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Enhancing Cross-Cultural Communication: Understanding Cultural Variables and Overcoming Barriers

This chapter explores the importance of effective cross-cultural communication in management, discussing common barriers and cultural noise. It also provides guidelines for developing trust and discusses how education can help reduce barriers. Additionally, it covers various cultural variables that affect communication, such as attitudes, social organization, thought patterns, roles, nonverbal communication, language, time, and context. The chapter concludes with actionable strategies for improving intercultural communication competence, including appropriate follow-up actions and cultural sensitivity.

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Enhancing Cross-Cultural Communication: Understanding Cultural Variables and Overcoming Barriers

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  1. Chapter 5

  2. The Communication Process Cultural communications are deeper and more complex than spoken or written messages. The essence of effective cross-cultural communication has more to do with releasing the right responses than with sending the “right” messages. —Hall and Hall

  3. The Communication Process • Managers spend between 50% and 90% of their time talking to people • Managers communicate to: • Coordinate activities • Disseminate information • Motivate people • Negotiate future plans

  4. The Communication Process

  5. For discussion: • What are the most common barriers to communication between cultures?

  6. Cultural Noise • Cultural Noise – cultural variables that undermine the communication of intended meaning • Intercultural communication – when the member of one culture sends a message to a member of another culture • Attribution – the process in which people look for an explanation of another person’s behavior

  7. Cultural Noise

  8. Trust in Communication • Effective communication depends on informal understandings among individuals that are based upon trust • When there is trust between individuals an implicit understanding in communication is present

  9. Trust in Communication • Guidelines for developing trust • Create a clear and calculated basis for mutual benefit • Have realistic commitments and good intentions to honor them • Improve predictability: resolve conflicts and keep communication open • Develop mutual bonding through socializing and friendly contact

  10. For discussion • How can education help reduce or eliminate these barriers?

  11. Cultural Variables • Attitudes – ethnocentric and stereotypical attitudes are a particular source of noise in cross-cultural communication • Social Organization – nations, tribes, religious sects, or professions can influence our priorities and values • Though Patterns – the logical progression of reasoning varies by culture

  12. Cultural Variables • Roles – the perception of the manager’s role differs considerable around the world, consider the conversation between the American and Greek • Nonverbal Communication – behavior communicated without words; even minor variations in body language, speech rhythms, and punctuality can cause mistrust

  13. Cultural Variables • Language – an inability to speak the local language, and a poor or too literal translation are often causes for mistrust • Pepsi’s slogan “Come Alive with Pepsi” translated into German as “Come out of the grave.” • Rendezvous lounges on 747’s were not used on airlines because in Portuguese ‘rendezvous’ refers to prostitution

  14. Cultural Variables - Language Britain and America are two nations separated by a common language. - George Bernard Shaw

  15. Cultural Variables -Time • Mono-chronic Cultures – Time is experienced in a linear manner; generally mono-chronic people concentrate on one thing at a time and adhere to time commitments • Poly-chronic Cultures – Many things occur simultaneously and emphasize involvement with people

  16. Context • Context in which the communication takes place affects the meaning and interpretation of the interaction • Cultures are either high- or low- context

  17. Context

  18. For discussion • What are the top three ways you could improve your own intercultural communication competence?

  19. Appropriate Follow-Up Actions • Respect (eye contact, posture, tone, etc) • Interaction posture – ability to respond in a descriptive, non-evaluative, and non-judgmental way • Orientation to knowledge – understand that your beliefs and perceptions are only valid for you and not everyone else • Empathy

  20. Appropriate Follow-Up Actions • Interaction management • Tolerance for ambiguity • Other-oriented role behavior – capacity to be flexible and to adopt different roles for the sake of the greater group cohesion/communication

  21. Cultural Sensitivity • When sending a message make it a point to know the recipient • Encode the message in a form that will most likely be understood as it is intended • This means the manager must • Be aware of their own culture • The recipient’s culture • The expectations surrounding the situation

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