CROSS-CULTURE

COMMUNICATION
“The reasonable person adapts himself to the
world, while the unreasonable one persists
in trying to adapt the world to himself”
What is a culture?

Culture is the "lens" through which you

view the world.
It is central to what you see,
How you make sense of what you see,
How you express yourself.
Four Fundamental Patterns of Cultural
Difference
What is different?
1. Communication Styles
2. Attitudes toward conflicts
3. Decision making style
4. Approaches to knowing
 Cross Culture Communication

Intercultural communIcatIon Is the process of

sendIng and receIvIng messages between people
whose cultural background could lead them to
Interpret verbal and non-verbal sIgns
dIfferently.
Why Cross Culture
Communication is important ?
Globalization: Cross border movement of people, goods and
data brings more and more cultures into contact with one
another and increases the potential of cross culture
communication.
●
Business Opportunities
●
Job Opportunities
●
Improves the contribution of employees in a diverse
workforce
●
Sharing of views and ideas
●
Talent improvisation
●
An understanding of diverse market
 High Context and Low Context Cultures

High Context Culture:- Cultures

that rely heavily on non-verbal and
subtle situational cues in
communication.

Low Context Culture:- Cultures

that rely heavily on words to
convey meaning in communication.
Eye Contact

In some cultures, looking people in the eye is assumed to indicate

honesty and straightforwardness; in others it is seen as
challenging and rude.
 Cont…
●
In USA, the cheapest, most
effective way to connect with people is
to look them into the eye.
●
Most people in Arab culture share
a great deal of eye contact and may
regard too little as disrespectful.
●
In English culture, a certain
amount of eye contact is required, but
too much makes many people
uncomfortable.
●
In South Asian and many other
cultures direct eye contact is generally
regarded as aggressive and rude.
 Gesture:
•A motion of the hands, head or body to emphasize an idea or
emotion.

USA=OK JAPAN=MONEY

RUSSIA=ZERO BRAZIL=INSULT
How can the same Gestures be treated differently in different
cultures
Blocks to Cultural Communication

1. Ethnocentrism : Inability to accept another culture's world

view; "my way is the best."

2. Discrimination : Differential treatment of an individual due to

minority status; actual and perceived;
e.g., "we just aren't equipped to .Serve people like that."

3. Stereotyping : Generalizing about a person while ignoring

presence of individual difference;
e.g., "she's like that because she's Asian – all Asians are nonverbal."
 Cont…
4.Cultural Blindness: Differences are ignored and one proceeds as
though differences did not exist; e.g., "there's no need to worry about
a
person's culture

5.Cultural Imposition: Belief that everyone should conform to the

majority; e.g., "we know what's best for you, if you don't like it you can
go elsewhere."

6.Tone Difference : Formal tone change becomes embarrassing and off-

putting in some cultures.
Improving Cross Culture Communication
TEN Pre-cautions in Cultural
Communication
1. Slow Down
2. Separate Questions
3. Avoid Negative Questions
4. Take Turns
5. Write it down
6. Be Supportive
7. Check Meanings
8. Avoid Slangs
9. Watch the humor
10. Maintain Etiquette
 DEVELOPING CROSS CULTURAL
COMMUNICATION SKILLS

"Tact is the ability to describe others as

they see themselves.“
– Abraham Lincoln
Skills To Overcome Differences

Respecting Differences and Working Together

Building Trust Across Cultural Boundaries

Understanding Body Language

Connecting with people

Business is not a one day match

Business in Today’s Scenario is not a

“ National Match” but is a “ Olympics” ,
where there are International Players.
Only that Individual / Company can
survive which has done its homework well
& developed its uniqueness.