Akhfin RahardhiyantoElinda Fariz

Naimy Zam ZamSarrah Ulfah

Silva Citra Dewi

We could make difference between 2 types of study:

1.Those who focuse on comparing the value, priority and orientation based on each typical of culture

2.Those who focuse on on actual communication.

American and British cultures are taken as typical examples of low-context cultures. Hutching and Weir(2007) said that they remark that Arabs consider their word of honor as binding and there is no need formal wirtten contexts.

No. Five Dimensions Arab British-Americans

1 Power distance

Accepts hierarchical ranking and privileges

2 Individualism vs. Collectivism Collectivist Highly individualistic

3 Masculinity vs. Femininity

4 Uncertainty avoidance Lower tolerance of uncertainty

Higher tolerance of uncertainty

5 Long-term orientation vs. Short-term orientation

Emphasizes birth and rank

Focuses on activity and achievement

Hofstede’s framework for the comparison of culturesNo Five Dimensions Arab

British-Americans

1 Power distance

Accepts hierarchical ranking and

privileges

2Individualism vs.

CollectivismCollectivist Highly

individualistic

3Masculinity vs.

Femininity

4Uncertainty avoidance

Lower tolerance of uncertainty

Higher tolerance of uncertainty

5Long-term

orientation vs. Short-term orientation

Emphasizes birth and

rank

Focuses on activity and

achievement

The notion of face and honor is crucial for an understanding of Arab

culture.

“Losing face is the ultimate disgrace, and

an Arab will go to almost any length to avoid it.”

Ex: Arabs rarely say either yes or no, they are

more likely to ignore something they disagree with, then openly reject

or criticize it.

Politeness issues differences in positive & negative politeness:

In terms of offering British prefers positive politeness while Arab favors negative politenessEx: in British when they offer food they’ll say “would you like another piece of cake?” while Moroccan would forcefully give more food and wouldn’t take no for an answer.

In terms of written communicationEx: in job application letters, Arabic speakers use less negative politeness and more positive politeness (using compliments and appeal for pity).

In terms of compliments Arabic-speaking communities use more formulas than Americans in compliments.Ex: similar formulas that exist in two languages used with different speaking actions (English thank god and Arabic hamdu lillah)

Another source of misunderstanding may be

the subjects of conversation chosen by the participants

in an Anglo-Arab interaction.

The Arabic speakers differed significantly from

the Americans in their judgments of what points

could appropriately be talked about discussionsof

age, money, recreation, weather, travel, and

themselves.

Non-linguistic parameters such as gestures, eye contact, and personal space may also have impact on

interlocutor’s perceptions of one another.

Researcher found that the Arabs confronted each other more directly than the Americans, sat closer to each

other, and looked each other more squarely in the eye.

About personal space, may this space will be different between friends and between strangers. Norms for

personal space clearly vary depending on whether the interlocutors are the same or the opposite sex

About eye contact, Wunderle (2007) advising intercultural negotiators,

maintains that Arab use more eye contact than their American counterparts, but US Department Of Justice document (n.d.) for police training warns that in Arab culture it is disrespectful to maintain

direct consistent eye contact.

Here too, it is probably necessary to distinguish situations involving different

sexes from same sex interactions

Participants in an intercultural exchange

cannot be assumed that they maintain the

communication patterns they habitually use with

their compatriots.

Arabic speakers prefer to express disagreements indirectly when talking

among themselves.

Discussion of intercultural interaction often seems to

focus on the productive side of interaction, advising

participants on how to talk to other. Americans need

not only to know how to be polite when speaking to Arabs,and to be able to

interpret the Arabs.

Family ValuesMeeting Etiquette

Gift Giving EtiquetteDining EtiquetteTable manners

Business Meeting EtiquetteBusiness Negotiating

Dress EtiquetteBusiness Card

In the literature on Anglo-Arab In the literature on Anglo-Arab communication that the key to communication that the key to successful intercultural successful intercultural communicationis knowledge of the communicationis knowledge of the others’ culture. So often learning to others’ culture. So often learning to interact with members of another interact with members of another culture seems to be equaled with culture seems to be equaled with learning about this culture.learning about this culture.

There are number of problems with this assumption, and we would agree with Shi-Xu and Wilson’s remark that “more linguistic and cultural knowledge is not a necessary, not even a sufficient, condition for the success of intercultural communication”.

First, there is the danger that provision of detailed information about the other may full interactants into a false sense of security. And this is definitely a situation where a little knowledge maybe a dangerous thing. A misused formula, a misleading gesture, or a misinterpreted remark may sometimes have far more serious consequences that a simple admission of ignorance.

Another danger is the Western people who already judge Arabs in stereotype.

And so, we would agree that studies of Anglo-Arab intercultural communication need to address not merely the norms of such communication.

Obstacle in Anglo-Arab InteractionObstacle in Anglo-Arab Interaction

There is a big differences between Arabian people and Moslem people especially in culture

Arab culture refers to the culture in the countries in which the official language is Arabic (although the Arabic language in some of them is the language of minority), and the west officials and scholars used to call them "Arab countries" of Western Asia and North Africa, from Morocco to the Arabian Sea.

Arab, is one of the region that have numbers of different local signal