Comparing Hispanic-To-White Co-Cultural Communication at Four-Year, Public Hispanic Serving and Predominately White Institutions

Abstract

This study explores two relatively untapped areas of instructional communication scholarship: Hispanic students’ communicative behaviors and the influence of context in student-to-student communication. Specifically, we utilize Co-Cultural Theory (CCT) to explore what, if any, differences exist in Hispanic students’ reports of their co-cultural communication when interacting with White students based on their enrollment in either a 4-year, public Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) or 4-year, public Predominately White Institution (PWI). We found that Hispanic students’ communicative approaches did not differ based on their institutional context. However, Hispanic students in the PWI group scored higher on accommodation as their preferred outcome than their Hispanic HSI counterparts. We argue the findings highlight both theoretical and pedagogical implications for researchers and instructors.