A Cognitive Study on Politeness Intention Processing and Its Association with Pragmatic Failure in Cross-Cultural Communication

Although a large number of studies have focused on various aspects of politeness,very little is known about how politeness intention is activated cognitively during verbal communication.The present study aims to explore the cognitive mechanism of politeness intention processing,and how it is related to pragmatic failure during cross-cultural communication.Using 30 Chinese EFL university students who were instructed to finish a probe word judgment task with 96 virtual scenarios,the results indicate that within both mono-and cross-cultural contexts,the response time in the experimental scenarios was significantly slower than that of the filler scenarios.This suggests that politeness intention was activated while understanding the surface meaning of the conversation;however,the EFL learners could not completely avoid the negative transfer of their native politeness conventions when they were comprehending the conversational intention of the target language.Furthermore,no significant differences in response time were found between the groups with high and low English pragmatic competence,illustrating that transferring the pragmatic rules and principles into cross-cultural communication skills was more cognitively demanding.Overall,this study adds to the literature on politeness research and provides some implications for foreign language pragmatic instructions.

The Transmission,Establishment and Cross-cultural Integration of Chinese Medicine in the Mainstream Healthcare,through the Eyes of a Generation of Visionaries and Pioneers

It has historically been very difficult to trace the history of the westward transmission of Chinese medicine through the accounts of its protagonists. Many of the early scholars such as Jack Worsley, Dick Van Buren, and Joe Goodman were reluctant to divulge information about the source of their knowledge, or their professional qualifications. Others, such as John Shen and Hong Yuan-bain were early 20th century immigrants who transmitted highly personalized versions of acupuncture and Chinese medicine to select disciples. Eventually, a new class of scholars appeared, including names such as Ted Kaptchuk, Peter Deadman, Nigel Wiseman, William Morris, Peter Eckman, John Mc Donald, Charles Buck, and the late Giovanni Maciocia who looked for answers back in China, developed translation methodologies and terminology, compiled the main textbooks currently in use at TCM colleges, overcame enormous scholastic adversity, developed courses and pursued the regulation and accreditation of TCM in various countries. This special issue synopsizes the path towards the global acculturation of TCM over the last 50 years, the main protagonists, the enormous accomplishments they have achieved for the profession, their philosophy, their clinical perspectives and visions for the future.

Understanding the Global Identification with China’s Stories: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

Cross-cultural storytelling is a primary way for humankind to seek mutual recognition of value orientations between cultures,which facilitates the ability to jointly address the problems of human existence in the context of globalization.In this study,we conducted an interview survey of 6,130 respondents who were college students or graduates from 107 countries.The results show that there were a number of cross-cultural values embodied in China’s stories seen by the respondents as part of a common vision for the future of humankind and widely identified guidance on collaborative responses to global challenges.These cross-cultural values are common prosperity,ecological harmony,individual-collective integration,the urgency of global peace,as well as respect for multicultural and indigenous development paths.

Current Situation and Cross-Cultural Influence of Live Houses in China

Live houses emerged in China during the 1990s as the country’s rock music scene began to flourish.Today,live houses can be found in almost every major city in China and have become an essential part of the country’s music culture.The growth of live houses in China has been driven by changing consumer tastes,the expansion of the music industry,and a desire for new and innovative forms of entertainment.These venues offer a unique and intimate setting for music lovers to experience live performances,fostering a sense of community and connection between artists and audiences.The cross-cultural influence of live houses in China has been substantial,with international musicians and audiences increasingly drawn to the country’s vibrant music scene.Chinese live houses have hosted a diverse range of international artists,providing opportunities for cross-cultural exchange and collaboration.As a result,live houses have become a hub for promoting Chinese culture and soft power,enhancing global cultural diversity,and increasing the visibility of Chinese artists on the international stage.

