Module III:

Cross cultural communication

1.Characteristics of culture
2.Social differences
3.Contextual differences
4.Nonverbal differences
5.Ethnocentrism
Presented By:
Roll no- 21 to 30
MBA G- IV
Batch 2007-09

Amity Business School

Amity University Lucknow Campus
 Culture

Values and perspectives shared by people

who are "conditioned by similar education
and life experience" .
Regional: country, area, community
Religious: sects, variations, etc.. .
Corporate: industry, company,
department
Other groups: schools, clubs, etc
 Dimensions of Culture
1. Relationships – importance of building relationships
versus completing a job
2. Time – importance of personal relationships versus
adherence to schedules
3. Communication – ways the society communicates,
including gestures
4. Hierarchy – perception of rank in relationship to others
and ways of interacting
5. Status Attainment – importance of personal achievement
and sense of wellbeing
6. Space/Proxemics – the amount of space needed for
comfort in business and personal environments
7. Group Dependence – importance of the individual versus
the group in social and business situations
8. Diversity Receptivity – how roles, power, and authority
are associated with gender, race, religion, and country of
origin
9. Change Tolerance – responses to change, the need for
Characteristics of Culture
 Culture is learned
 Culture is unconscious
 Culture is shared
 Culture is integrated
 Culture is Symbolic
 Culture is a way of life
 Culture is Dynamic
 Culture is Relative
 Culture is learned
How do we learn our culture?
Culture is unconscious
Culture is shared
Should everyone Culture is Relative
use a deodorant?
USA 89%
French Canada 81%
English Canada 77%
United Kingdom 71%
Italy 69%
France 59%
Australia 25%
Such findings signal that Canadian values, ideas, and attitudes
should not be relied upon when planning marketing forays into
foreign consumer markets
Culture is Symbolic
Cross-Cultural Communication
 Communication and Culture
All communication is cultural -- it
draws on ways we have learned to
speak and give nonverbal messages

Communication is the process of

transmitting information and
between two or more people.

Technically speaking,
communication is successful only
when mutual understanding results,
that is, when one transmits
information and makes oneself
clear by others.
 What do you see?

Possible Interpretations:

• Prayer before a meal.

• People thinking hard to solve a problem.
• Difficult conversation.
• A meeting about to begin.
• A family that has just received a sad letter.
• A meeting. Two women on the left are talking on the side about a mobile
phone.
• The person on the left just bought some bread and is offering a piece to
everybody.
• People looking for a solution to some problem. The guy on the left is hiding the
important evidence and showing something unimportant to the others.
• The man in the middle presides over the debate. One guy is not involved.
• A religious ritual.
 THE COMMUNUICATION PROCESS

Idea: The message to be communicated by the sender is

identified.
Encoding: The appropriate words and symbols required to effectively
communicate the message are identified

Channel: The appropriate channel(s) of communication transmission-

written, verbal, or nonverbal-is(are) identified.

Receiving: The receiver reads, hears, or sees the message.

Decoding: The receiver tries to understand the message.

Action: Receiver acts on the message (either on the basis of an

understanding of the message as intended, or a misunderstanding).
 Common Cultural Differences

• Perception of Time and Space

• Fate and Personal Responsibility

• Importance of Face

• Nonverbal Communication
Perception of Time and Space

Time

• Monochromic(west)
• Polychromic(East)

Space -- differences in comfortable

distance between people
Fate and Personal Responsibility

Extent to which we feel ourselves

to be the masters of our lives

Extent to which we see ourselves

as subject to things outside our
control
Face and Face-Saving

Face is the standing a person has in

the eyes of others

The importance of “face” and

face-saving varies across cultures

• Some cultures value “face” more

than their own well-being

• Other cultures do not care about

face all that much
Nonverbal Communication

Low-context cultures -- place

relatively less emphasis on
nonverbal cues. Meaning is
encoded in the verbal
code, words are trusted

High-context cultures --
place relatively more
emphasis on nonverbal cues,
meaning is gleaned from the
physical, social, and psychological
contexts.
Ethnocentrism

Ethnocentrism is the tendency to look at

the world primarily from the perspective of
one's own culture.

