CROSS-CULTURAL CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATIONCOMMUNICATION

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LEARNING OBJECTIVESLEARNING OBJECTIVES To define and demonstrate the effect of culture’s various

dimensions on business.

To examine ways in which cultural knowledge can be acquired and

individuals and organizations prepared for cross-cultural

interaction.

To illustrate ways in which cultural risk poses a challenge to the

effective conduct of business communications and transactions.

To suggest ways in which businesses act as change agents in the

diverse cultural environments in which they operate. 2

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EXPANDING OPERATIONS EXPANDING OPERATIONS ACROSS BORDERSACROSS BORDERS

Two distinct tasks emerge:

To understand cultural

differences and the ways they

manifest themselves

To determine similarities across

cultures and exploit them in

strategy formulation

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CULTURE DEFINEDCULTURE DEFINED

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Culture is an integratedCulture is an integrated system of learned system of learned

behavior patterns that arebehavior patterns that are characteristic of the characteristic of the

members of any givenmembers of any given society. society.

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CHARACTERISTICS OF CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURECULTURE

Culture is learned, shared, and transmitted from one

generation to the next.

Culture can be passed from parents to children, by social

organizations, special interest groups, the government,

schools, and churches.

Culture is multidimensional, consisting of a number of

common elements that are interdependent.

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ACCULTURATIONACCULTURATION

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Acculturation is theAcculturation is the process of adjusting andprocess of adjusting and adapting to a specific adapting to a specific

culture other than one’sculture other than one’s own. It is one of the keysown. It is one of the keys

to success in internationalto success in international operations.operations.

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HIGH-VERSUS LOW-CONTEXT HIGH-VERSUS LOW-CONTEXT CULTURECULTURE

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context is at least as important

as what is actually said

what is not being said can

carry more meaning than what

is said

focuses on group development

Japan and Saudi Arabia are

examples

most of the information is

contained explicitly in words

what is said is more important

that what is not said

focuses on individual

development

The U.S. is an example

High-context CultureHigh-context Culture Low-context CultureLow-context Culture

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CHANGE AGENTSCHANGE AGENTS By introducing new products, services, ideas and practices,

an international business entity becomes a change agent.

this may shift consumption from one product or services

to another, or

it may lead to massive social change.

Many governments take action to protect their culture-

specific industries.

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CULTURAL UNIVERSALSCULTURAL UNIVERSALS

Cultural universals are manifestations of the total way of

life of any group of people.

These include elements such as bodily adornment,

courtship rituals, etiquette, concept of family, gestures,

joking, mealtime customs, music, personal names, status

differentiation, and trade customs.

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ELEMENTS OF CULTUREELEMENTS OF CULTURE

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THE FOUR ROLES OF THE FOUR ROLES OF LANGUAGELANGUAGE

Language aids in information gathering and evaluation.

Language provides access to local society.

Language capability is increasingly important in company

communications.

Language provides more than the ability to communicate

because it extends beyond mechanics to the interpretation

of contexts that may influence business operations.

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NONVERBAL LANGUAGENONVERBAL LANGUAGEDistinctions must be made in five key topics:Distinctions must be made in five key topics:

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DOMINANT RELIGIONSDOMINANT RELIGIONS

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VALUES & ATTITUDESVALUES & ATTITUDES Values can be defined as a "broad tendency to prefer certain states of

affairs over others." Not everyone holds the same values. Values

may be classified into intellectual, economic, social, aesthetic, and

political categories

An attitude is a fairly stable evaluative tendency to respond

consistently to some specific object, situation, person, or category of

people. Attitudes are tendencies to respond to the target of the

attitude.

Belief + Value = Attitude à Behaviour.14

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MANNERS & CUSTOMSMANNERS & CUSTOMS Potential ways in which negotiators may not be

prepared:

the understanding of different ways of thinking

attention to the necessity to save face

knowledge and appreciation of the host country

recognition of the decision-making process and the

role of personal relations and personalities

the allocation of time for negotiations 15

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MATERIAL ELEMENTSMATERIAL ELEMENTS

Material culture refers to the results of technology and is

directly related to how a society organizes its economic

activity.

It is manifested in the availability and adequacy of the basic

economic, social, financial, and marketing infrastructure for

the international business in a market.

