Challenges of cross-cultural communications in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic

Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, Department of Foreign Languages and Cross-Cultural Communication, Moscow, Russia

^* Corresponding author: AAAksenova@fa.ru

Abstract

This article examines questions of the present interest in the sphere of modern education, the key topic of which is cross-cultural online communication of students in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and complete shift to the distant format of work. The article analyzes the features of virtual communication between representatives of different cultures and languages, as well as examples of possible misunderstandings of certain cultural realities. The issue of effective communication and socialization of students in the online environment is debatable and relevant to study, which is proved by numerous studies derived from real interactions with foreign students during the period of necessary self-isolation due to the threat of coronavirus. The investigation is based on a questionnaire suggested to students and Internet discourse materials presented on websites and forums. The theoretical basis is a deep analysis of the articles of scientists who decided to delve into the linguistic aspect dictated by the need to study the phenomenon of communication during the pandemic. The task of this research is to analyze cases and Internet communication based on the conducted survey and data comparison. The article will provide views on the mentioned above matter supported by investigations of respected scientists with various illustrations from modern realities of the pandemic world.