Chapter 10: Localize, Adapt, Reflect: A Review of Recent Research in Transnational and Intercultural TPC

Technical and professional communication (TPC) has been a border-crossing field since its inception, and as globalization continues to create new avenues for research and practice, now is an opportune time to review what kinds of intercultural and transnational projects are being pursued as well as to consider how to be ethical agents in these projects. After relating the fraught process of defining “transnational” and “intercultural,” this chapter describes a meta-analysis of articles published in major TPC journals during a five-year window (2014-2018). The analysis categorizes different types of projects and seeks out advice emerging from scholars’ experiences. The study reveals a wide range of transnational research settings which resist being easily delimited and determines that space in journal articles to reflect on cross-cultural complexities is scarce. Limited reflections from scholars in cross-cultural projects indicate that working in intercultural and transnational spaces requires persistent localization, ongoing adaptation, and a reflective, reflexive mindset. Taken together, these lessons point to ongoing (re)positionality at the center of successful intercultural work. Based on the results of this review, the author recommends the field develop a formal statement of ethics for transnational and intercultural research. That ethic should be human-centered and mindful of social justice principles.