The fact that people from different cultures perceive the world quite differently can lead to misunderstandings, anger, hurt feelings, and other challenges when they interact. This is why communication scholars invest a great deal of time and effort to study and write about intercultural communication, the communication between people from different cultures who have different worldviews. Communication is considered intercultural when the differences between communicators are so substantial that they can create different interpretations and expectations (Lustig & Koester, 1993).

The answer to addressing intercultural misunderstanding is not to limit yourself to interactions with people who perceive things exactly like you. In this mobile society, you study, play, and work with people who are different from you on a number of levels. Let’s now consider why studying intercultural communication matters so much.