跨國族之間的互動缺乏國族文化內互動所可以高度依賴的共有的器物文化、制度文化、精神文化作為前提以及作為指涉的對象，參與互動的各方又或者沒有共同的或只有具大幅差異的符碼系統和符碼互動規範，以致於跨文化的互動因為高度、甚至極高度的不確定性而特別潛藏著誤解、失敗、衝突的危險。在面對複雜程度不同、和我們自己的糾葛程度不同的各種跨文化人際、組織和政府間接觸情境和在辦理跨文化國際教育事業時，對文化的本質和文化類型特徵的瞭解會提供我們可以一再重新回歸和重新把握的思考和判斷的原點。本論文嘗試經由1.文化的本質及其「統一性和歧異性」、「傳承性和變遷性」、「系統性和矛盾性」、「自我封閉性和對外開放性」等內在張力特徵，2.研究界對國族思維類型如「分析型思維（analysis） 或綜合型思維（synthesis） 」、「形象思維（imagination） 或抽象思維（abstraction）」、「直覺思維（intuition）或邏輯思維（logic）」、「系統思維（system） 或機變思維（situation）」以及對國族互動行為價值類型如「注重『互相依靠』或注重『獨立自主』」、「強調『群體成就』或重視『個人成就』」、「關注『委婉和顏面』或期待『誠實和直率』」、「追求『不拘束的親近』或要求『尊重隱私』」、「偏好『和諧』或贊成『競爭』」等文化類型傾向描述來演繹出有關跨文化國際教育的一些基本原則。
Cross-cultural interaction has the inherent nature of uncertainty due to a lack of shared cultural artifacts, systems, and beliefs as referents that intra-cultural interaction relies on, and different semiotic systems and communicative norms that participants draw on for interaction. This uncertainty of cross-cultural interaction can lead to danger of misunderstanding, failure, and conflict. Knowledge about the essence and characteristics of culture provides us with a foundation for understanding and judgment and helps us deal with cross-culturally inter-personal, inter-organizational, and inter-governmental affairs or support us in organizing cross-cultural international education projects. This study aims to deduce the principles of cross-cultural international education from (1) the essence and the inherent dynamics of culture-united and diverse, inheritable and changeable, systematic and contradictory, self-closed and embracive; and (2) the cultural thinking patterns-analysis or synthesis, imagination or abstraction, intuition or logic, system or situation, and the cultural value patterns for interaction--emphasizing interdependence or dependence, pursuing collective achievement or individual achievement, valuing face-saving and indirectness or honesty and frankness, highlighting unrestrained intimacy or respect of privacy, favoring harmony or competiveness.