...Please answer following questions: 1) Briefly define a monochronic culture. 2) Briefly define a polychronic culture. 3) What is meant by a Low Context Culture? 4) What is meant by a High Context Culture? 5) The basis of monochronic cultures is the time-line. What is the basis of polychronic cultures? 6) Explain what is meant by "monochronic cultures use short-term relationships". 7) What is meant by monochronic cultures tend to want "mastery over nature"? 8) How do monochronic and polychronic cultures tend to consider nepotism? 1) In a monochronic culture, people tend to place a high value on timeliness and schedules. They focus on the value of time, and therefore tend to have a very rigid interpretation of how to organize their schedules. Monochronic people generally prefer to do one thing at a time and to devote their full concentration to the task at hand, whether it be completing an assignment for work or school or having coffee with a friend. People belonging to this type of culture are also concerned about not disturbing others, and they follow the rules of privacy and consideration, they show respect for private property and are accustomed to short-term relationships. Cultures typically described as monochronic can be found in North America, Northern Europe, and parts of Asia. MONOCRONIC CULTURE CHARACTERISTICS (n an everyday life and in a business context) - sequential: do one activity at the time, follow initial plans, time is measurable, keep appointment...
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...determines a human's basic assumptions, values, norms and belief systems as well as a human's behaviour, language, food, drinking habits and other determinants of one's daily routine. Understanding his or her own culture is a key factor in order to live in his or her society, but understanding other cultures gives the opportunity to look out of the box. It provides someone, for example, with the ability to interact between two cultures. A vital aspect when it comes to make business upon international terms. This paper will focus on the discoveries of Edward T. Hall and will also provide especially european countries as examples. 2. Hall’s dimensions of culture Edward T. Hall, Anthropologist, developed a culture model with three dimensions. Context, the most popular dimension, Time and Space. The following paragraphs will outline and explain the three dimension. Overview of the most popular culture models HALL | HOFSTEDE | TROMPENAARS | HIGH-CONTEXT vsLOW-CONTEXT | POWER DISTANCE | UNIVERSALISM vsPARTICULARISM | | | INDIVIDUALISM vsCOLLECTIVISM | HIGH-TERRITORIALITY vs LOW-TERRITORIALITY | INDIVIDUALISM | NEUTRAL vsEMOTIONAL | | MASCULINITY/FEMININITY | SPECIFIC VSDIFFUSE | MONOCHRONIC TIME vsPOLYCHRONIC TIME | | ACHIEVEMENT vsASCRIPTION | | UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE | SEQUENTIAL vsSYNCHRONIC | | LONG TERM ORIENTATION | INTERNAL vsEXTERNAL CONTROL | 2.1 Context Hall divided the context aspect in high-context orientation and low-context orientation...
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...Negotiations It has been said that the Japanese often find United States negotiators as difficult to understand, because “unlike Japanese, the Americas are not racially or culturally homogenous”(1). Reading this statement is what lead me to write on Cultural Diversity in regards to Negotiations. What I have found is that while it is difficult to characterize any national or cultural approach to negotiations, generalizations are frequently drawn. While these generalizations are helpful it is essential to remember that they are only guidelines and not hard and fast rules. What I have found in my research is that any generalization will apply to some of the members of a group, some of the time. A great personal example is to consider a few generalizations about one or two groups that you currently belong to. In this report, some generalizations about cultural and national approaches to negotiation will be outlined. If negotiators understand that their counterparts may be seeing things differently than themselves, they will be less likely to make negative judgments and more likely to make progress in negotiations and this is why I think cultural diversity is so important to be aware of before walking into a negotiation. We will start out with the time orientations of monochronic and polychromic approaches across cultures. . Monochronic approaches to time are linear, sequential and involve focusing on one thing at a time (2). These approaches are most common in the European-influenced...
