The aim of the course is to introduce and to apply approaches to intercultural and cross-cultural analysis of crisis communication, and to foster the development of students’ intercultural competence by providing them with theoretical framework, analytical method, and illustrative case studies (prominently but not exclusively, from USA, Western, Eastern and Central Europe). A comparative (multimodal) analysis of case studies will facilitate the insight into culture as complex and multi-facetted phenomenon and into the cultural similarities and differences within organizational crisis management  

Students will conduct their own research analyses with the aim of raising their cultural awareness, developing intercultural competence, and applying the acquired knowledge and skills in intercultural business communication. As a result, the students will be able to anticipate the impact of cultural differences in different areas of life and business and assess the cultural preferences of concrete communication solutions.

After completion of this course participants will be able to:

• Define "culture" as a complex concept and anticipate the effects of cultural differences on different areas of life and business communication.
• Define “crisis” and different stages of crisis management and crisis communication
• Be aware of the role of "culture" in crisis communication processes
• Use the concepts acquired in the course, apply to them to new crisis communication case and propose a practical communicative solution for a concrete crisis situation
• Estimate crisis vulnerabilities and differentiate different types of crises.
• Be aware of the related areas, such as risk communication, issue and reputation management
• Develop empathic skills in cross-cultural interactions through experiential modules like role plays and simulations

Regular attendance and active participation are a must in order to pass this course. Attendance is mandatory in at least 80% of live sessions. Absence is to be agreed upon in advance and has to be compensated for with an academic paper or equivalent task.​

You will receive further details from your course instructor at the start of the course.

• input
• discussion of case studies
• presentation
• response paper

The assessment of the course will include the following criteria:

• Class participation (20%)
• Group assignment, incl. oral presentation and written report (40%)
• Written final exam (40%)

Grading key (points/percent)

• 90 - 100   Sehr gut (1 - Excellent)
• 80 - 89     Gut (2 - Good)
• 70 - 79     Befriedigend (3 - Satisfactory)
• 60 - 69     Genügend (4 - Sufficient)
• < 60         Nicht genügend (5 - Fail)