Summary
INTERCULTURAL
COMMUNICATION
Martinez, L. (Lili)
Radboud University – IBC
, Chapter 1 - Challenges of Living in a Global Community
The Global village
Marshall McLuhan came up with this name to describe a future world in which
communication technology brings news and information to the most remote parts of the world.
The situation in the global village is that there is a 24/7 communication, and it is potentially
global. There is an exchange of information anywhere and at any time.
The Small world experiment (Milgram)
There are 6 degrees of separation, this is called the Network Theory. They measure how
many steps it takes to connect random people in the world. Participants in various cities in the
US were asked to send a letter to a person in Boston and only via people that they knew
personally. The result of this experiment was that on average it took 5 to 6 steps, which means
people, to get from the starting point to the end point.
Nowadays, the number of steps decreased. Facebook calculated the distance between two
random FB users, and it decreased from an average of 6 people to 2.9 to 4.2 people. So, it seems
that the world is getting smaller and smaller.
Advances in communication technology and transport systems
Communication technology is a key contributor to cultural diversity. The choices of media
to connect with other people anywhere and anytime are multiplying. Users of media spend more
time online building personal relationships, including friendship networks and romantic
relationships.
International migration and global business
Large movements of migrants continue worldwide, often from low- and middle-income
continues to high-income countries. International migration contributes to social and economic
development both in the countries of origin and the countries of destination. The migrants move
to their host countries for a variety of reasons including access to a better living environment,
to give their children a good education in, e.g., an English-speaking country, to explore business
opportunities, to seek refuge or political protection, etc.
1
, Cultural home
The concept of Cultural home refers to an individual’s sense of belonging to an ethnic,
racial or geographic community with shared traditions and practices. The members share a
common history and culture and they might even have similar physical features.
Globalization
Globalization is the process of interconnectedness between societies, so that events in one
place of the world have more and deeper effects on people and societies far away. In other
words, globalization is the widening, deepening, and speeding up worldwide
interconnectedness in all aspects of contemporary social life.
Different types of globalization are social globalization, e.g., information flows, the
number of McDonalds restaurants we have, IKEA stores, etc., political globalization, e.g.,
foreign embassies in a country, participation in UN mission, etc., economic globalization, e.g.,
trade and investments flows, import and export, etc., and technological globalization, e.g.,
internet, phones, etc.
Globalization in business is the increase of trade around the world, especially by large
companies producing or trading goods in many different countries. It is the idea that the world
is developing a single economy and culture as a result of improved technology and
communications and the influence of very large multinational companies.
There are 3 perspectives on globalization. First, there are the globalists, they view
globalization as inevitable developments which cannot be resisted or significantly influenced
by human intervention. The traditionalist argue that significance of globalization represents a
significant shift, but they question the inevitability of its impacts. Finally, the
transformationalists contend that globalization represents a significant shift, but they question
the inevitability of its impacts.
Cultural diversity
Contributors to cultural diversity are advanced technology and transportation, and
increased mobility. Another contributor is the global economy and business transactions.
Furthermore, mass (im)migration and international exchange are other contributors.
2
, The advances technology and transportation have as benefits that it is easier to travel and to
interact in an easier way. Moreover, we have a smaller, yet more diverse world. With that,
understanding other cultures is a challenge on an everyday basis.
The globalized economy and business have as sub-categories the global transformation, so
local markets as diverse and global markets, the international expansion, MNCs operating
globally, and outsourcing to low wage countries, and diverse workforce, e.g., migrant workers
and expats. There are cultural tensions created by economic transformations is a challenge we
face in intercultural communication in a business context, e.g., BREXIT.
Mass (im)migration and international exchange include immigration flow, from developing
to developed countries, migrant workers who move to a host country temporarily, student
exchanges, and expats who temporarily relocate to work in another country. This has as a result
that facilitating inter-ethnic co-existence is a challenge we face in our society.
Building intercultural understanding
Understanding is the first step towards acceptance. For instance, behaviors that are
considered perfectly appropriate and acceptable in one culture may appear harsh or offensive
in another.
Necessity and benefits of intercultural communication in Business: Business failures due
to cultural differences
When businesses decide to conduct operations with partners or customers from different
cultures, a crucial aspect for success lies in the understanding of cross-cultural differences.
Cultural misunderstanding or communication error can cause damage. To the business
relationship and/or financial lost.
We need an understanding of the Global Target Audience and Clients. Furthermore, cross-
cultural teamwork (creativity and innovation) is of importance. Workplace diversity can lead
to creative solutions to problems as well as conflicts between workers due to differences in
values and work practices.
