposes and ideological elements, resulting in contradictions and conflicts. These contradictions and conflicts are primary sources of the concept's dilemma, confining discussions of intercultural competence in China to the seemingly neutral domains of language and individual skills. To address these issues encountered by the concept of intercultural competence, I have abandoned the traditional individual-centered approach, instead conceptualizing intercultural competence as a network. I adopted the Actor-Network Theory (ANT), a theoretical framework that provides a unique perspective on intercultural competence. ANT considers and observes all participating actors within an integrated system, including human and non-human elements. It disrupts conventional thinking by encompassing human and non-human actors, prompting a re-examination of intercultural competence. This approach shifts the focus from understanding intercultural competence as an individual-centric concept to examining the relational network and identifying which actors have the potential to act. By moving away the notion that intercultural competence is solely an individual's responsibility, we can understand actors as enacted by the relational network. Their characteristics are determined entirely by the connections within the network; that is, actors derive their capacities and potentials through their relationships with others. This approach prompts us to consider how actors in a network relate to one another.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD thesis)
Translated title:	Title Language Re-examining Intercultural Competence: Three Case Studies in Chinese Higher Education English
Translated abstract:	Abstract Language The present research aims to re-examine intercultural competence within the context of Chinese higher education. Intercultural competence is regarded as a critical skill in 21st-century China due to the increasingly globalized world, which facilitates interactions among individuals from different countries shaped by different values, beliefs, and experiences. China commenced research on intercultural competence in 2000, with theoretical frameworks originating from abroad. Predominant understandings of intercultural competence in China emphasize the individual, neglecting external factors and not considering these as integral to the role individuals play. Additionally, this perspective overlooks the social action aspects of communication and the outcomes of co-constructed (inter)actions, which are foundational to our comprehension of intercultural competence. Furthermore, intercultural competence is perceived as a tangible reality, encompassing actual experiences of cultural interactions and engagements encountered by individuals from various countries. Interpreting these so-called realities, knowledge, and culture through a static, fixed perspective without recognizing the necessity for interpretation and examination leads to stereotyping and biases. Moreover, the educational system in China presents intercultural knowledge as natural and neutral. However, serving China's strategic policies inherently includes political purposes and ideological elements, resulting in contradictions and conflicts. These contradictions and conflicts are primary sources of the concept's dilemma, confining discussions of intercultural competence in China to the seemingly neutral domains of language and individual skills. To address these issues encountered by the concept of intercultural competence, I have abandoned the traditional individual-centered approach, instead conceptualizing intercultural competence as a network. I adopted the Actor-Network Theory (ANT), a theoretical framework that provides a unique perspective on intercultural competence. ANT considers and observes all participating actors within an integrated system, including human and non-human elements. It disrupts conventional thinking by encompassing human and non-human actors, prompting a re-examination of intercultural competence. This approach shifts the focus from understanding intercultural competence as an individual-centric concept to examining the relational network and identifying which actors have the potential to act. By moving away the notion that intercultural competence is solely an individual's responsibility, we can understand actors as enacted by the relational network. Their characteristics are determined entirely by the connections within the network; that is, actors derive their capacities and potentials through their relationships with others. This approach prompts us to consider how actors in a network relate to one another. English
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Ye, Yingying UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-750883
Date:	2025
Language:	English
Faculty:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Fächergruppe 4: Außereuropäische Sprachen, Kulturen und Gesellschaften > Ostasiatisches Seminar
Subjects:	Education
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language Intercultural Competence English Chinese Higher Education English Actor-Network Theory (ANT) English Human and Non-human Actors (or Actants) English Educational leadership English Classroom Teaching English Knowledage English Reality English Social Media English Material Practice English Narrative English Culture English
Date of oral exam:	23 January 2025
Referee:	Name Academic Title Speer, Andreas Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Kramer, Stefan Prof. Dr. Brandtstädter, Susanne Prof. Dr. Zhang, Tao Prof. Dr.
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/75088