Sep 28

Cultural Profile: Clifford Geertz

Cross Cultural Training, Culture No Comments »

Name: Clifford Geertz
Nationality: US American
Date of birth: 23 August 1926 in San Francisco

Known for: Symbolic Anthropology

Key Publications:

  • The Religion of Java (1960). Chicago, IL: University Chicago Press
  • The Interpretation of Cultures (1973). New York: Basic Books
  • Negara: The Theatre State in 19th Century Bali (1980). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press
  • After the Fact: Two Countries, Four Decades, One Anthropologist (1995). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press
  • Available Light: Anthropological Reflections on Philosophical Topics (2000). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press

After his service in the Second World War, Clifford Geertz completed his B.A. in Philosophy in 1950 at Antioch College in Yellow Springs and then his Ph.D. at Harvard University in 1956 on social anthropology.

Clifford Geertz was a renowned scholar within the field of symbolic anthropology. Drawing upon the work of linguist Ferdinand de Saussure, symbolic anthropology studies the ways in which signs govern cultural life. Geertz, in particular, focused on the ways in which symbols operate within a culture. Most of his studies were conducted in South Asia and North Africa.

Clifford Geertz is also famous for his Theory of Religion where he describes a religious cult as a cultural system that controls the social system which itself controls individuals. He defended the Thick Description theory which implies that human behaviour must be analysed within a context to be fully understood. This is one reason why all cross cultural awareness training programmes now underline the importance of studying all aspects of culture in order to have a full understanding of its key values and cultural practices and their impact on life in the target country.

Clifford Geertz’s ideas influenced anthropology throughout the 20th century as well as other fields of research like History and Political Sciences. His work can be summarised by this quote from Professor Daniel Pals: “His critics are few, his admirers are legion”.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Jul 27

How Politeness Impacts International Business

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector No Comments »
Business People 9 Jacob Wackerhausen i2 How Politeness Impacts International Business

© istockphoto.com/ Jacob Wackerhausen

Each culture has a set of unique idiosyncrasies. In other words, behavioural traits which have grown out of historical experience. These traits are so engrained in the psyche of the culture that it can be difficult to explain their origins or why they are still followed years, decades or even centuries later.

Outsiders or international assignees entering a new culture may be perplexed by what they perceive as strange or unnatural behaviour. Without proper pre-departure cross cultural training and support which gives international assignees an understanding of the culture, these cultural idiosyncrasies will remain distant, unexplained oddities that can prevent the assignee from having a successful expatriation in the new country.

 

A good example of where cultural idiosyncrasies often baffle foreigners is the UK. People who are not from Britain often say that the country is obsessed with courtesy and good manners. The British way of communicating is peppered with politeness markers and their behaviour can sometimes be perceived as too conciliatory.

In fact, in the UK the most minor omission of a politeness marker such as ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ or the wrong word order in a sentence can cause offence. Failing to observe the queuing culture or asking a question too directly can leave people with the impression that you are rude or disrespectful. International assignees living and working in the UK must therefore have an understanding of the culture and these unique politeness traits if they want to communicate effectively with their British counterparts.

The intricacies of politeness in the UK are complex and mostly subconscious behaviours that are considered the norm. Politeness markers are often used with complete sincerity or pre-thought. Let’s look at an example where a man and woman approach each other in a busy corridor both carrying papers. As they pass in the corridor, the man bumps into the woman and knocks her, causing her to drop some of her documents. The man says ‘sorry’, which would be considered quite normal for many as he is the one who knocked into her. However the woman also apologises. This happens frequently in the UK, and often confuses those who are unaware of the culture of politeness.

Another example often cited by non-natives revolves around taking the bus. Most British have the habit of thanking the bus driver as they get off the bus. There is no real reason for doing this as the bus driver has to stop at the bus stop and let them off anyway, and most of the time the driver is behind a window which makes it difficult to hear them. Nevertheless, most British adhere to this cultural norm on a daily basis. In many cultures, people believe that because the bus driver’s job is to drive the bus and to let you off, they have not done anything special for you and therefore do not deserve a thank you.

These differences in expected courtesy also affect the way people convey certain messages in business. Being unaware of such discrepancies between what it is said and what it is meant can cause some problems, especially in the workplace. One common example of this is how British people often request tasks to be completed.

