Guide to Cross-Cultural Communication (Paperback)
by Sana Reynolds, Deborah Valentine
Paperback: 160 pages
Publisher: Prentice Hall; 1st edition (June 19, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN: 0130497843
Product Dimensions: 8.0 x 6.3 x 0.4 inches
About the Book
The goal of this book is to help busy professionals communicate across cultures by promoting cross-cultural understanding and fostering communication with foreign-born employees or employers. Brief, practical, and reader-friendly, it provides new insights on cultural requirements not taught in sales training manuals. Guide to Cross-Cultural Communication is a handy reference with information pertinent to negotiations, business writing, and speaking with those from diverse cultural backgrounds, with business-related examples throughout. Essential reading for those interested in understanding and improving intercultural communication both inside and outside their organizations; especially managers, executives, and other business professionals who must communicate in an increasingly multicultural workplace.
Inside the Book
We begin with an introduction which defines culture, discusses the relationship between culture and communication, and explores the various ways culture affects values, attitudes, and behavior.
Part I: Understanding Cultures (Chapters I-IV)
The four chapters in Part I summarize the research on what differentiates cultures.
I. Relationships: Individual or Collective? Some cultures value the group and harmony over the individual and personal competitiveness, and stress relationships rather than actual transactions. Knowing about these differences can help you establish successful intercultural partnerships.
II. Social Framework: High Context or Low Context? Some cultures require explicit, content-rich, direct statements when communicating; others rely on an indirect, implicit, unspoken (but generally understood) and accepted context. Learn where particular cultures fall on the high context/low context continuum and how to tailor your communication to meet cultural needs.
III. Time: Linear, Flexible, or Cyclical? The view of time itself differs vastly among world cultures. In the U.S. business culture, time is defined as a linear and precious commodity to be used, not wasted; other cultures see time as circular, repetitive, fluid, and subordinate to people and relationships. In this chapter, you'll discover how to recognize these different attitudes toward time and communicate your organization's expectations as they relate to on-time delivery and other time-related issues.
IV Power: Hierarchical or Democratic? Many world cultures view the organization of companies differently from the power-sharing, flat structures of most U.S. businesses. We'll examine ways to establish effective business presence when communicating across hierarchical and democratic power structures.
Part II: Communicating Across Cultures (Chapters V-VIII)
Part II will help you apply what you've learned about cross-cultural differences by discussing how to write, speak, and negotiate in different cultures.
V. Using Language: Even when everyone in a meeting speaks English, misunderstandings occur because of semantics, connotations, idiomatic expressions, industry jargon, and untranslatable slang expressions. This chapter discusses how the major international cultural groups use language differently and how these differences can have a profound impact on your bottom line.
VI. Writing: Because miscommunication can be especially potent and long-lasting when written, we provide guidelines for developing sensitive cross-cultural writing skills. This chapter addresses the slippery issues of acceptable formats and tone.
VII. Communicating Nonverbally: The cultures of the world communicate by more than language. In fact, experts believe that 85 percent of all communication is nonverbal. In this chapter, you'll learn what constitutes effective eye contact, body language, personal space, and use of silence.
VIII. Negotiating: Cultures vary in their interpretation of business agreements and contracts. Some value specific and detailed written contracts; others prefer to conduct business through verbal agreements and view legal contracts with distrust. This chapter provides guidance on how negotiating techniques and legal concepts affect communication, and discusses ways to establish credibility.
The book ends with a conclusion, a cultural questionnaire to develop personal awareness, a bibliography listing the sources that shaped the academic and research backdrop for our discussions, and suggested readings and films for your continuing growth in effective cross-cultural communication.
Throughout the book, we use proverbs to illustrate major points. Proverbs reveal the wisdom and character of a people, or, as they say in Sweden, "A proverb says what a culture thinks." We also introduce each chapter with a set of proverbs that crystalizes the different cultural characteristics covered in that chapter.