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...the two differ when it comes to intelligence, identity development, morality, gender, time orientation, communication, and health and wellness. The United States of America is an individualistic society. In an individualistic society, it is “every man for himself”. An individual’s success is more important than that of the entire society. China is a collectivistic society. The people value the success of the entire society over that of an individual. In order to maintain a sense of harmony, they behave with decorum at all times and will not do anything to cause someone else public embarrassment. The Chinese benefit from being a collectivistic society. Confrontation is avoided and harmony is maintained. Furthermore, when the society as a whole works together everyone benefits from the labor. For example, rice agriculture is extremely labor intensive. It takes between 1,000 and 2,000 man hours to raise a crop on 2.5 acres of land (Hays 2010). As rice is important for the economic growth of China, everyone in the community works to grow the rice, everyone also benefits from its growth. On the other hand, there are downfalls to being part of a collectivistic society. For example, the “leader” of the society makes all the major judgments or decisions for that society. Unfortunately, the society is only as strong as its leader’s greatest weakness. Communism is linked directly to collectivism (“Collectivism” 2012). China has been a communist nation since 1949...
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... These emerging markets are usually categorized as countries with low–to-middle per capita income and often considered the world’s fastest growing economies. Countries in Asia, Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe are seeing a growth in local business activities as well as international business activities, both of which are stemming from multinational firms primarly located in North America or Europe. Understanding the best ways to work with individuals from these emerging markets can be valuable during negotiations. There are five cultural factors that most often affect negotiations among cultures: 1. use of time; 2. individualism versus collectivism; 3. role orderliness and conformity 4. patterns of communication; (Acuff, 2008) and 5. corruption. The goal of this research paper is to discuss cultural factors that affect negotiation and find examples from different regions on how those factors affected business negotiations and to conclude by providing ideas to deal with those challenges faced during negotiations. Use of time Individuals in different countries perceive time and use time in different ways. There are two major ways that cultures understand time: monochronic perception and polychronic perception of time. Monochronic countries conceive of time as inflexible. In monochronic cultures, time can be divided easily and schedules are adhered to closely. Polychronic countries conceive of time as flexible. In polychronic cultures, time cannot easily be divided and...
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...CROSS-CULTURAL/INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATION Photo by: Yuri Arcurs Business is not conducted in an identical fashion from culture to culture. Consequently, business relations are enhanced when managerial, sales, and technical personnel are trained to be aware of areas likely to create communication difficulties and conflict across cultures. Similarly, international communication is even further strengthened when businesspeople can anticipate areas of commonality. Finally, business in general is enhanced when people from different cultures find new approaches to old problems creating solutions by combining cultural perspectives and examining the problem at hand from each other's differing cultural perspectives. ETHNOCENTRISM Problems in business communication conducted across cultures often arise when participants from one culture are unable to understand culturally determined differences in communication practices, traditions, and thought processing. At the most fundamental level, problems may occur when one or more of the people involved clings to an ethnocentric view of how to conduct business. Ethnocentrism is the belief that one's own cultural group is somehow innately superior to others. 1 It is easy to say that ethnocentrism only affects the bigoted or those ignorant of other cultures, and so is unlikely to be a major factor in one's own business communication. Yet difficulties due to a misunderstanding of elements in cross-cultural communication may affect...
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...distance: Society can accept and expect that power is distributed unequally in the organizations and institutions. Power distance has different between large and small. People with large power distance will great acceptance of unequal power, but people with a small power distance want power to be shared equally. Some Asian countries are large power distance and western countries are small power distance. Uncertainty Avoidance: When a society has threat from ambiguous and uncertain situations, they try to through providing a safe job, setting up more formal rules and beveling experts’ assessment to avoid uncertain situations. Using weak or strong to describe uncertainty avoidance. Strong uncertainty avoidance is characterized by intolerance for behaviours and ideas that deviate from the norm. Collectivism vs Individualism: The extent to which people define themselves as autonomous individuals or members of groups. An individualist society is a loose organization of social structure. People just care about themselves and their immediate families. Collectivism societies are characterized by a strict social structure. People have their own group and want to get help from group, at same time members put emphasis on groups and be loyal to group. Femininity vs Masculinity: The distribution of emotional roles between the genders. A masculine society has social values such as competitiveness, assertiveness, self-confident materialism, ambition and power. A feminine society has different...
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...features of human beings such as gender, height, weight, skin color and body 3. Strategic use of artifacts associated with one’s physical appearance like clothing, jewelry, make-up, hairstyles, and accessories 4. Race and culture have an effect of facial recognition a. Cross-race effect v. Proxemics 5. Cultures differ substantially with regard to their use of personal space, territory, and the meanings assigned vi. Chronemics 6. The study of the meanings, usage, and communication of time 7. Perceptions of time vary dramatically from culture to culture b. U.S. – time is a commodity c. Middle East and Latin America - Historical context important before addressing the present d. Asians – a relational issue rather than clock time vii. Kinesics 8. Communication of the body in motion and aspects of peoples facial expressions, body movements, gestures, and conversational regulators e. Facial expression of emotion has cultural “accents” 9. Kinesic conversational behaviors differ across cultures 10. Gestures differ dramatically across cultures in...