For instance, your manager might ask you ‘Would you mind finishing this piece of work by the end of today please?’. This can be perceived as a request to complete the job without much urgency while in fact your manager could really be trying to say: ‘Get on with it and finish it by the end of the day!’. This misunderstanding can often cause the employee to take a longer time than required. If this pattern persists it may well cause frustrations between manager and employees.

These are just a few simple examples of how politeness in the UK can be a confusing thing for many foreigners and how it can impact international business. By attending a cross cultural awareness training course such as Communicaid’s Living and Working in the UK or Doing Business in the UK, business travellers and international assignees can gain the cultural understanding they need to successfully communicate, build relationships and adapt to life in the UK.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Jul 16

Cross Cultural Theory: Expressing your Emotions across Cultures

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management No Comments »

Have you ever been in a situation where you felt your business counterparts were holding something back from you? Or perhaps you’ve been in a meeting and not been able to tell how your colleagues feel about your proposals? Conversely, have you ever found yourself feeling that your international counterparts should learn to keep to themselves and control their emotions?

The extent to which people express their emotions can often be described using the terms affective and neutral. People from affective cultures tend to express their feelings and emotions openly whereas people from neutral cultures usually try to hide their thoughts and feelings. One of Fons Trompenaars’ seven cultural dimensions, these two opposing concepts can help us to understand behaviours and reactions to situations so that we avoid making false interpretations or judgments about others when working across cultures.

Business meeting 8 track5 i1 Cross Cultural Theory: Expressing your Emotions across Cultures

© istockphoto.com/ Track 5

 

When doing business in Brazil or living and working in Italy, both affective cultures, you may find that your counterparts show their reactions immediately and directly through verbal and non-verbal channels such as increasing the level of their voice, using gestures or making more physical contact. However, if you are from a neutral culture like the US or Finland, this may make you feel uncomfortable and sometimes even aggressed. Meanwhile, your Brazilian or Italian counterparts may find your lack of outward expression of feelings confusing and might perceive you as being cold and reserved.

When working across cultures it’s important to be able to recognise how the display of emotions or lack thereof can impact relationships and cross-cultural communication. Failing to understand how your business counterparts express themselves can result in major misunderstandings or misjudgement.

Participating in a cross cultural awareness training course like Doing Business in Brazil or Living and Working in Italy, you can learn not only how to correctly interpret your international counterparts but also how to control your own reaction to it.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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May 23

Cross Cultural Politeness – Beyond Please and Thank You

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector 2 Comments »

It’s no secret that it is essential to understand how to be polite and respectful when doing business internationally. But how different can politeness really be from one culture to another?

A number of unwritten principles of politeness exist which must be followed if you want to show respect and consideration to your business counterparts. Here in the UK we have been taught from a young age to say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’, to give up our seat for people who might need it or to apologise after bumping into someone.

Although we know what we need to do to be polite in the UK, many of us are unaware that doing the same thing in another culture may not be showing politeness. Failing to understand how to be polite when working across cultures can lead to communication breakdowns, damaged relationships and a loss of credibility. Cross cultural awareness training can equip us with the skills necessary to avoid these intercultural politeness pitfalls.

 

Business Woman 13 nicole waring i Cross Cultural Politeness – Beyond Please and Thank You

© istockphoto/nicole waring

 

One case of cultural variance in the understanding of politeness is the use of expressions of gratitude. In some cultures, people only expect to give or receive thanks for acts of altruism and not for tasks that are intrinsic to a person’s job, such as a bus driver or waiter. In other cultures such as the UK, however, people thank others for performing any tasks that benefit them. An example of this would be thanking the bus driver when leaving the bus.

Politeness is not always reflected through the use of please and thank you as in the example above. Using an indirect or direct style of communication can also influence the level of politeness you are showing your international counterparts. When doing business in Japan, for example, you’ll find your counterparts consider the use of direct questions to be challenging and therefore impolite. Conversely, doing business in Germany , you may find your German counterparts sometimes consider indirectness to be impolite, as the speaker’s intentions are unclear.

One theory of politeness states that in the process of communication people should consider the socio-cultural norms of people from other countries, develop tolerance and sensitivity towards these norms and work out strategies to make people feel comfortable in each other’s company.

An intercultural training course such as Working Effectively across Cultures stresses the difference in perceptions of politeness across cultures and provides specific strategies to help anyone doing business with other cultures overcome any misunderstandings that might arise.

“Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you – not because they are nice, but because you are” ~Author Unknown

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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May 10

Cultural Profile: Milton J. Bennett

Cross Cultural Training, Culture No Comments »

Name: Milton Bennett

Nationality: American

Known for:

  • Creator of the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity
  • Co-founder of the Intercultural Communication Institute and Director of the Intercultural Development Research Institute

Key Publications:

  • American Cultural Patterns: A Cross-Cultural Perspective (Co-author 1991) ME: Intercultural Press
  • Basic Concepts of Intercultural Communication: A reader. (Ed. 2007) ME: Intercultural Press
  • Handbook of Intercultural Training (Eds. 2004) Thousand Oaks: Sage

Dr Milton Bennett has been involved in the intercultural field since 1967. He is co-founder of the Intercultural Communication Institute and Director of the Intercultural Development Research Institute. He has a PhD from the University of Minnesota in intercultural communication and sociology, an MA in psycholinguistics from San Francisco State University and a BA from Stanford University. Apart from intercultural communication his interests focus on empathy and consciousness studies.

One of Bennett’s greatest achievements was to create the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity in 1986. The model shows a progression of stages people may go through in developing intercultural competence and has been used in many cross cultural awareness training courses such as Communicaid’s Developing Global Competence.

Read our recent blog article to find out more about one of Bennett’s key intercultural theories: Cross Cultural Theory: Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity

© Communicaid Group Ltd 2010

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Apr 26

Multicultural Teams: Cross Cultural Approaches to Time Management

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector No Comments »
clock with chinese signs i1 Multicultural Teams: Cross Cultural Approaches to Time Management

© istockphoto.com/PeterFrank

 

Everyone has heard the expression “Time is money”. This saying has an equivalent in most languages, demonstrating that the concept of time plays an important role in business cultures across the globe.

Modern Western business, in particular, considers the efficient use of time as a measurement of success. For example, if a project is not completed by the agreed date, the company will lose profit and its reputation will suffer. However, other cultures take a different approach to time management. Some Eastern cultures, such as India and Japan, tend to favour the coordination of tasks rather than tackling them sequentially.

Cross cultural awareness training provides an introduction to the concepts of time and how they differ across cultures, providing you with a better understanding of what to expect when working with international counterparts.

One cross cultural theory about time that intercultural training covers was developed by Edward T. Hall, an American anthropologist and cultural expert. Hall distinguished between monochronic and polychronic views of time. For example, when doing business in Germany or the US, both monochronic cultures, you will find that your counterparts tend to consider that time is wasted unless decisions are being made and actions are carried out. The task is the priority and communication between colleagues is often direct and to the point.

However, in polychronic cultures like India, time is not perceived as a number of slots where each is presented by a definite task that needs to be tackled sequentially. Instead, when doing business in India, you will find their polychronic approach to time is much less driven by a need to get things done on time and more by the fact that things are done and harmonious relationships are maintained throughout the process.

The difference in these cross cultural approaches can create significant challenges for anyone working in a multicultural team. When your multicultural team members have attitudes to time that are similar to yours, coordinating projects can be relatively problem-free. However, when your team members from different cultures view time differently, issues relating to planning, decision-making or project deadlines can often lead to frustrations caused by miscommunication and mismatched expectations.

For example, a German working on a multicultural team with Indian nationals may become frustrated by what he perceives to be indirectness or lack of urgency in his colleagues. Conversely, the Indian team members may feel that their German counterparts come across as being pushy and fail to consider the harmony of the team.

Another clear illustration of contrast between these two attitudes to time can be found in comparing the American and Japanese modes of production. The American model, credited to Ford, is a linear production line, with one task following another until the product is finished. The Japanese, however, initiated the ‘just-in-time’ model, credited to Toyota, in which production is synchronised to allow the company to minimise waste and be responsive to demand.

These are just a few examples that show how attitudes to time can present challenges and benefits for multicultural teams. The challenges and advantages that different attitudes to time can create are numerous and can have a clear negative or positive impact on multicultural teams and the success of the projects that they work on. By participating in a Cross Cultural Training course such as Working across Cultures or Intercultural Training Germany, multicultural teams can develop strategies to not only cope with their differences but harness them for more effective team working and productivity.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Apr 26

Cross Cultural Theory: Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector 1 Comment »

A number of scholars and experts have tried to explain the impact of cross cultural differences on people’s behaviour to help reduce the intercultural risks of international business. Dr. Milton Bennett, co-founder of the Intercultural Development Research Institute, believes that the more experience a person has with cultural differences the more that person will develop intercultural competence, becoming more effective when working across cultures.

