"They Make No Contribution!" --- American Students' Perception of Chinese Students' Reticence and Face.

This project examined both quantitative and qualitative data about how American domestic undergraduates perceived Chinese international students' (CISs) reticence and face concerns. A quasi-experimental design that measured American domestic students' ratings of a fictional CIS described in scenarios demonstrated that the reticent CIS was rated as more typical, less likable, and less socially-approved. A thematic analysis of American domestic students' general impression about CISs suggested two main themes: 1) some American students stigmatized CISs due to their poor English and reticence in the classroom; 2) others were more open-minded to approach CISs' reticence with high intercultural communication competence by taking CISs' perspective. The findings indicated: the overwhelming stereotype held by American students that typical CISs are reticent leads to negative evaluations of CISs; while perspective-taking skills resulted in better intercultural-communication experience for American students. The implications are discussed and directions for action that universities can take are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]