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• Cultural diversity in and of itself is important
• Effective communication and understanding also
-With business partners and service providers
-In our personal lives also
• Adapting with others is not necessarily easy
• Rules exist to communication: Implicit or Explicit
• Implicit: Suggested though not directly expressed
• Explicit: Stated directly, clearly and in detail, leaving no room for confusion or doubt
• Communication: Imparting or exchanging of information by speaking, writing, or using some other medium
• Implicit Communication: Use of facial expressions, body language, gestures, postures or vocal qualities to help get a message across
• Explicit Communication: “Do this!”, “Do that!”
• A helpful framework to intercultural communication
→ High and Low Context Cultures
• First discussed by Edward T. Hall
• No culture is completely high-context or low-context
• One in which the rules of communication are primarily transmitted through the use of contextual elements and are not explicitly stated
• Usually people will tend to have close relationships that last for an extended period of time
• Members know what the rules are, how to think, and how to behave
• Primarily use non-verbal methods to relay meaningful information in conversations, such as facial expressions, eye movement, and tone of voice
• The situation, people, and non-verbal elements are more important than the actual words that are communicated
• People are comfortable standing close to each other
• The preferred way of solving problems and learning is in groups
• Members of the culture place emphasis on interpersonal relationships
• Trust must be developed before business transactions can begin
• Japan and other countries located in Asia
• Brazil and other countries located in South America
• African tribal groups and most countries located in Africa
• A majority of the Middle East, including Iraq and Iran
• France, Spain and more
• In which information is communicated primarily through language and rules are explicitly spelled out
• Individual achievements are valued higher than group accomplishments
• Privacy and having a personal space are valued
• Less skilled at interpreting unspoken messages, as they are used to a more direct style of communication
• Importance on punctuality and schedules (Mono-chronic)
• “To the point” and tend to want to directly express wants, needs and expectations, and presume others will do the same
• They value efficiency and want to always do things in the most organized and practical manner
• The United States of America
• Canada
• Germany
• Switzerland
• Australia and more
=> Misunderstandings generally occur when exchanging information
-Impression of a lack of information for low-context culture individuals
-Large amount of information is provided in a non-verbal manner
Low-Context Culture
• Be straightforward
Don't beat around the bush
• Be careful of certain bad habits
Be organized and take precautions to be punctual
• Be conscious of the things you say
Don't expect the other party to figure things out
• Make implicit messages explicit
Don't rely on the context to give meaning to what you have to say
High-Context Culture
• Be patient
A business lunch can sometimes even turn into a dinner
• Be conscious of your body language
Non-verbal cues are much more important than we might think in intercultural communication
• Engage in small talk
Take the time to build trust
• Don’t make implicit messages explicit
Rarely necessary to make implicit messages, that can be understood by context or common sense, explicit
• Use a flexible approach
Employee from a high-context culture and a clueless manager
Summary
Case 1: Good things were being said but didn't match the body language
Case 2: Good things were implied but nothing was even said
Case 3: Good things were said and the body language was matching the content
If you're dealing with someone:
Conclusion
• Communicating with everyone the same way is a sure-fire way to fail at communication
• Understanding the afore-mentioned framework can help improve communication
• Application is bi-faceted
• “…We are one big planet. A world somewhat divided, but we’re one… we are one!”