CROSS CULTURAL
COMMUNICATION
John Mark D. Bugarin
CULTURE DEFINED
Culture
shapes a persons values and
identity. Cultural identities can
stem from the following
differences: race, ethnicity, gender,
class, religion, country of origin,
and geographic region.
CULTURAL CONFLICTS IN WORKPLACE
 Cultural
conflicts arise because of the
differences in values and norms of behavior of
people from different cultures. A person acts
according to the values and norms of his or her
culture; another person holding a different
worldview might interpret his or her behavior
from an opposite standpoint. This situation
creates misunderstanding and can lead to
conflict.
CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION
We
communicate the way we do because
we are raised in a particular culture and
learn its language, rules, and norms.
Different cultures (and subcultures) may
have different rules and norms.
Understanding other’s culture facilitates
cross-cultural communication.
UNCERTAINTY & ANXIETY
Generally,
in communication, we
seek to reduce uncertainty.
Communication with strangers
involves relatively greater degrees
of uncertainty, due to the
difficulty in predicting a strangers
responses.
STRATEGIES TO REDUCE ANXIETY
We may reduce our uncertainty by following three
basic strategies
1. One may passively observe the stranger.
2. One may actively seek out information from other
friends of the stranger, or from books.
3.Finally, one may seek information directly from the
stranger by interacting with them and asking
questions.
 Also, offering information about ones self often
prompts reciprocal offerings of information from
another
How To Resolve Conflicts
(1)the
parties describe what they find
offensive in each others behavior;
(2) they get an understanding of the other
party’s cultural perceptions;
(3) they learn how the problem would be
handled in the culture of the opponent;
(4) they develop conflict solutions.
Learning about other cultures
 People
can prevent cross-cultural
conflicts by learning about cultures
that they come in contact with. This
knowledge can be obtained through
training programs, general reading,
talking to people from different
cultures, and learning from past
experiences.
Altering organizational practices and
procedures
 Often
the organizational structure reflects
the norms of just one culture and gives
rise to cultural conflict in the workplace.
In such cases, structural change in the
organization becomes necessary to make
the system more sensitive to cultural
norms of other people
DISCRIMINATION
Cultural
conflicts lead to
Discrimination toward or against a
person or group is the prejudicial
treatment of them based on
certain characteristics.
Dealing with Discrimination in the
Workplace
 In
the last few years, charges of gender
discrimination (man vs woman) in the
workplace have increased. Racial bias,
while no longer the most common
complaint among employees, remains a
problem, as does age discrimination.
Dealing With Discrimination At
Workplace
Dealing
effectively with
discrimination is a twofold
process: Become knowledgeable
with regard to antidiscrimination
laws, Pay close attention to what’s
happening in your company
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!