Rory visits South America, and while he explores the cities he visits, he watches the locals and notices differences between them and people from his hometown, finding some of their practices odd or some even distasteful. He does not interact with anyone, believing it not worth his time to engage with people so different from him. Rory is following the “_____ approach” to intercultural encounters.

When using the "zoo approach" to interact with a different culture, the individual observes this new culture the same way they would observe animals in a zoo; everything is exotic, foreign, different, and the humans at the other side of the cage are normal and free while the animals are the ones who are locked in their ways. However, even though this approach can sometimes be positive and teach interesting information, it is a limited perspective.

Quoting the book "Ethics in intercultural and international Communication", by Fred L. Casmir: "One may discover amazing, interesting and valuable information by using such a perspective and even develop a real fondness for those exotic people, but miss the point that we are as culturally "caged" as others and that they are culturally as "free" as we are."