4. To know if international students use marginalization
4.2 THE QUALITATIVE STUDY
In addition, they thought they knew some customs and taboos about Thai culture, held open, curious and respectful attitudes towards Thai language and culture, had skills in dealing with people from different backgrounds and were aware of similarities and differences between the local culture and their own culture. They had this perception perhaps due to the length of their stay in Thailand, implying that they may have already adjusted themselves to this country (Kohli Bagwe & Haskollar, 2020).
Their experiences in school teaching and IC training may also influence their perception (DeJaeghere & Zhang, 2008). The qualitative data also supported these findings.
When considering the top three mean scores, all of them were from the attitude component. This analytical result implies that among those four components of ICC,
‘attitude’ plays the most significant role in the way they perceive their ICC.
the differentiation of one culture from another. Thai people place a high value on respect for authority and emphasizes gratitude to parents, as well as guardians, teachers, and caregivers. Students were asked about some Thai customs, and some of their responses are as follows.
“I know Thai culture is about greetings like putting hands together and I know that most people believe in Buddha.” “Thai hierarchy culture that is the younger ones should their respect the elders and the subordinates must respect their leaders.” (Lucy, Daniel & Jodie, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“As a monk, I try to follow their customs, such as I shouldn’t go to the beach, or swing in the sea and play water or play the football even I cannot touch the women in public areas and if a woman gives something to me, they cannot give me directly and I can only stay in the temple not apartment. (John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
For the customs, all the 8 students mentioned the way of greeting in Thailand like putting hands together and all students mentioned the culture of religion in Thailand which is Buddhism. And three Chinese students talked about the Thai hierarchy culture that is the younger ones should their respect the elders and the subordinates must respect their leaders. And the Nigeria student think that Thai people tend to keep silence even they think something differently. Meanwhile, the Burmese monk said he tries to follow Thai customs, such as he shouldn’t go to the beach, or swim in the sea and play water or play the football even he cannot touch the women in public areas and if a woman gives something to him as he is a monk, women cannot give him something directly.
(1.2) Taboos
Cultural taboos in Thailand are specific behaviours that are forbidden in Thai society, or prohibit interaction with specific people, places or things.
For example, do not disrespect the king or royal family in any way, whether it is verbal or written communication. Be respectful around Buddha statues. All Buddha statues and
sculptures are considered sacred, so do not pose with them, defile them or disrespect them in any way. Also, in Thai culture, the soles of the feet are considered offensive and it is very rude to point at someone with the soles of your feet. Do not touch the head of a Thai person. And the head is a sacred part of the body and touching it is a very uncomfortable invasion. Below are some of examples from the interviewees:
“taboo aspect is not allowed to discuss the king, royal affairs. And don't touch the head of a child.” (Michael, Daniel, Lucy, Jodie, Mary, Jack, & John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“I know that there are two taboos of Thai culture. One is that they cannot touch one’s head and they think that the head is an important place and a noble place.
The second is that you can’t use your toes to point to things,” (Lucy,personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“I have also met the people from other countries such as: China and Russia，
but I am not in that culture, for example, in Thailand, People are not allowed to talk about the king, the monarchy, you know. Their religion, their beliefs”
(Jack,personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“And the taboos in Thailand, for example, people are not allowed to draw the picture of the Buddhist statue or the body parts ect.” (John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
For the taboos, all the students mentioned that the taboos in Thailand involve: 1) cannot talk about words against the Royal family;2) cannot touch one’s head. And one Chinese student said that cannot point things with toes. From the monk’s perspective, the tattoos in Thailand, for example, people are not allowed to draw the picture of the Buddhist statue or the body parts etc.as that is the drawing tattoos.
(1.3) Knowledge about ICC
Here are some of the students' perspectives: "We had a course in college called Intercultural Communication. And I think ICC is the ability to recognize
the differences between cultures and tolerate some differences for the purpose of communication". It is the ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with people from other cultures in a variety of cultural contexts." All participants knew something about the ICC concept because they said they could simply give a basic definition of ICC.
In summary, all of the Bilingual Education participants have knowledge that means they know some customs and taboos about Thai culture and knowledge about ICC.
2) All the bilingual education students can recognize signs of culture stress and some strategies for overcoming it.
(2.1) Signs of culture stress
The signs of culture stress refer to the stress that the language and culture can bring to bilingual education students. Bilingual education students may experience some cultural differences when they come to Thailand and may feel stressed.
Here are some of the main things they shared.
“first of all, I felt the pressure of Thailand when I first came to Thailand, and I gradually adapted to it. For example, because I don’t speak Thai in my life, there are difficulties in shopping and communication.” (Michael, Lucy, Daniel, Mary, Jodie & John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“when you first come to Thailand, you feel the honeymoon and you enjoy, and after the honeymoon, you begin to see the culture differences and stress setting.
(Jack, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
All in all, all the participants feel pressure when they come to Thailand and they can recognize the cultural pressure in terms of language and culture.