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...CHAPTER 3 Group Member Diversity CHAPTER OUTLINE Heterogeneous Groups Personality Dimensions Personality Theory Implications of Personality Dimensions Cultural Dimensions Individualism–Collectivism Power Distance Uncertainty Avoidance Masculine–Feminine High Context–Low Context Monochronic Time–Polychronic Time Barriers to Cultural Understanding Gender Dimensions Generational Dimensions Balanced Diversity GroupWork: Personality Preferences GroupAssessment: Identifying Cultural Dialectics ISBN: 0-536-56665-8 63 Working in Groups: Communication Principles and Strategies, Fourth Edition, by Isa N. Engleberg and Dianna R. Wynn. Published by Allyn & Bacon. Copyright © 2007 by Pearson Education, Inc. 64 Part I Basic Group Concepts HETEROGENEOUS GROUPS When you read or hear the word diversity, you may think about race or about people from other countries. The concept of diversity, however, involves much more than country of origin, skin color, or ethnic heritage. When discussing group communication, we use the term diversity in its most general sense—the quality of being different. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines diverse as “made up of distinct characteristics, qualities, or elements.”1 The homogeneous–heterogeneous dialectic is particularly applicable to the study of group membership. As we note in Chapter 1, the prefix homo comes from the Greek language and means “same” or “similar”; hetero means “different.” Thus, a homogeneous...
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...Cultural Identity Intercultural Communication Madina Gasimova University of Connecticut Today we live in a world where different cultures, nations and religions intensively interact with each other. This, on the one hand, requires the construction of public relations between people of different cultures. On the other hand, every culture and nation is trying to preserve national, religious and cultural identity. However, this desire should not acquire forms of intolerance against carriers of values, and religious beliefs of other cultures. Such a situation may arise solely due to a misunderstanding or ignorance of history, cultural traditions, religious doctrines of other nations. Banal ignorance can cause phenomena such as racism, religious discrimination, aggressive nationalism etc. Familiarity with the values of individual’s culture allows escape from prejudice and stereotypes in perception of other cultures, ethnic and strengthen interfaith world. To see whether a person’s identity is shaped by his/her culture, we need to understand what culture consists of and what the characteristics of a personal identity are. Our cultural background shapes our identity, our communication practices, and our responses to others. Intercultural communication refers to communication between and among individuals and groups whose cultural backgrounds differ. (West & Turner 2006) As the populations of countries become more diverse, communicators today need to have knowledge of others'...
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...1. Applied ethics involves: a. investigating where our ethical principles come from and what they mean. b. making a comparative analysis of cross-cultural moral standards. c. establishing moral standards that regulate right and wrong conduct. d. focusing on the issues of universal truths, the will of God. e. examining specific controversial issues. e 2. People in Northern Europe and North America tend to schedule one event at a time. They serve as an example of a(n) _____. a. polychronic culture. b. monochronic culture. c. individualistic culture. d. culture with high power distance. e. culture with low uncertainty avoidance. b 3. Cultures and values are: a. stagnant by nature. b. irrelevant in the world of business. c. hindrances to economic development. d. constantly evolving in nature. e. not influenced by media and technology. d 4. “Guanxi” refers to: a. the connections which are essential for doing business in China. b. the sub-cultural groups that exist in China. c. the dominant cultural group that decides Chinese culture. d. the cultural differences between Taiwan and China. e. the department responsible for implementing cultural practices in China. a 5. The term “national culture” refers to: a. the culture which had been prevalent for more than two centuries. b. the culture which is implemented by the government in power. c. the...
