Ethnocentrism and Rhetorical Sensitivity in the New Media Age: A Case Study of Bangkok University Students

Abstract

This study examines the effects of new media use on levels of ethnocentricity and rhetorical sensitivity. Ethnocentricity is the tendency to judge out-groups using the in-group as the standard for what is good, correct, and natural. Rhetorical sensitivity is characterized by having a high concern for both the self and the other in communication interactions. Intercultural sensitivity was used as a mediating factor for the effects of new media use. Using a path analysis, the results revealed that the ethnocentrism and rhetorical sensitivity levels of the 367 Thai university students who participated in the study were barely indirectly related to their use of new media through intercultural sensitivity and that their ethnocentrism and rhetorical sensitivity levels were significantly negatively related. A model of the effects was developed to show the relationships between the variables.