Ethnocentrism often entails the belief that

one's own race or ethnic group is the most
important and/or that some or all aspects of
its culture are superior to those of other
groups.
Ex- Afrocentrism
Americentrism
Eurocentrism
Indocentrism
Stereotyping

“Pictures in our heads”

A cognitive representation of a group of people

that does not allow for individual difference and
influence one’s feeling about that group.

For example if we believe that most Asian

people cannot speak English and that they
cannot
understand you; you might adjust your
communication when communicating with them
or avoid
them altogether.
Individualism vs Collectivism

• Individuals are concerned about consequences of

action for themselves, not others
• Collectivists primarily view themselves as
members of groups.
• Individualist organizations tend to specify
individual positions, have detailed job descriptions,
listing duties and responsibilities, whereas
collectivist specify people by the group, describe
tasks, responsibilities and reporting relationships in
collective terms.
Uncertainty Avoidance

•The degree to which members of a culture feel threatened by

unpredictable, uncertain or unknown situations .
•High uncertainty leaders will structure the work of their
subordinates, possibly through bureaucracy, and will make
decisions to enhance stability.
•People from high uncertainty cultures expect all procedures to be
clearly defined and their roles and tasks clearly defined and would,
for the most, expect one way communication (downward).
•Low uncertainty cultures see uncertainty as a normal part of life
and each day is accepted as it comes. People are comfortable with
ambiguity and guided by the belief that what is different is curious.
Power Distance

•Power distance refers to how a society feels about hierarchy and

inequality of status.
•The extent to which members of a culture except and accept that
power is unequally distributed.
•High power distance employees tend to look to their superiors for
guidance. High power distance depends on hierarchy and distinct
levels of power
•In low power distance cultures there is limited dependence of
employees on managers and there is a preference for
consultation.
Reason for cultural
differences
 Reason For Common Cultural
Differences

Geographic Age
Region

THE INDIVIDUAL
Physical Nationality
Differences

Race/Ethnic Group Sexual Orientation

Primary & Secondary
Dimensions of Diversity
 Primary dimensions are aspects of ourselves that we
cannot change. They are things people know about
us before we even open our mouths, because they
are physically visible (except sexual orientation).
When people feel they are being stereotyped based
on primary dimension, they can be very sensitive
about it.

 Secondary dimensions are elements we have some

power to change. People are less sensitive about
secondary dimensions. We also have the choice of
whether to disclose this information or not; we can
conceal these characteristics.
Primary & Secondary Dimensions of Diversity
Work
Background

Geographic
Income Sexual Location
Orientation

Race Ethnicity
Parental Marital
Status Gender Age Status

Physical
Qualities Military
Education
Experience

Religious Beliefs
 PATH OF INTERCULTURAL LEARNING

Multiculturation

Selective Adoption

Appreciation/Valuing

Acceptance/Respect

Understanding
Awareness
Ethnocentricity

Hoopes
 Individual’s Path to Cultural
Competency
Ethnocentricity – This is a state of relying on our own,
and only our own, paradigms based on our cultural
heritage. We view the world through narrow filters, and
we will only accept information that fits our paradigms.
We resist and/or discard others.
Awareness – This is the point at which we begin to
realize that there are things that exist which fall outside
the realm of our cultural paradigms.
Understanding- This is the point at which we are not only
aware that there are things that fall outside our cultural
paradigms, but we see the reason for their existence.
 Individual’s Path to Cultural
Competency
Acceptance/Respect - This is when we begin allowing
those from other cultures to just be who they are, and
that it is OKAY for things to not always fit into our
paradigms.
Appreciation/Value- This is the point where we begin
seeing the worth in the things that fall outside our own
cultural paradigms.
Selective Adoption - This is the point at which, we
begin using things that were initially outside our own
cultural paradigms.
Multiculturation- This is when we have begun
integrating our lives with our experiences from a
variety of cultural experiences.
 holding culture in high
esteem
How to gain Cultural Cultural
Proficiency
Competency
Cultural is characterized
by acceptance of
Competence and respect for
differences

Cultural Pre- implies movement towards reaching

Competence out to other cultures and attempts to
improve that relationship with a
specific population.

Cultural This system suffers from a deficit of

Blindness information and often lack the avenues
through which they can obtain needed
information.