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AESTHETICSAESTHETICS

Good taste is expressed through

colors, form, and music.

The meanings of colors and

symbols vary from country to

country.

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EDUCATIONEDUCATION Education, either formal or informal,

plays a major role in the passing on and

sharing of culture.

International firms need to understand

the varying emphases on particular

skills and the overall level of education

provided.

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SOCIAL INSTITUTIONSOCIAL INSTITUTION

Social stratification is the division of a particular population

into classes.

Reference groups provide the values and attitudes that

influence behavior. Primary reference groups include the

family and coworkers.

Social organization determines the roles of managers and

subordinates and how they relate to each other.

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CULTURAL KNOWLEDGECULTURAL KNOWLEDGE Cultural knowledge can be defined by the way it is acquired:

objective or factual information is obtained through

communication, research, and education.

experiential knowledge can be acquired only by being

involved in a culture other than one’s own.

Interpretive knowledge is the ability to understand and fully

appreciate the nuances of different cultural traits and patterns.

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DIMENSIONS OF CULTUREDIMENSIONS OF CULTURE Differences in cultural lifestyle can be explained by:

individualism

power distance

uncertainty avoidance

Masculinity

Asian countries tend to have high uncertainty avoidance and low

masculinity.

Western countries tend to have low uncertainty avoidance and

high masculinity. 21

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SELF REFERENCE CRITERIONSELF REFERENCE CRITERIONSelf reference criterion is the unconscious reference to

one’s own cultural values and is the root of most international

business problems.

Suggestions to reduce cultural bias include:

Define the problem or goal in terms of domestic cultural traits,

habits, or norms.

Define the problem or goal in terms of the foreign cultural

traits, habits, or norms.

Isolate the self-reference criterion influence in the problem, and

examine it to see how it complicates the problem.22

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CROSS CULTURAL TRAININGCROSS CULTURAL TRAINING

Cultural training programs should include:

culture-specific information

general cultural information on values, practices, and

assumptions

self-specific information that identifies one’s own

cultural paradigm

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CROSS CULTURAL TRAINING CROSS CULTURAL TRAINING (CONT…)(CONT…)

Additional forms of training include:

mentoring

area studies programs

cultural assimilator programs, in which

trainees must respond to scenarios of

specific situations in a particular

country

sensitivity training

field experience24

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TIPS FOR MAKING CULTURE TIPS FOR MAKING CULTURE WORK FOR BUSINESS WORK FOR BUSINESS

SUCCESSSUCCESS

Embrace local culture

Build relationships

Employ locals to gain cultural knowledge

Help employees understand you

Adapt products and practices to local markets

Coordinate by region25

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EXAMPLE OF CROSS EXAMPLE OF CROSS CULTURE ISSUESCULTURE ISSUES

If difficulties or misunderstandings occur, consider the impact of

cultural differences

This example looks at resolving a misunderstanding between

health care workers. It highlights cultural differences in both non-

verbal communication and the social codes of conduct.

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Tina (originally from Malaysia): I have worked with a number of Fijians and sometimes I would touch their curly hair and tell them how nice and soft it feels. Then one day, I found out that in their culture, you’re not supposed to touch people on the head—only the chief can do that.

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THINK ABOUT HOW YOU THINK ABOUT HOW YOU MIGHT DEAL WITH THE ABOVE MIGHT DEAL WITH THE ABOVE

EXAMPLE…..EXAMPLE….. Identify the misunderstanding.

Try to understand the possible reasons/causes of the challenging

situation by consultation with the person/s themselves, relatives, co-

workers, supervisor, doctor and/or looking at resources for information

and possible explanations.

Develop and implement strategies to try to improve the situation.

Observe and describe the outcome of your strategies—i.e. the success or

failure of the strategies.

Share your expertise with your colleagues to prevent the same problem

happening again (e.g. inform your supervisor, other colleagues).27

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CASE STUDY ON CASE STUDY ON MCDONALD'S CROSS MCDONALD'S CROSS

CULTURE MANAGEMENTCULTURE MANAGEMENT

http://www.ukessays.com/essays/marketing/managing-

acrosscultures-case-study-on-mcdonalds-marketing-

essay.php

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