Management
Communications and
Intercultural Contexts
Zeenat Jabbar
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A Definition of Culture
“Culture is everything that people have,
think, and do as members of their
society.”
Professor Gary P. Ferraro
The Cultural Dimensions of
International Business, 3e
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Culture is composed of . . .
Material objects
Ideas, values, and attitudes
Expected patterns of behavior
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Some Principles of Culture
All culture is learned.
Culture is universal to human society.
All cultures are constantly undergoing
change.
Some cultures change more quickly
than others.
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Some Principles of Culture
Culture is not value-neutral.
Not all cultures are equally complex.
Virtually all cultures permit the
development of sub-cultures.
Culture can influence biology and
biology can influence culture.
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Functions of Culture
Cultures universally respond to human
problems and challenges by developing
systems to deal with them.
Economic systems
Marriage and family systems
Educational systems
Supernatural belief systems
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Cultural Change
Cultures change because of internal
forces such as discovery and
innovation.
Cultures change because of external
forces such as diffusion and borrowing.
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Issues Affecting Cultural Change
Relative Advantage: Is it superior to
what already exists?
Compatibility: Is it consistent with
existing cultural patterns?
Complexity: Is it easily understood?
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Ethnocentrism
All cultures, to one degree or another,
display ethnocentrism, or the tendency
to evaluate a foreigner or outsider’s
behavior by the standards of one’s own
culture.
All cultures also display the tendency to
believe that they are somehow superior
to all others.
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Ethnocentrism
We take our own culture for granted.
We see our behavior as “correct” and
others’ as somehow “wrong.”
Ethnocentrism can enhance group
solidarity within a society.
Ethnocentrism can also foster prejudice,
contempt, inaccurate stereotypes, and
conflict.
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Domestic Cultural Variables
Gender
Ethnicity
Age
Ability
Preference
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Dimensions of Culture
Individualism vs. Collectivism
Masculinity vs. Femininity
Power Distance
Uncertainty Avoidance
Short-Term vs. Long-Term Orientation
High vs. Low Context
Immediacy and Expression
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Cross-Cultural
Communication Skills
The capacity to accept the relativity of
one’s own knowledge and perceptions
The capacity to be non-judgmental
A tolerance for ambiguity
The capacity to communicate respect
for other people’s ways, their country,
and their values
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Cross-Cultural
Communication Skills
The capacity to display empathy
The capacity to be flexible
The capacity for turn-taking
The humility to acknowledge what you
do not know or understand
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Process Assumptions About
Cross-Cultural Interactions
The other person sees the situation the
same way you do.
The other person is making the same
assumptions you are.
The other person is (or should be)
experiencing the same feelings you are.
The communication situation has no
relationship to past events.
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More Process Assumptions
The other person’s understanding is (or
should be) based on logic, not feelings.
The other person is the one who has the
“problem” or who does not understand the
logic of the situation.
Other cultures are changing and becoming
more like your own culture and, therefore,
other people are becoming more like you.
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Communication Climates
Evaluative vs. Descriptive
Control-oriented vs. Problem-oriented
Strategy vs. Spontaneity
Neutrality vs. Empathy
Superiority vs. Equality
Certainty vs. Provisionalism
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Variations In Value Orientation
Relationship of
Humans to
Nature
Subjugation to
nature
Harmony with
nature
Mastery over
nature
Time
Orientation
Past
Present
Future
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Variations in Value Orientation
Basic Nature of
Human Beings
Evil
Neutral or mixed
Good
Activity
Orientation
Being
Containing and
controlling
Doing
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Variations in Value Orientation
Relationships
Among People
Hierarchical
Group
Individualistic
Orientation to
Space
Private
Mixed
Public
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The Effective Global Executive
Should Be Able to:
Develop and use global strategic skills.
Manage change and transition.
Manage cultural diversity.
Design and function in flexible
organizational structures.
Work with others and in teams.
Learn & transfer organizational
knowledge.
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