Cross-cultural communication in social work practice: An interpretive approach to cross-cultural communication difficulties.

This research is focused on cross-cultural communication misunderstandings between First Nations people, living on reserve, and outside services/agencies. The goal of the research is to consider issues related to cross-cultural communication. The findings are important for social workers engaged in community practice roles. An interpretive descriptive approach was used to explore the issue. The data were taken from participant interviews and thematic analysis was used to identify themes. Four themes emerged from the interviews: transportation to urban services and technology, cultural practices, language and translation, and jargon and slang. The themes provide insight into how cross-cultural communication misunderstandings and professional practice applications impact relationship building between social workers and their clients.--P.ii.