According to Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS), there are six stages on this path to developing intercultural competence, each characterised by certain perceptions and behaviour towards the “own” and the “other” culture.

As the graphic below illustrates the main change along the line of intercultural competence occurs from ethnocentrism to ethnorelativism. In other words, from an understanding of your own culture as being superior to an understanding of your own culture as equal in value and complexity to any other culture.

DMIS 425x167 Cross Cultural Theory: Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity

Cross Cultural Theory: Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity

Each of the six phases of Bennett’s Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity are described in more detail below:

Denial: When in this first stage, individuals refuse all interaction with other cultures and show no interest in discovering cultural differences. They may also act agressively during cross cultural situations.

Defense: In this stage, individuals consider all other cultures to be inferior to their own culture and will constantly criticise behaviour or thoughts by someone from another culture.

Minimisation: When this stage is reached, individuals will start believing that all cultures share commom values. They will also minise any cultural dfferences by correcting people to match their expectations.

Acceptance: At this stage, individuals may still judge other cultures negatively but they will tend to recognise that cultures are different and they may become curious about cultural differences

Adaptation: During this stage individuals gain the ability to adapt their behaviour more easily and effectively by intentionally changing their own behaviour or communication style.

Integration: This stage tends to only be achieved by long term expatriates living and working abroad or Global Nomads. In this stage, individuals instinctively change their behaviour and communication style when interacting with other cultures.

Progressing from ‘Ethnocentrism’ to ‘Ethnorelativism’ on the scale takes time, yet it is vital for the success of any business person working in what is an increasingly global economy. Becoming more interculturally sensitive can be achieved through a combination of first hand experience with other cultures and participation on intercultural training courses like Effective Global Leadership or Doing Business in India.

While the final stage ’integration’ is seldom reached, a combination of experience living and working in other countries and taking part in tailored intercultural training courses allows global business people to reach the ‘adaptation’ stage, acquiring a high level of intercultural competence that will ensure they are successful working internationally.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Apr 06

Becoming a Cultural Chameleon: Adaptability Skills Essential for Cross Cultural Success

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources No Comments »

Have you ever noticed how, in the many conversations you have with different people throughout a typical day, the topics of your conversations and your style of conversation change depending on who you’re speaking to?

If you were to pick a random topic, such as the weather or a recent film you have seen, and you discussed it casually with a few different people, you will most likely notice that even if your conversation covers the same topic, your style will vary depending on the other person’s position (your boss or work colleague), profession (lawyer, shopkeeper), relationship to you (relative, friend, someone you have just met on a street), age (a child, an older person) or culture (national, religious etc).

We tend to speak in different ways to different people, our work colleagues, family, friends or just strangers we meet on a street or in a supermarket. Our speech adapts and changes depending on our interlocutors. We may adapt our choice of language like the vocabulary or jargon we use, or our accent, dialect or intonation. At times you may find yourself imitating someone else’s accent or use of vocabulary to get closer to them and gain sympathy, especially when working across cultures. This is the central tenet of Communication Accommodation Theory, which was developed by professor of communication Howard Giles of the University of California Santa Barbara.

Definition Language kdow i1 Becoming a Cultural Chameleon: Adaptability Skills Essential for Cross Cultural Success

© istockphoto.com/kdow

 

Practical examples of this are when, for instance, we speak slowly when communicating across cultures so that our international counterparts can understand us, or how we use grammatically simple language with children (baby talk). In the same way, you can strategically choose to speak with a certain accent or use certain expressions in order to emphasise your membership of a group, or conversely, distance yourself from another.

The principle also covers non-verbal aspects of communication, such as posture and eye contact, which are especially important aspects of cultural awareness. For example, when two people speak one may seek eye contact while the other may wish to avoid it. In that instant, almost unconscious negotiation takes place as one has to adapt to the style of the other.

Most of these verbal and non-verbal adjustments are psychologically motivated and common among all people around the world. What differs is how we accommodate our language and behaviour to communicate with others across cultures more effectively and gain their appreciation, trust or acceptance.

