Mediated Dreams, Lived Realities: A Cross-Cultural Grounded Theory Study of Chongqing’s Image Construction among German Residents

Yuan HE

Abstract


In an increasingly interconnected yet polarized global landscape, this study critically investigates how German residents in Chongqing, China, cognitively construct perceptions of the city’s image. Employing a constructivist grounded theory, we analyzed in-depth interview data from 17 German residents, triangulated with online public data. Findings reveal a dynamic transition from an initial, online-mediated, symbolically charged “conceptual Chongqing” to an offline, sensorially-engaged “perceived Chongqing.” Online exposure, characterized by prominent visual symbols (e.g., nightscapes, hot pot), simplifies the image, fostering initial impressions. This symbolic cognition, however, often leads to cognitive capture by aestheticized narratives, potentially reinforcing stereotypes. Conversely, offline experiences, involving multi-sensory engagement and direct social interactions, profoundly enrich perceptions, rendering the image vivid and nuanced. Critical points of cognitive dissonance arise where idealized online symbols clash with complex offline realities, prompting emotional fluctuations and perceptual recalibration. This dialectic highlights how mediated representational logics are culturally embodied and negotiated through lived experience, foregrounding active audience roles in critically re-negotiating ‘Other’ representations within a complex intercultural landscape. The study proposes a novel theoretical model of cross-cultural image construction, offering insights into how global narratives, power dynamics, and situated cultural interpretations dynamically converge in shaping place perception in the digital age.


Keywords


International communication; Place branding; Cross-cultural understanding; Mediatization; Cultural studies; Power representation

Full Text:

PDF

References


Ahmed, S. (2000). Strange encounters: Embodied others in post-coloniality. Routledge.

Ahmed, S. (2004). The cultural politics of emotion. Routledge.

Amin, A., & Thrift, N. (2002). Cities: Reimagining the urban. Polity Press.

Anholt, S. (2007). Competitive identity: The new brand management for nations, cities and regions. Palgrave Macmillan.

Ashworth, G. J., & Voogt, H. (1990). Can places be sold for tourism? In G. Ashworth & B. Goodall (Eds.), Marketing tourism places (pp. 1-16). Routledge.

Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative analysis. Sage Publications.

Charmaz, K. (2014). Constructing grounded theory (2nd ed.). Sage Publications.

Chongqing Municipal People’s Government. (2021). 重庆市国民经济和社会发展第十四个五年规划和二〇三五年远景目标纲要 [Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development of Chongqing Municipality and Vision for 2035]. https://www.ndrc.gov.cn/fggz/fzzlgh/dffzgh/202106/P020210617666449412183.pdf

Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. (2015). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (4th ed.). Sage Publications.

Couldry, N. (2000). The place of media power: Pilgrims and witnesses of the media age. Routledge.

Csaba, F. (2007). Interkulturelle Kommunikation. Positionen zu Forschungsfragen, Methoden und Perspektiven [Intercultural communication: Positions on research questions, methods and perspectives]. Universitätsverlag, Veszprém / Edition Praesens.

Eurasian Rail Alliance Index. (2023, March 9). Researchers from the National Research Center: Over 62,000 China-Europe trains have been launched in 12 years, accounting for 9% of the total trade between China and Europe. Retrieved October 26, 2023, from https://index1520.com/cn/news/uchenyy-natsionalnogo-issledovatelskogo-tsentra-za-12-let-bylo-zapushcheno-bolee-62-000-poezdov-kita/

Federal Foreign Office of Germany. (2023, March 9). Germany and China: Bilateral relations. Retrieved October 26, 2023, from https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/service/laender/china-node/bilateral/200472

Federal Statistical Office of Germany. (2023, March 9). The People’s Republic of China becomes Germany’s most important trading partner again. Retrieved October 26, 2023, from https://www.destatis.de/EN/Press/2024/02/PE24_056_51.html

Fortner, R. S. (1993). International communication: History, conflict, and control of the global metropolis. Wadsworth Publishing Company.

Govers, R., & Go, F. M. (2009). Place branding: Glocal, virtual and physical identities, constructed, imagined and experienced. Palgrave Macmillan.

Greta, B. (2023, March 9). TikTok 2022: Key Data and Statistics from Germany and the World. Retrieved October 26, 2023, from https://blog.digimind.com/de/tiktok-2022-kennzahlen-und-statistiken-aus-deutschland-und-der-welt

Hall, E. T. (1976). Beyond culture. Anchor Books.

Hall, S. (1980). Encoding/decoding. In S. Hall, D. Hobson, A. Lowe, & P. Willis (Eds.), Culture, media, language (pp. 128-138). Hutchinson.

Hall, S. (Ed.). (1997). Representation: Cultural representations and signifying practices. Sage.

Hans-Jürgen, L. (2005). Interkulturelle Kommunikation. Interaktion, Fremdwahrnehmung, Kulturtransfer [Intercultural communication: Interaction, perception of others, cultural transfer]. Metzler.