Because Thai people speak Thai, English is mainly used as a foreign language. In terms of culture, Thailand is a more typical Buddhist culture, which is also different from China and Nigeria, and the Buddhist culture in Thailand is different from the Buddhist culture in Myanmar.
(2.2) Strategies
Strategies here refer to methods that can help these bilingual education students deal effectively with the stresses that Thai language and culture bring to them. There are many ways to deal with cultural stress, and these bilingual education students have suggested their own methods as below.
“I will learn some common languages and cultural aspects of Thailand”
(Michael, Lucy, Daniel, Mary, Jodie & John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“when you communicate with your friends, you ask them questions, you imitate them, you observe them.” (Lucy, Daniel, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“When I first came to Thailand, I didn't know how to get along with them. I slowly communicated with them. I was under pressure. Then I approached them bravely, asked if I didn’t understand, communicated with others as much as possible, and expressed myself with mobile translation software and integrated into the new environment. Accept their differences and tolerate their culture more.” (Jodie, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“So, for the strategies, first, we should learn from others, second, we can make friends with others, interact with them more about their culture and their language, just be open and tolerant and develop and make progress with Thai.”
(Jack, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“Yes, when I encounter the stress of the culture, I try to fix it, such as following their belief, their culture customs. That means when we study English, or study language, we need to study their culture and we need to respect them and we should be positive to accept that, you know sometimes I don’t like but I have to adapt it.” (John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
In terms of strategies for overcoming stress, all students said they would learn Thai language and culture and ask others to help. Two of the Chinese students said that they want to observe and imitate and fix themselves, and another Chinese student and the Nigerian student said that we need to accept the differences and be more open and tolerant. As well as the monk students said that we need to respect and should be positive even if sometimes, we don’t like something. In short, it is to learn more, take more initiative to communicate with others, and actively look for ways to solve problems.
In summary, all the bilingual education students can recognize signs of culture stress and some strategies for overcoming it.
4.2.1.2 The Second Theme: Attitudes.
Attitude in this study refers to the willingness to communicate with people from different cultures and to be open, curious, and respectful of other cultures (Byram, 2009 & Fantini, 2019).
1) All the bilingual education students are willing to learn the language and culture of Thailand.
Willing to learn the language and culture of Thailand means that they are willing to learn the language and culture of Thailand on their own initiative because it is beneficial to them. Below are some of comments from the interviewees:
“I am willing to learn Thai language and culture, because I live and work in Thailand, I cannot live better and life cannot become more convenient without learning Thai language and culture.” (Lucy, Jodie, Michael & Daniel, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“Yeah, not only make my life become more convenient but I can learn Thai culture and communicate with Thai people without offending them. In order to improve this intercultural ability, I need to understand the culture and know what is different and what needs to be respected.” (Mary, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
All the students are willing to learn Thai language and culture because they study and live in this country, so that they can better adapt to Thailand. All the Chinese students mentioned that their life would not be very convenient if they did not understand the language and culture of Thailand. And one of the Chinese students added that learning Thai language and culture will not offend Thai people, and can improve their ability of intercultural communication. At the same time, the Nigerian student and Burmese monk also believe that learning Thai language and culture can help them live better and meet their needs here.
2) All the bilingual education students are willing to try to communicate in the host language and behave in appropriate ways.
Host language refers to the Thai language. In terms of using Thai language, one of the Chinese students thought that using Thai was a friendly way to communicate, another Chinese student said he uses some Thai words and sentences every day, as well as English and body language to assist him to communicate. The Nigerian student, however, said that using Thai when buying something that can be cheaper.
“Yes, to be honest, I only speak a little Thai, and I try my best, because living in Thailand, it’s a friendly way to communicate in Thai, and I think it’s also a friendly way to communicate, to promote the feeling of each other.’’ (Jodie personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“Yes, because I am very willing to say everyday words and sentence that I have learned in my daily life. However, when I cannot speak clearly, I use English and body language to assist communication.’’ (Daniel, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“For sure. I try to interact with them and try to grasp a little Thai and apply it, you know, when you get out where you live, if you cannot use English, it will constraint to the environmentally learning and the basics, and if you get to the market for instance, you want to buy something, if you don’t say their language,
they won’t give the lower price.” (Jack, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
At the same time, all the students said they are willing to behave in appropriate ways. Among them, four Chinese students think they need to understand and respect the Thai code of conduct and act in a proper way. And another Chinese student mentioned that he was willing to imitate the behaviour style that the Thais use.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian student said he behaved in appropriate ways and adjusted something that need to change. For the monk student, he said that he tried to behave to meet the Thais expectations about the monk and try to be appropriate with their belief and their culture. And he gave the reason that we need to think ourselves as global citizen and cultivate intercultural mindset that behave what we want others do.