Adapting to another person can come naturally and often imperceptibly in a mono-cultural environment, but if the interaction spans different cultures a certain degree of uncertainty comes into play, as the parties involved will very likely have different expectations of how communication should unfold. Cultural awareness training can help reduce this element of uncertainty and ensure you have the right level of cross cultural skills to communicate effectively across cultures.

Understanding varying levels of eye contact is just one example of this theory in action. Broadly speaking, western individuals associate a lack of eye contact with insecurity and even untrustworthiness at times. When a German manager meets a new member of his team, he will look him straight in the eye, accommodation assures his gaze in turn will be met. All of his German counterparts know this shows both mutual respect and that the new team member is confident and ready to meet the challenges of the new assignment.

Things are different when doing business in Japan, where respect for your superiors should be shown by not meeting their gaze. Accommodation means that a Japanese junior member of staff will not look his boss in the eye when he or she talks to him, and know that by doing this all expectations are met.

What happens when business relations bring the German junior team member into contact with the Japanese manager? Who, if at all, will accommodate their communication style when doing business with the other? What are the consequences of this not happening?

One way to eliminate any uncertainty that arises from this scenario is through cultural awareness training. By providing insight into your own culture and communication style, as well as those of the host country you are doing business in, it is possible to develop a level of cross cultural awareness that will help you to make the necessary cultural adjustments that come so naturally when communicating with someone from your own culture.

Confidence, awareness of what to expect and skills to react appropriately, all developed through cultural awareness training, can eliminate at least part of the uncertainty inherent in international business relations and lead to more economic success.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Mar 18

The Onion Model of Culture

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector No Comments »

There are many ways to visualise the concept of culture, but one of the most popular models is based on an onion.  The Onion Model of Culture shows how culture has a number of layers.  There are a number of interpretations of this model but the simplest one consists of four key layers.

Onion Model 300x287 The Onion Model of Culture

The outer layers represent cultural artefacts or symbols such as flags, architecture or traditional clothing.  Heroes make up the next layer, such as Winston Churchill in the UK, and tend to represent many of the culture’s values and beliefs.

The next layer is composed of common rituals and traditions.  This could include how people greet each other, eat meals, get married or practise their religion.

In the centre of the onion are the underlying values and cultural assumptions which influence all of the other layers.  These beliefs, norms and attitudes are much harder to recognise without a deeper analysis and thorough understanding of each of these layers and how they interact.

Cross-cultural training can help anyone working across cultures see past the outer layers and understand the why, what and how behind each of them.  When doing business in Japan, for example, people will avoid making direct eye contact with anyone more senior than them.  Understanding that this is because of important Japanese values such as face and hierarchy is essential for anyone doing business with Japan.

Country-specific cross-cultural training programmes such as Communicaid’s Doing Business in Japan will increase understanding of the cultural values and how they influence the rituals, heroes and symbols in Japanese business culture. Understanding the cultural values and their impact will help you ensure that your international business ventures are a success.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Mar 10

Does your culture distribute power equally? A cross cultural theory on Power Distance

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector No Comments »

One of Geert Hofstede’s five cultural dimensions is power distance which looks at the degree of equality between people in a society.  According to Hofstede, the power distance index shows the extent to which people perceive inequality as normal in an organisation or institution.

In countries with a low power distance like Austria, Denmark or New Zealand, egalitarian attitudes are preferred and decisions are made cooperatively.  Conversely, in countries which have a high power distance such as Malaysia, Saudi Arabia or South Korea, a more formal and vertical hierarchy exists in most areas of society including business.  In Europe, power distance tends to be lower in Northern countries and higher in Southern and Eastern countries.

The table below shows some key differences between cultures with a high power distance and low power distance.

High Power Distance Low Power Distance
Inequality is accepted Inequality is minimised
Rigid, authoritative structure More flexible structure
Centralised decision-making Collective decision-making
Those in power have privileges All have equal rights
Respect for authority Respect for individuality

Cultural awareness training programmes such as Doing Business in Japan or Working Successfully Across Cultures look at the impact of power distance on business both in specific countries and on a global scale. A familiarity with this dimension will give you an improved understanding of decision-making processes as well as management styles around the world and how to adapt to them.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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