Translation Studies from a Cross-Cultural Perspective:Reinventing Subjectivity-A Case Study of English Translation of A Dream of Red Mansions

The integration of cross-cultural inquiries into the realm of translation has given rise to a distinct subfield known as cross-cultural translation studies.This approach emphasizes the importance of delving into the cultural subtleties and the awareness of cultural subjectivity within the translation process.Central to this framework is the concept of reshaping cultural nuances and the subjectivity of culture.This paper introduces three principal translation strategies that emerge from a cross-cultural standpoint:the alienation translation strategy,the‘cannibalism’translation strategy,and the destructive translation strategy.Utilizing the English translation of“Dream of the Red Chamber”as a case study,the paper examines how cultural nuances and cultural subjectivity influence the selection of translation strategies and demonstrates the practical application of cross-cultural research within the translation sphere.Hence,the significance of cross-cultural translation studies lies in its capacity to offer a novel lens through which to view translation studies.It encourages a reevaluation of cultural nuances and subjectivity in translation,which is of profound practical importance for advancing the field of translation studies,enhancing cross-cultural communication,and facilitating the spread of Chinese discourse on the global stage.

Cross-Cultural Adjustment and Coping:U.S.Students in Taiwan Residents Higher Education

The aim of this study was to investigate the adjustment problems of students from the United States enrolled in universities in the East,specifically in Taiwan,their problems related to cultural adaptation,and the process of adjustment to student life in Taiwan.Under investigation were cultural adjustment and coping skills as these students transitioned from West to East.Qualitative data were collected from interviews with participants and faculty members as well as participant observations.Results indicated that U.S.students found their own ways to acclimate to their new academic setting as well as to social relations,cross-cultural issues,and the linguistic environment in Taiwan to achieve effective adaptation.They made changes in themselves to cope with all situations they encountered.This study provides suggestions for international students abroad in Taiwan,for the Taiwan Residents government,and for universities or colleges in terms of what they should offer to current and future international students.

The Research on Cross-Cultural Critical Thinking in English Teaching: A Pedagogical Paradigm Within the Ideological and Political Course Framework

The conflation of linguistic competencies with ideological and political educational paradigms presents unique opportunities and challenges for English language teaching(ELT)in our increasingly interconnected world.This research seeks to address the role of cross-cultural critical thinking within the landscape of English pedagogy,framed by the imperatives of ideological and political education.Employing a multi-method approach,including thematic content analysis and action research,the study proposes a pedagogical model designed to integrate transcultural discourse and ideologically reflective practices into the conventional ELT curriculum.This paper argues for a reimagined approach to teaching English that encourages students to engage with diverse cultural perspectives and develop a nuanced understanding of global issues.

Innovation Analysis of College English Teaching from the Perspective of Cross-Cultural Communication

With the increasingly integrated international communication and cooperation,cross-cultural communication can enable talents to understand the cultural concepts and backgrounds of different countries,and thus form positive values.Language is the key carrier of communication and its role is also evident.Colleges are gathering places for cultural collisions,and in the context of cross-cultural communication,colleges need to play their role in optimizing English teaching and improving teachers’teaching levels,in order to cultivate more high-quality talents.This article mainly analyzes the strategies for innovative English teaching in colleges from the perspective of cross-cultural communication,hoping to provide references and inspiration for the research of cultivating cross-cultural communication talents.

Online International Peer Interaction:An Exploration of Impacts on Comprehensive Competencies,Global Perspectives,and Cross-Cultural Communication Skills

With the increasing trend of globalization and the rapid advancement of information technology,online learning platforms such as Zoom are becoming increasingly influential in the field of education.The focus of this study was the online international peer interaction based on the Zoom platform,detailing how such interaction programs are conducted and exploring in depth the specific impacts of this interaction mode on students’comprehensive competencies,global perspectives,and cross-cultural communication skills.This research not only provides new practical references for online learning and international education but also offers new research perspectives and directions for educators and researchers.

