Outline of this Session

The meaning of Culture

Cultural Differences
Cross-Cultural Interaction
Cross-Cultural Communication
Cross-Cultural Learning
Managing the Encounter
An example from Honduras

What is Culture?

Culture is a shared system of meaning;

Culture is what makes the world manageable;
All societies have culture, each one different;
To interact, we need to manage these
differences.

Culture Helps Us:

Perceive
Organize
Interpret
Judge
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Ways We Learn Culture

Enculturation ( socialization): how we

bring up our children
Acculturation: cultural learning
between adults
Both require communication

Components of Culture:
Artifacts

What we see
comes from
Behavior

Values

Understand Yourself As A
Cultural Construct
In

some ways, you are unique

In some ways, you are like everyone else
You are culturally-constructed
Your values and perceptions form a
pattern
Your values are arbitrary

Values, Beliefs, and Norms

Values ideas about right and wrong,

better and worse, good and bad.
Beliefs ideas that people assume are
true about the world. Many are axioms.
Norms shared expectations of
appropriate behavior. Norms arise from
beliefs and values.

Cultural Differences

Some American Core Values

Independence
Individuality
Directness
Initiative
Assertiveness
Privacy
Upward Mobility
Optimism

Competition
Fairness
Equality
Freedom (conscience,
expression,
movement, action)
Tolerance
Justice

Some Latin American Core

Values
Interdependence

Cooperation

Relationships

Hierarchy

Indirectness

Driven

Si

Dios quiere
Pesimism
Ancestry / History

by forces
beyond control
Respect
Family

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Some examples
Cultivating

a relationship
Asking about family
Time differences

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Cross-Cultural Interaction

People from Different Cultures

Will Differ With Respect To:

Perceptions
Interpretations
Facts
Goals
Methods
Values
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How Culture Influences

Facts
If you give money to someone, is it:
Homage?
Tribute?
Payment?
A Tip?
A Bribe?
A Deadly Insult?
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Cultures Negatives

Parochialism
Ethnocentrism
Stereotyping
Lack of flexibility
Narrow tolerances
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Europe Meets America I

American behavior

Make many friends eas

What Americans
think theyre doing

Being friendly and open

What Europeans see

Naive childishness

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Europe Meets America

II
European behavior

Have fewer close friends

What Europeans
think theyre doing

Exercising discretion,
emphasizing depth in the
relationship

What Americans see

Coldness, distance, aloofne

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Latin America Meets the U.S.

They interrupt other people; they

dont listen enough. They get to the
point too quickly. They are too much in
a hurry. They care about things,
instead of relationships.

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U.S. Meets Latin America

Theyre always late. They wont come

right out and tell you what is bothering
them. Theyre very formal with me,
always using a title, rather than a first
name. They wont look you in the eye.

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Communication

The Communication Arena

As Culture

Noise

A
Sender

Bs Culture

B
Receiver

Channel, Code and Meaning

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Forms of Communication
Verbal
Non-Verbal

Body Language
Environment Language

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Communication Tasks
Send appropriate signals yourself
Interpret the signals you receive correctly
Communicating across cultures is
not just about learning their
codes, but about understanding your
own.

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Non-verbal communication

Touching (haptics)

Eye contact
(oculesics)

Use of space
(proxemics)

The use of time

(chronemics)

Odor (olefactics)

Movements and
gestures (kinesics)

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An Example of Body
Language: North American
Space Zones
Public

Intimate
Personal
Social

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Artifacts
Dress can even affect how willing
others will be to follow you. Research
has found that significantly more
individuals will follow a models
example in crossing the street against
the "wait" signal when s/he is dressed
in a business suit than when the same
model crossed the street dressed in
poor work clothes.

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Time
Orientations:

Past
Present
Future

Time

Systems:

Technical
Formal
Informal
Monochronic or
polychronic
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Successful Communication

You can get what you want

In a way that is acceptable to you
And to your partner(s)
And which maintains your
relationship

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Cross-Cultural Learning and

Adaptation

Stages in Cross-Cultural
Learning
Identifying:

Coping: react

differences and
similarities

appropriately to
the differences.

Integrating:
Add elements of
difference into own
operating
paradigms.

Understanding:
explain the form,
content, and
significance of salient
differences.

Managing: work with

differences proactively to
produce mutually
satisfactory outcomes.
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The Culture Shock Pattern

High

Honeymoon

Emotional
State

Recovery

Adjustment

Crisis
Low

Time
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Why Stress Occurs

Your

environment makes demands on

you for which you have no ready-made
response

Your

responses do not produce the

required results

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Stress Points for Newcomers

Unfamiliarity

Offended values

Loss

Change of status

Overload

Pervasive differences

No sanctuary

No Instruction Manual

Ambiguity and
uncertainty

Odd Man Out

All-English

Lack of support

environment

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Signs of Culture Shock

Irritability, moodiness
Fluctuating appetite
Reduced sex drive
Disrupted sleep
Homesickness
Spending time alone
Avoiding the locals

Reading all day

Boredom, low energy
Confusion, anxiety
Negativity, alienation
Depression
Physical illness
Stereotyping

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An Adjustment Hierarchy
Attaining personal and
professional effectiveness
Mastering the basic tasks
Connecting with others
Re-establishing personal
identity and competence
Dealing with survival issues

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Managing the Encounter

Some Common Problems

Gender relations

Age differences

Assertiveness

Speech patterns

Use of intermediaries
Questions of face

Negotiation styles

Direct/Indirect
Egalitarian/Elite
Charm/Threats
Merit/Influence
Personal/Impersonal
Single/Multiple Access

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Managing the Encounter

Suspend

Judgment
Learn to Negotiate
Pay Attention to
Communication
Learn From Each Encounter
Share What Your Learn
Change Things When
Necessary
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Remember
You cant change their
behavior-- you can only
change your own

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