| This thesis investigates international students' perceptions of intercultural communication apprehension (ICA). The research is conducted from an interpretive paradigm by engaging in an autoethnography and long interviews. By deeply analyzing international students' experiences and understandings of CA and ICA, this research reveals the relationships between ICA and language, ICA and situational conditions, as well as ICA and culture.The research findings indicate: Many environmental factors (e.g., language ability and cultural familiarity) could affect ICA, there is no significant order difference between ICA and CA in terms of five situational conditions (public speaking, unfamiliar group, familiar group, with a stranger, and with an acquaintance), and CA in the host culture is not always higher than CA in the home culture. For reducing ICA, three types of strategies are suggested: improving language ability, enhancing cultural familiarity, and developing psychological readiness for the host environment. |