Ti-Reader:基于注意力机制的藏文机器阅读理解端到端网络模型

机器阅读理解旨在教会机器去理解一篇文章并且回答与之相关的问题。为了解决低资源语言上机器阅读理解模型性能低的问题,该文提出了一种基于注意力机制的藏文机器阅读理解端到端网络模型Ti-Reader。首先,为了编码更细粒度的藏文文本信息,将音节和词相结合进行词表示,然后采用词级注意力机制去关注文本中的关键词,利用重读机制去捕捉文章和问题之间的语义信息,自注意力机制去匹配问题与答案的隐变量本身,为答案预测提供更多的线索。最后,实验结果表明,Ti-Reader模型提升了藏文机器阅读理解的性能,同时在英文数据集SQuAD上也有较好的表现。

Hero Hua Mulan With a Thousand Faces:Why Chinese Stories Can Move the World?Evidence From a Global Cross-Cultural Interview Survey

While people from Western countries do not always understand of the underlying cultural values of most Chinese stories,the Hua Mulan story has gained significant recognition from Western audiences.Therefore,it would be quite beneficial if we could understand the key elements that have contributed to the success of the Hua Mulan story so that we can employ similar elements in other intercultural communication programs and promote the communication and dissemination of cultures between China and the rest of the world.According to the findings from the interviews of 6,130 respondents from 107 countries,we found that the Hua Mulan story gains global acceptance because it represents a story of“a hero with a thousand faces,”which embodies the integration of Chinese traditions and contemporary spirit through sharing a global meaning while responding to various culturally common challenges.Five key cultural value dimensions are responsible for this Chinese story’s cross-cultural affinity and influence,which helped it win recognition and empathy worldwide.The five key cultural value dimensions are loyalty and patriotism,the courage to take responsibility,compatibility of individualism and collectivism,respondence to the multicultural appeal,and hero growth.These dimensions are then generalized as the value identity orientation grounded in a Global Shared Meaning(GSM)in this study.

Analysis of Differences Between Popular Mobile Games in China and Japan From a Cross-Cultural Perspective: A Case Study of Genshin Impact and Uma Musume: Pretty Derby

Genshin Impact and Uma Musume:Pretty Derby are two of the hottest mobile games in China and Japan,respectively,in the past two years,both of which have gained enormous popularity and revenue in their home countries.This paper focuses on the cross-cultural perspective,and analyzes the differences between the two games and their reasons for their popularity from three aspects:character design,cultural background,and game genre.

A Study on Cross-Cultural Communication and the Cultivation of Cross-Cultural Competence in German Language Teaching in Universities

In the concept of German,cross-cultural competence is regarded as an important skill,which can help learners to better understand the differences between two cultures and establish mutual cognition.This competence can effectively reduce unnecessary misunderstandings and improve communication efficiency.In college German classes,teachers should realize that cross-cultural communication skills are crucial to the development of students’communicative competence.Therefore,they should strive to improve their teaching methods and make the courses more interesting to help students to communicate better.

Text Difficulty,Working Memory Capacity and Mind Wandering During Chinese EFL Learners’Reading

This experimental study investigated how text difficulty and different working memory capacity(WMC)affected Chinese EFL learners’reading comprehension and their tendency to engage in task-unrelated thoughts,that is,mind wandering(MW),in the course of reading.Sixty first-year university non-English majors participated in the study.A two-factor mixed experimental design of 2(text difficulty:difficult and simple)×2(WMC:high/large and low/small)was employed.Results revealed that 1)the main and interaction effects of WMC and text difficulty on voluntary MW were significant,whereas those on involuntary MW were not;2)while reading the easy texts,the involuntary MW of high-WMC individuals was less frequent than that of low-WMC ones,whereas while reading the difficult ones,the direct relationship between WMC and involuntary MW was not found;and that 3)high-WMC individuals had a lower overall rate of MW and better reading performance than low-WMC individuals did,but with increasing text difficulty,their rates of overall MW and voluntary MW were getting higher and higher,and the reading performance was getting lower and lower.These results lend support to WM theory and have pedagogical implications for the instruction of L2 reading.

