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LANGUAGE CHOICE IN INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION IN LATVIA DURING THE 21st CENTURY
Abstract
The article describes a study of intercultural communication in Latvia. The objective of the research was to study the most problematic issues of intercultural communication in Latvia. The three stages of research (with an interval after every four years) used the critical incident method or critical incident technique from 2004 to 2018. The critical incident technique was used as a qualitative method for the situation analysis. The dominant incidents were those where language choice was central. The results were analysed by using the language choice model in Latvia [9], adapted from H. Giles, N. Coupland [2]. During the first stage of the research (20042006) partners from other EU member states, Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy and Sweden also participated. Unlike Latvia, in other countries immigrants most often experienced critical incidents when encountering the traditions and culture of the host country, but in Latvia native inhabitants most frequently experienced critical situations in intercultural communication when they used the official state language (Latvian) to communicate with members of other ethnic groups. The second (20102012) and the third (20162018) stages of the research were carried out only in Latvia. The article discusses the results of critical incidents among the Latvian group. The results of the research of the actual choice of communication language in Latvia provide a new insight into integration processes in the EU.
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