Intercultural gaffes

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When in Rome…
France’s burka ban
 Mosque near ground zero
 Arizona’s immigration law
 Honor killings
 Terry Jones Kuran burning
 Westboro Baptist Church
 Asian drivers
 Female circumcision
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American culture is a leading export
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Movies
Music
TV shows
YouTube
Facebook
Twitter
Fashion
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“America is the
greatest country in
the world”
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Freedom
Democracy
Free speech
Land of opportunity
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But are we #1?
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Infant mortality: 33rd
Life expectancy: 37th
(behind Cuba, Puerto
Rico, Chile, Costa Rica)
Education: The U.S.
ranked 14 out of 34
countries in reading,
and 25th in math
Health care quality:
37th
Gender gap/gender
equality: 27th
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Culture bias:
interpreting and
judging another
culture based on
standards from one’s
own culture
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Cultural imprinting
begins at an early age
 Culture bias may be
conscious or
unconscious
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Example: hygiene
standards in the U.S.A.
Ethnocentrism: belief
in the inherent
superiority of one’s
own culture
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Example: “capitalism is
good, socialism is evil”
Which fellow is
dressed “weird”?
 high
contact
cultures exhibit
greater immediacy
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low contact cultures
exhibit lesser immediacy
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Touch less
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Touch more
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Stand farther apart
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Stand closer
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More visual
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More olfactory
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examples
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examples
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South America
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Germany
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Great Britain
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Norway
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Southern France
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Southern Italy
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Southern Spain
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Japan
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Greece, Portugal
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China
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Latin America
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The U.S.A. is a moderate
contact culture
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When passing another
stranger on the
sidewalk:
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1-2% of Japanese people
smiled, nodded, or
spoke to the passerby
9-25% of Americans
smiled, nodded, or
spoke
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High context cultures
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are more collectivistic;
concerned with group
harmony, getting along
cultural rules and social
norms are implicitly
understood
are more nonverbal
tend to read between
the lines
Examples: China, Japan,
Taiwan, Korea
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Low context cultures
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are more individualistic;
celebrate individuality
and personal autonomy
cultural rules and social
norms are discussed,
negotiated
are more verbal
tell to spell things out
Examples: Germany,
U.S. Switzerland,
Sweden
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American college
roommates
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Messy roommate: “It’s
your turn to clean the
kitchen.”
Noisy roommate: “Keep
it down, I’m trying to
study.”
Unpaid debt: “You owe
me 20 bucks. Pay up.”
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Japanese college
roommates
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Messy roommate: “If
someone visits, they will
think are messy.”
Noisy roommate: “The
neighbors may be
disturbed by all the
noise.”
Unpaid debt: “I wish I
could afford to buy a
subway pass for this
month.”
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Japanese tea ceremony
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Every behavior of the host and
guest is highly ritualized and
prescribed
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all meaning is contextual
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The tea ceremony reflects the
principles of: Wa - Harmony,
Kei - Respect, Sei - Purity,
and Jaku - Serenity
An American who said
“hey, great tea,” or “hurry
up and finish your tea”
would be committing a
cultural faux pas
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Feminine cultures
have more flexible,
androgynous gender
roles
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Examples: Sweden,
Norway, Denmark,
Germany , Chile,
Portugal
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Masculine cultures
have more rigid,
clearly defined
gender roles
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Examples: Japan, Italy,
Mexico, Venezuela
The U.S. is
moderately masculine
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Nascar dads
Stay-at-home dads
Career women
Home-schoolers
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A British schoolteacher,
Gene Gibbons, was
sentenced to 40 lashes for
allowing her students to
name a class teddy bear
Mohammad
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Sharia law should not be
taken lightly
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In Middle Eastern
countries it is considered
rude to point the bottom
of your foot at someone.
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The sole of the foot is
considered unclean.
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Shoes are removed before
entering a Mosque.
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It is akin to “mooning”
someone in the U.S.A.
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In Saudi Arabia it is illegal
for a man and woman to
hold hands in public
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It is not illegal for two
males to hold hands in
public
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An American who kissed a
woman in pubic was jailed
then deported
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Richard Gere “greets”
Shilpa Shetty too
enthusiastically
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Hindu followers consider
any public display of
affection (PDA) to be
taboo.
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PDA is even more frowned
upon if the pair is
unmarried.
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Gere was a non-Hindu
foreigner in a country that
endorses arranged
marriages
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Low bow humor: Obama
was criticized for
bowing too low the the
Japanese emperor, and
for shaking hands at the
same time.
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Hands off the crown
jewels: Michelle Obama
broke royal protocol
during a reception at
Buckingham Palace
when she placed her
arm around the Queen.
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“Our North Korean
Ally”
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While being interviewed
on Glenn Beck’s radio
show, Palin twice
referred to North Korea
as America’s ally.
"Obviously, we gotta
stand with our North
Korean allies“ she
remarked.
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Cameron Diaz toured Mach
Picchu carrying a Chinese
handbag with the phrase
“Serve the People.”
The phrase, by Mao Zedong,
touched a nerve among
Peruvians
The Maoist Shining Path
insurgency in Peru killed
70,000 people
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We are not amused:
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Following a verbal
gaffe, (he suggested the
Queen had toured the
U.S. in 1776) George W.
Bush winked at the
queen.
She returned the wink
with a cold glare
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