Extended reading板块教学设计

根据《普通高中英语课程标准(2017年版2020修订)》(以下简称“新课标”),教师应引导学生广泛阅读,提升阅读能力,丰富语言、人文和科学知识,并拓展思维,增强审美、鉴赏和评价能力。广义的拓展阅读可在课堂内外开展;狭义的拓展阅读指基于单元主题,在课堂内进行的主题式拓展阅读,是对教材主阅读板块内容的延伸和内涵的拓展。[1]作为拓展阅读的素材,非故事类文本有助于学生拓宽知识面、增进对世界的认识。

A Study on the Values and Strategies of English Picture Book Reading for Improving Pupils’ English Reading Literacy

Reading is one of the core skills in English learning.It is indispensable for EFL learners to develop good English reading literacy in primary schools.English picture books are consistent with pupils’cognitive and thinking modes,which is valuable to improve their English reading literacy.However,at present,most Chinese pupils have some problems in English reading.The paper aims at analyzing the current problems in Chinese pupils’English reading and digging out the values and strategies of English picture book reading,so as to stimulate their reading interests,cultivate their intercultural awareness,and improve their English reading literacy.

Study on the Influencing Factors of L2 Reading Ability and Its Regulation Strategies

This paper takes college students as research subjects to investigate the factors affecting L2 Reading ability and their regulation strategies through scale surveys.The findings are as follows:(1)Linguistic factors have significant impacts on L2 Reading ability,and the influence of non-linguistic factors,such as non-intellectual factors and cultural background knowledge,is also important;and(2)flexible use of reading regulation strategies according to the learning conditions(such as the information extraction strategy,the metacognitive reading regulation strategy,and the interactive reading strategy)can effectively improve learners’L2 Reading ability.The findings of this study have important theoretical and practical value for improving L2 learners’Reading ability.

The Reading Movement in Shanghai,China in the Late 1950s

At the end of the 1950s,Shanghai region of China carried out the Lu Xun Medal Reading Campaign and the Red Flag Reading Campaign one after another,aiming to guide young people to read good books and cultivate a positive interest in life through reading,which is a gentle and constant form of ideological education.Based on the historical materials collected by Shanghai Archives,the author investigated the background,development,main links,and effects of the reading movement.The research shows that the reading movement has promoted young peoples political awareness,broadened their knowledge horizons,and promoted the formation of a good social atmosphere.

Exploring the Reasons for Changes in National Reading Behaviour from the Perspective of Media Environmentalism

In this paper, through the perspective of Merowitz’s media environmentalism, following the research path of media-scene-behaviour, and based on the results of the national reading survey released by the China Press and Publication Research Institute in the past ten years (2013-2022), we analyse the characteristics of national reading behaviours, explore the reasons for the changes in national reading behaviour in terms of technology, media, and scenarios. It also discusses the future trend of national reading behaviour and the promotion of national reading activities, and puts forward certain countermeasures from the government, schools and the society to make joint efforts to promote national reading.

A Book Review of Becoming a Reading Teacher:Connecting Research and Practice

The book Becoming a Reading Teacher:Connecting Research and Practice aims to encourage readers to regard reading as a lifelong habit.To bridge the gap between teachers and researchers,this book is structured around four parts:reading as a linguistic process,reading as a personal experience,reading as a collective experience,and reading as a classroom practice.The definition of a reading teacher can be interpreted in two ways:the teacher who builds readings into the lesson and the teacher who provides the opportunity for learners to be readers,but who is a reader themselves.Such teachers regard reading as a lifelong learning habit and pass on the enthusiasm to learners,eventually creating a reading culture beyond the classroom.However,the necessity for reading teachers to participate in the research may be explained as follows.Firstly,new research may change one’s mind.What’s more,research allows teachers to turn their difficulties,surprises,and challenges into questions,and to seek answers to those questions.In addition,research helps teachers overcome the challenges in teaching by discovering new strategies.Research can also help to prove teachers’choices and decisions in teaching.Secondly,research allows teachers to see the role they play in the bigger picture.Research connects teachers with others and gives them a broader and shared perspective on their questions and experiences.Last but not least,research informs and promotes changes in policy,thinking,and so on.