This study sought to probe and explain the causes and sources of failure or lack of success in intercultural communication. Thus, the researchers selected one hundred (100) participants to take part in this study. 20 participants out of 100 took part in the interview session willingly. The participants were all English language teachers from Golestan province, Iran. The researchers used the ICC questionnaire and structured interview to collect the required data. To analyze the data, the researchers used the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test and inductive content analysis. The results revealed that miscellaneous factors could cause failure among which linguistic, cultural, and emotional factors are the most important agents in failing intercultural communications. In fact, linguistic, emotional, and cultural factors are the three macro-sources that cause failure in intercultural communications. Each of these macro-sources has its sub-sets and micro-sources such as language proficiency, sociocultural knowledge, motivation, etc. In the meantime, context and the interlocutor are other factors that affect these three macro-sources and they should be taken into account. This study is of high importance for intercultural experts, psychologists, and international students to be able to find the roots of intercultural hurdles easily and eradicate them. Manuscript profile

In recent years, the issue of plagiarism has received a lot of attention from the academic world. However, few studies have been conducted in the area of detecting why students will be drawn into such a hateful action. The factors that overtly or covertly contribute to the growth of plagiarism among graduate TEFL students in Iran were investigated in this study. In order to accomplish this, the researchers conducted a semi-structured interview with 20 graduate students studying English language teaching to ascertain their perceptions of the underlying causes of plagiarism. Based on the data collected from the content analysis procedure, the main causes of plagiarism among TEFL students include ‘low English proficiency’, ‘lack of time’, ‘lack of support from the instructor’, ‘lack of interest in the topic, ‘laziness or a lack of motivation’, and ‘the use of science as a market for money making. The current study is of high significance since it has vital implications for academics teaching in higher education, TEFL university students, curriculum developers, and EAP/ESP specialists. Manuscript profile