Embodied Culture: Travel as an Act of Transformation
Location
PANEL: Communication Capstone Pt. I
CELA Moffett
Moderator: Cortney Smith
Document Type
Presentation - Open Access
Start Date
5-1-2026 2:30 PM
End Date
5-1-2026 3:30 PM
Abstract
In an increasingly globalized world, cultural competence – the ability to effectively and appropriately communicate across cultural contexts – is an essential skill for understanding oneself and others. This research examines the relationship between travel and cultural competence, exploring the extent to which intercultural experiences foster such competence and how this development reshapes an individual’s relationship with their own culture. Situated within the field of intercultural communication, the analysis is grounded in Georg Simmel’s distinction between objective and subjective culture, which serves as the primary theoretical framework. While objective culture encompasses shared traditions, institutions, and practices, subjective culture refers to the individual’s internalized and embodied experience of culture. In other words, subjective culture is the beliefs, traditions, and practices that one chooses to live. Through this lens, I draw on personal experiences as an international student to argue that travel does not fundamentally alter one’s objective culture but significantly transforms subjective culture. I demonstrate how developing cultural competence has reshaped my perceptions, values, and modes of belonging. I further explore the tensions that arise when my newly formed subjective cultural orientations conflict with my originating cultural context. Ultimately, this research uses personal narrative to argue that by learning about others, one can learn about oneself too; by learning how to communicate interculturally, one expands their skills intraculturally too. This research highlights the broader implications of intercultural learning for individuals engaging in travel in any form.
Keywords:
Culture, Autoethnography, Intercultural communication
Recommended Citation
Saveva, Maja, "Embodied Culture: Travel as an Act of Transformation" (2026). Research Symposium. 38.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2026/presentations/38
Major
Communication Studies; Hispanic Studies
Project Mentor(s)
Cortney Smith, Writing and Communication
2026
Embodied Culture: Travel as an Act of Transformation
PANEL: Communication Capstone Pt. I
CELA Moffett
Moderator: Cortney Smith
In an increasingly globalized world, cultural competence – the ability to effectively and appropriately communicate across cultural contexts – is an essential skill for understanding oneself and others. This research examines the relationship between travel and cultural competence, exploring the extent to which intercultural experiences foster such competence and how this development reshapes an individual’s relationship with their own culture. Situated within the field of intercultural communication, the analysis is grounded in Georg Simmel’s distinction between objective and subjective culture, which serves as the primary theoretical framework. While objective culture encompasses shared traditions, institutions, and practices, subjective culture refers to the individual’s internalized and embodied experience of culture. In other words, subjective culture is the beliefs, traditions, and practices that one chooses to live. Through this lens, I draw on personal experiences as an international student to argue that travel does not fundamentally alter one’s objective culture but significantly transforms subjective culture. I demonstrate how developing cultural competence has reshaped my perceptions, values, and modes of belonging. I further explore the tensions that arise when my newly formed subjective cultural orientations conflict with my originating cultural context. Ultimately, this research uses personal narrative to argue that by learning about others, one can learn about oneself too; by learning how to communicate interculturally, one expands their skills intraculturally too. This research highlights the broader implications of intercultural learning for individuals engaging in travel in any form.