Examples are as follow:
“I think we need to understand and respect the Thai code of conduct and act in a proper way” (Jodie, Daniel, Mary & Michael, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“I am willing to act in an appropriate way. I think Thai people have different attitudes towards people from different countries, so I am more willing to imitate Thai people's acting style.” (Lucy, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“Yeah, I am willing to try to communicate with the Thai people by using some Thai words and I also behave in an appropriate way, yeah, I try to behave as they wish or desire about the monk like doing this or doing that and try to be appropriate with their belief and their culture. Because I am from another country, right, not from Thailand, if Thai people can to my hometown, if they don’t follow my belief or my customs, our people may don’t like, right, so, we need to have that concept, right. If you do something I don’t like, you still do that, how can be that? And we also need to cultivate intercultural mindset and
we need to grow up and we need to think ourselves as global citizens.” (John personal communication, October 11, 2020)
In short, all the participants are willing to communicate with Thai because they think will make their lives more convenient. At the same time, they also said they need to behave in appropriate ways, because they think of themselves as people from other countries, so they need to respect and adapt to the culture and customs of Thailand, which can make life more comfortable and can achieve a harmonious relationship with others.
3) All the bilingual education students are willing to try to understand differences in the behaviours, values, attitudes and styles of their own culture and those of the host.
Firstly, all the participants agreed that Buddhist culture is typical Thai culture and has had a significant influence on Thai culture in terms of behavior, values, attitude, and style. They are also aware that greeting is an important part of Thai culture and that it differs from that of other cultures. Three Chinese students believe that attitudes and values differ significantly between Chinese and Thai cultures. Another Chinese student stated that Thai culture is very tolerant of other cultures in terms of values and attitudes. Secondly, all students believe that they need to understand and integrate the cultural differences between Thailand and our own country because they are now living there, which can make life easier and more comfortable.
“I am willing to do that. Living in a different country, I properly to do the things according to different countries, so, here, I try to integrate both Thailand and my own and try to see the differences and weight which is important, and which is good, and which is contrast to your own, you take it out.” (Jack, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“Yeah, we need to know the differences between our culture and their culture, because you know, every country has their nationalities and has their own culture and it’s unique and that unique forms their value. so, Thai culture or style, they have their own values, and we should respect their values. Similarly,
in my country, we also have our culture, we also need to respect.” (John, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
He Nigerian and Myanmar students did not give subtle examples of Thai culture and their own culture in terms of behavior, attitudes, values and styles, but directly stated that they are willing to understand the differences and thought we need to understand and respect the culture of other countries. Nigeria student also said that living in another country needs to act in accordance with the requirements of other countries and integrate the differences between his own national culture and the Thai national culture. At the same time, Myanmar student also said that every country has a specific country’s culture, and we all need to respect them.
In conclusion, all the bilingual education students have a positive and optimistic attitude towards the language and culture of the host country, namely Thailand, and they are willing to understand the differences in behaviours, values, attitudes and styles between Thai culture and their own culture and they hold open, curious and respectful attitudes towards Thai language and culture.
4.2.1.3 Skills refers to the use of certain strategies to effectively and appropriately communicate and interact with others (Byram, 2009). These abilities necessitate the ability to compare and contrast different aspects of their own culture with those of their hosts, as well as to use culturally specific information to improve their style and personal interactions.
1) All the bilingual education students are able to compare and contrast different aspects of their own culture and those of the host.
Based on their own experiences, these bilingual education students provided similarities and differences between Thai culture and their own country's culture, some from a national perspective, such as religion and education, and some from a lifestyle perspective, such as food, clothing, housing, and transportation, etc. The following are some of their specific viewpoints.
“It's obvious that China is a non-religious country and Thailand is a Buddhist country. This is the most obvious difference. And Thais respect their elders.
They will obey their parents. We Chinese also respect the elders. The attitude of Thai people is to live in a simple and happy life. They spend as much as they want without saving money. China is prepared for danger even in the times of peace and we will also save money.” (Jodie, Marry & Daniel, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“I can compare, first of all, in terms of food, Thai people like to eat sour and spicy food. In terms of drinking, Chinese people will not drink ice water or some very cold things, Thailand like to drink ice water. In terms of living, Chinese people want to buy their own house, while Thai people rent for life.
Travel aspect, Thai people do not want to walk, if far, they may take a taxi, if not far, they may ride or by a motorcycle.” (Michael, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
“In terms of teaching, Thailand is mainly student-oriented and does not force students to study. In China, students are forced to study. No matter it is public or private school in Thailand, it is more humanized and does not teach to the test. On the other hand, there is no big social difference between private universities and public universities in Thailand, and people will treat them equally. In China, private universities are not good universities. Thai students choose universities according to their own preferences, while Chinese students face great pressure in this regard.’’ (Lucy, personal communication, October 11, 2020)
Among them, three Chinese students believe that the most obvious difference between Thai culture and Chinese culture lies in religion, because Thailand is a Buddhist country and China has no specific religious beliefs. At the same time, they think that the Chinese will be prepared for danger in advance, so they will save money while the Thais do not have this thinking. They mainly think that the similarity lies in respect for the elders.
Another Chinese student compared the cultural differences between the two countries in terms of food, housing and transportation. As well as