Hjarvard, S. (2008). The mediatization of religion: A theory of the media as agents of religious change. Northern Lights: Film & Media Studies Yearbook, 6(1), 19-35.

Hochschild, A. R. (1983). The managed heart: Commercialization of human feeling. University of California Press.

Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations (2nd ed.). Sage Publications.

Huang, L. (2020). 5G视觉传播时代城市形象传播的范式转型 [The paradigm shift of city image communication in the 5G visual communication era]. 四川轻化工大学学报(社会科学版) [Journal of Sichuan University of Science & Engineering (Social Sciences Edition)], 35(6), 84-100.

Huntington, S. P. (2010). The clash of civilizations and the remaking of world order (Zhou Qi et al., Trans.). Xinhua Publishing House. (Original work published 1996)

Ingold, T. (2000). The perception of the environment: Essays on livelihood, dwelling and skill. Routledge.

Kavaratzis, M. (2004). From city marketing to city branding: Towards a theoretical framework for developing city brands. Place Branding, 1(1), 58–73.

Kress, G., & van Leeuwen, T. (1996). Reading images: The grammar of visual design. Routledge.

Krippendorff, K. (2020). Content analysis: An introduction to its methodology (4th ed.). Sage Publications.

Lefebvre, H. (1991). The production of space (D. Nicholson-Smith, Trans.). Blackwell. (Original work published 1974)

Lury, C., & Lash, S. (2007). Global culture industry: The mediation of things. Polity Press.

Lynch, K. (1960). The image of the city. The M.I.T. Press.

Marks, L. U. (2000). The skin of the film: Intercultural cinema, embodiment, and the senses. Duke University Press.

Massey, D. (2005). For space. Sage.

Massumi, B. (2002). Parables for the virtual: Movement, affect, sensation. Duke University Press.

Merleau-Ponty, M. (1962). Phenomenology of perception (C. Smith, Trans.). Routledge & Kegan Paul.

Nisbett, R. E. (2003). The geography of thought: How Asians and Westerners think differently...and why. Free Press.

Oberg, K. (1960). Culture shock: Adjustment to new cultural environments. Practical Anthropology, 7(4), 177–182.

Pickering, M. (2001). Stereotyping: The politics of representation. Palgrave Macmillan.

Pink, S. (2009). Doing sensory ethnography. Sage.

Pratt, M. L. (1991). Arts of the contact zone. Profession, 33–40.

Relph, E. (1976). Place and placelessness. Pion.

Rose, G. (2016). Visual methodologies: An introduction to researching with visual materials (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.

Said, E. W. (1978). Orientalism. Pantheon Books.

Sheller, M. (2004). Mobile publics: Beyond the network perspective. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 22(1), 39–52.

Thrift, N. (2004). Intensities of feeling: Towards a spatial politics of affect. Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography, 86(1), 57–78. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0435-3684.2004.00154.x

Thussu, D. K. (2006). International communication: Continuity and change. Hodder Education.

Tuan, Y.-F. (1977). Space and place: The perspective of experience. University of Minnesota Press.

Wang, R. (2021). 多元“他者”视域下的重庆城市形象呈现 [The presentation of Chongqing’s city image from diverse “Other” perspectives]. 重庆邮电大学学报(社会科学版) [Journal of Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications (Social Science Edition)], 33(3), 152-158.

Wang, Y. (2017). 后语言哲学“三观”理论在视频传播中的运用——以重庆市旅游宣传片为例 [Application of post-linguistic philosophy’s “three perspectives” theory in video communication: Taking Chongqing tourism promotional videos as an example]. 南通大学学报(社会科学版) [Journal of Nantong University (Social Sciences Edition)], 33(6), 144-149.

Yang, H. (2020). 西方主流媒体涉华城市影像的符号表征转向——基于美国广播公司系列纪录片的考察 [The Representation of Chinese Urban Image in the Western Mainstream Media — Based on the American Broadcasting Company’s Documentary Series]. 重庆师范大学学报(社会科学版) [Journal of Chongqing Normal University (Edition of Social Sciences)], 40(2), 106-112.

Zhang, L., & Zhao, S. X. (2019). City branding and the Olympic effect: A case study of Beijing. Cities, 84, 21-30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2018.09.005




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/13802

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2025 Cross-Cultural Communication

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.


Share us to:   


Remind

We are currently accepting submissions via email only.

The registration and online submission functions have been disabled.

Please send your manuscripts to ccc@cscanada.net,or  ccc@cscanada.org  for consideration. We look forward to receiving your work.

 

 Articles published in Cross-Cultural Communication are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY).

 CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION Editorial Office

Address: 1055 Rue Lucien-L'Allier, Unit #772, Montreal, QC H3G 3C4, Canada.
Telephone: 1-514-558 6138 
Website: Http://www.cscanada.net; Http://www.cscanada.org 
E-mail:caooc@hotmail.com; office@cscanada.net

Copyright © Canadian Academy of Oriental and Occidental Culture