Cultural occurs when agencies do not intentionally seek to be culturally

Incapacity destructive, but rather have no capacity to help people from other
cultures. This system remains extremely biased, and believes in the
superiority of the dominant group. It assumes a paternal posture towards
“lesser” groups.
Cultural
is the most negative. It is the attitudes, policies, and practices that are destructive to
Destructiveness cultures and the individuals within these cultures. A system that adheres to a
destructive extreme assumes that one race or culture is superior.
 Ways to Facilitate
Communication Across Cultural
Boundaries
1. Recognize differences
2. Build Your Self-Awareness
3. Describe and Identify, then Interpret
4. Don’t assume your interpretation is
correct
5. Verbalize your own non-verbal signs
6. Share your experience honestly
7. Acknowledge any discomfort,
hesitation, or concern
8. Practice politically correct
communication
9.Give your time and attention when
communicating
10.Don’t evaluate or judge
11.Avoid ethnocentrism
12.Look beyond stereotypes
13.Seek common ground
Finally……..3 R’s of culture-
Some
definitions……
…
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype
The ability to be
Sexism open to learning
Multiculturalism
Cultural Sensitivity about and
Ethnicity
Racism accepting of
Race
Internalized Oppression different cultural
Discrimination
Heterosexism
groups.
Culture

Cultural Sensitivity
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype A belief that racial differences
Sexism produce an inherent superiority
Multiculturalism of a particular race.
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity
Racism
Race
Internalized Oppression
Discrimination
Heterosexism
Culture

Racism
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype A generalization of
Sexism
Multiculturalism
characteristics that is applied
Cultural Sensitivity to all members of a cultural
Ethnicity group.
Racism
Race
Internalized Oppression
Discrimination
Heterosexism
Culture

Stereotype
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype A subconscious belief in
Sexism negative stereotypes
Multiculturalism about one’s group that
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity results in an attempt to
Racism fulfill those stereotypes
Race and a projection of those
Internalized Oppression
Discrimination stereotypes onto other
Heterosexism members of that group.
Culture

Internalized
oppression
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype A belief in the
Sexism
Multiculturalism inherent superiority
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity of one pattern of
Racism
Race
loving over all and
Internalized Oppression thereby the right to
Discrimination
Heterosexism dominance.
Culture

Heterosexism
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism To make a
Stereotype
Sexism difference in
Multiculturalism
Cultural Sensitivity treatment on a
Ethnicity
Racism
basis other than
Race
Internalized Oppression
individual
Discrimination character.
Heterosexism
Culture

Discrimination
Prejudice The recognition and
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype acknowledgement that
Sexism society is pluralistic. In
Multiculturalism
Cultural Sensitivity addition to the dominant
Ethnicity
Racism
cultural, there exists many
Race other cultures based around
Internalized Oppression
Discrimination
ethnicity, sexual orientation,
Heterosexism geography, religion, gender,
Culture
and class.

Multiculturalism
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype
Sexism
An attitude, opinion, or
Multiculturalism feeling formed without
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity adequate prior
Racism
Race knowledge, thought,
Internalized Oppression
Discrimination
or reason.
Heterosexism
Culture

Prejudice
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype The belief in the
Sexism
Multiculturalism inherent superiority
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity of one sex (gender)
Racism
Race
over the other and
Internalized Oppression thereby the right to
Discrimination
Heterosexism dominance.
Culture

Sexism
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism A body of learned
Stereotype
Sexism beliefs, traditions,
Multiculturalism
Cultural Sensitivity
principles, and guides
Ethnicity for behavior that are
Racism
Race shared among
Internalized Oppression
Discrimination members of a
Heterosexism
Culture particular group.

Culture
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype
Sexism
To judge other cultures by
Multiculturalism the standards of one’s own,
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity
and beyond that, to see
Racism one’s own standards as the
Race
Internalized Oppression true universal and the other
Discrimination culture in a negative way.
Heterosexism
Culture

Ethnocentrism
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype
Sexism
Multiculturalism
As a biological concept, it
Cultural Sensitivity defines groups of people
Ethnicity
Racism based on a set of
Race
Internalized Oppression genetically transmitted
Discrimination
Heterosexism
characteristics.
Culture

race
Prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Stereotype Sharing a strong
Sexism
Multiculturalism sense of identity
Cultural Sensitivity
Ethnicity with a particular
Racism
Race
religious, racial, or
Internalized Oppression national group.
Discrimination
Heterosexism
Culture

Ethnicity