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...International Management, 7e (Deresky) Chapter 3: Understanding the Role of Culture 1) International firms like Starbucks and McDonald's most likely modify their business practices in Saudi Arabia because of . A) prevalent religious customs and beliefs B) poor international business relationships C) low demand for American products D) tight restrictions on foreign trade Answer: A Diff: 3 Page Ref: 91 Chapter: 3 Skill: Concept AACSB: Multicultural and Diversity 2) Women in Saudi Arabia are permitted to work alongside men as . A) lawyers B) architects C) engineers D) doctors Answer: D Diff: 2 Page Ref: 91 Chapter: 3 Skill: Concept AACSB: Multicultural and Diversity 3) All of the following statements about women in Saudi Arabia are true EXCEPT that they are . A) allowed to earn a college degree B) restricted from owning businesses C) allowed to buy designer clothing D) restricted from driving cars Answer: B Diff: 3 Page Ref: 91-92 Chapter: 3 Skill: Concept AACSB: Multicultural and Diversity 4) What is the primary reason that high-end department stores operate in Saudi Arabia given the country's dress restrictions? A) Dress restrictions only apply to certain regions of Saudi Arabia. B) Women wear designer clothes for public functions when abayas are not required. C) Wealthy men and women in Saudi Arabia are interested in the latest fashion trends. D) Saudi Arabia draws travelers from Europe who want the latest designer...
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...Team case analysis Group 1: Rion, Anna, Eva, Helen, Tyrion, Feras Case 1.“When in Bogota…” Case summary. Jim Reynolds, an acquisition editor for Academia Press (college-level business textbook publisher) has arrived from New York, USA to Bogota, Colombia. He was intended to combine leisure and business. He met his old college friend Rodrigo Cardozo and spent some good time his family. But his primary aim was to conduct a series of meetings with directors of business schools at various Bogota Universities and establish business contacts in the Colombian market, as his company has seen future opportunities in Latin America. The deal was important not only to his company, but for him also, as it was a good possibility to get a promotion. He scheduled the meeting and went for the first one on Tuesday. He was supposed to meet 3 professors at 11:00, but two of them arrived half an hour later. Then they offered Jim to go for a lunch, during that time they were not discussing the business matters at all, all the conversations were about the dishes and the sights of Bogota, the professors seem to be simply not interested in Jim’s offerings. The lunch finished at 2:30, but Jim hasn’t accomplished his goal at all, he was didn’t understand what went wrong and very upset about it. When he came to his friend’s home later, he met friend’s father Dario, who was a businessman and had conducted business with people from different countries. He told about the meeting and asked for the advice....
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...across cultures. Many definitions of culture are offered, but one more relevant to culture in international business is : “Culture is the way in which a group of people solves problems and reconciles dilemmas.” (E.Schein 1985) The first way in which countries can be broadly categorized is into either a high context or a low context culture. High context cultures place more emphasis on the importance of group identity. They have a high sensory involvement and participate more readily in bodily contact. Low context cultures prioritise individualistic properties. They use body language less frequently and are monochronic thus placing a high importance on timing and scheduling. Most Northern European countries and other western societies are low context cultures. It has been suggested by the acclaimed social scientist, Norbert Elias (1978) that the development of society and the basis of its’ cultural contexts are closely associated with the prominent historical groups of the region leading to an establishment of national cultural values. Countries and even regions of a country often have very different historical backgrounds which lead to a vast plethora of different national cultural contexts. The authoritative work on formally distinguishing the differences between these cultures was carried out by Professor Geert Hofstede between 1967 and 1973. His work involved analysing values of IBM employees...
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...SUMMARY You may find certain aspects of Brazilian culture to be strange and quite different from what you are used to in Canada. One of the major differences is that Brazil is a collectivistic culture as measured on Hofstede’s Individualism Index, in contrast to Canada’s individualistic culture (Hofstede, 2014). Brazil’s collectivist nature will have many impacts on your daily interactions, including the Brazilian importance of family, which will often be place above work priorities (Training, 2012). Brazil is also different in its communication style, which tends to be more informal and indirect than Canada’s formal and direct style. Brazil is also considered a high-context culture, therefore it is important to pay attention to what is said, how it is said, and what is not said (Suderman, 2008). Another major aspect of Brazilian culture is the importance of building relationships before commencing business. Brazilians expect to get to know their business contacts through multiple meetings, in order to establish trust, and hopefully a friendship (DiPaolo, 2006). This process may take some time as it illustrates Brazil’s Polychronic orientation, which is more relaxed (slower) in nature and where the prevailing attitude is that “things will get done in their own time” (Suderman, 2008). Brazil is also very comfortable with inequality as evidenced by their high score on Hofstede’s Power Distance Index (Hofstede, 2014). As a manager in Brazil you will be expected to take absolute...
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