3
INTERCULTURAL
COMMUNICATION
Martinez, L. (Lili)
Radboud University – IBC
, Chapter 1 - Challenges of Living in a Global Community
The Global village
Marshall McLuhan came up with this name to describe a future world in which
communication technology brings news and information to the most remote parts of the world.
The situation in the global village is that there is a 24/7 communication, and it is potentially
global. There is an exchange of information anywhere and at any time.
The Small world experiment (Milgram)
There are 6 degrees of separation, this is called the Network Theory. They measure how
many steps it takes to connect random people in the world. Participants in various cities in the
US were asked to send a letter to a person in Boston and only via people that they knew
personally. The result of this experiment was that on average it took 5 to 6 steps, which means
people, to get from the starting point to the end point.
Nowadays, the number of steps decreased. Facebook calculated the distance between two
random FB users, and it decreased from an average of 6 people to 2.9 to 4.2 people. So, it seems
that the world is getting smaller and smaller.
Advances in communication technology and transport systems
Communication technology is a key contributor to cultural diversity. The choices of media
to connect with other people anywhere and anytime are multiplying. Users of media spend more
time online building personal relationships, including friendship networks and romantic
relationships.
International migration and global business
Large movements of migrants continue worldwide, often from low- and middle-income
continues to high-income countries. International migration contributes to social and economic
development both in the countries of origin and the countries of destination. The migrants move
to their host countries for a variety of reasons including access to a better living environment,
to give their children a good education in, e.g., an English-speaking country, to explore business
opportunities, to seek refuge or political protection, etc.
1
, Cultural home
The concept of Cultural home refers to an individual’s sense of belonging to an ethnic,
racial or geographic community with shared traditions and practices. The members share a
common history and culture and they might even have similar physical features.
Globalization
Globalization is the process of interconnectedness between societies, so that events in one
place of the world have more and deeper effects on people and societies far away. In other
words, globalization is the widening, deepening, and speeding up worldwide
interconnectedness in all aspects of contemporary social life.
Different types of globalization are social globalization, e.g., information flows, the
number of McDonalds restaurants we have, IKEA stores, etc., political globalization, e.g.,
foreign embassies in a country, participation in UN mission, etc., economic globalization, e.g.,
trade and investments flows, import and export, etc., and technological globalization, e.g.,
internet, phones, etc.
Globalization in business is the increase of trade around the world, especially by large
companies producing or trading goods in many different countries. It is the idea that the world
is developing a single economy and culture as a result of improved technology and
communications and the influence of very large multinational companies.
There are 3 perspectives on globalization. First, there are the globalists, they view
globalization as inevitable developments which cannot be resisted or significantly influenced
by human intervention. The traditionalist argue that significance of globalization represents a
significant shift, but they question the inevitability of its impacts. Finally, the
transformationalists contend that globalization represents a significant shift, but they question
the inevitability of its impacts.
Cultural diversity
Contributors to cultural diversity are advanced technology and transportation, and
increased mobility. Another contributor is the global economy and business transactions.
Furthermore, mass (im)migration and international exchange are other contributors.
2
, The advances technology and transportation have as benefits that it is easier to travel and to
interact in an easier way. Moreover, we have a smaller, yet more diverse world. With that,
understanding other cultures is a challenge on an everyday basis.
The globalized economy and business have as sub-categories the global transformation, so
local markets as diverse and global markets, the international expansion, MNCs operating
globally, and outsourcing to low wage countries, and diverse workforce, e.g., migrant workers
and expats. There are cultural tensions created by economic transformations is a challenge we
face in intercultural communication in a business context, e.g., BREXIT.
Mass (im)migration and international exchange include immigration flow, from developing
to developed countries, migrant workers who move to a host country temporarily, student
exchanges, and expats who temporarily relocate to work in another country. This has as a result
that facilitating inter-ethnic co-existence is a challenge we face in our society.
Building intercultural understanding
Understanding is the first step towards acceptance. For instance, behaviors that are
considered perfectly appropriate and acceptable in one culture may appear harsh or offensive
in another.
Necessity and benefits of intercultural communication in Business: Business failures due
to cultural differences
When businesses decide to conduct operations with partners or customers from different
cultures, a crucial aspect for success lies in the understanding of cross-cultural differences.
Cultural misunderstanding or communication error can cause damage. To the business
relationship and/or financial lost.
We need an understanding of the Global Target Audience and Clients. Furthermore, cross-
cultural teamwork (creativity and innovation) is of importance. Workplace diversity can lead
to creative solutions to problems as well as conflicts between workers due to differences in
values and work practices.
3
