Chapter 7 - intercultural communication at work
Globalization and intercultural business communication
talk of intercultural communication has become ubiquitous in contemporary
business communication and the importance of preparing business graduates
for communication and the importance of preparing business graduates for
communication in the global village has become a truism: ¨ intercultural
communication¨ and ¨globalization¨ are often mentioned in the same breath
Globalization 1.0 was driven by countries internationalizing; Globalization 2.0
was driven by companies internationalizing; and Globalization 3.0 is driven by
individuals internationalizing themselves
field of intercultural communication studies dates from the 1Ø400s
¨ Intercultural Business Communication 1.0¨: researchers focused on
comparing the communication styles of nationals of diferent countries and,
on the basis of those comparisons, making predictions about actual
interactions
¨ Intercultural Business Communication 2.0¨: researchers began to
investigate communication in international corporations. It is particularly
multinational companies in Central Europe and Scandinavia that have been
the locus of research.
¨ Intercultural Business Communication 3.0¨: the most recent phase with the
individual as the locus of intercultural communication, has seen the
employees who are specifically employed to communicate interculturally, as
is the case with call center operators, cross-cultural mediators and
consultants
each focus combined with the previous one and today all three focuses co-
exist, overlap and inform each other
National cultural values
idea that nation is the locus of cultural diference is foundational to the
intercultural communication literature
Hofstede: four value orientations --> power distance, individualism, masculinity,
and uncertainty avoidance
power distance: the level of inequality in a society and the degree to which
the unequal distribution of power is accepted by members of that society
individualism: the level of connection in a society and whether individuals
are expected to fend for themselves or to act as members of a group
masculinity: degree to which gender roles are diferentiated in a society
uncertainty avoidance: the level to which a society accepts uncertainty and
ambiguity and to what degree it tries to control uncertainty and ambiguity
through the imposition of explicit rules
long-term orientation: deals with the extent to which a society values thrift
and perseverance versus attendance to more short-term goals such as
fulfilling social obligations
indulgence: measures the degree to which a society allows or represses
gratification and ¨having fun¨
three basic assumptions underlying Hofstede's work:
nation state is seen as the locus of culture, or to put it diferently, the
nation state in which a person lives is the key determinant of their
cultural orientation
Globalization and intercultural business communication
talk of intercultural communication has become ubiquitous in contemporary
business communication and the importance of preparing business graduates
for communication and the importance of preparing business graduates for
communication in the global village has become a truism: ¨ intercultural
communication¨ and ¨globalization¨ are often mentioned in the same breath
Globalization 1.0 was driven by countries internationalizing; Globalization 2.0
was driven by companies internationalizing; and Globalization 3.0 is driven by
individuals internationalizing themselves
field of intercultural communication studies dates from the 1Ø400s
¨ Intercultural Business Communication 1.0¨: researchers focused on
comparing the communication styles of nationals of diferent countries and,
on the basis of those comparisons, making predictions about actual
interactions
¨ Intercultural Business Communication 2.0¨: researchers began to
investigate communication in international corporations. It is particularly
multinational companies in Central Europe and Scandinavia that have been
the locus of research.
¨ Intercultural Business Communication 3.0¨: the most recent phase with the
individual as the locus of intercultural communication, has seen the
employees who are specifically employed to communicate interculturally, as
is the case with call center operators, cross-cultural mediators and
consultants
each focus combined with the previous one and today all three focuses co-
exist, overlap and inform each other
National cultural values
idea that nation is the locus of cultural diference is foundational to the
intercultural communication literature
Hofstede: four value orientations --> power distance, individualism, masculinity,
and uncertainty avoidance
power distance: the level of inequality in a society and the degree to which
the unequal distribution of power is accepted by members of that society
individualism: the level of connection in a society and whether individuals
are expected to fend for themselves or to act as members of a group
masculinity: degree to which gender roles are diferentiated in a society
uncertainty avoidance: the level to which a society accepts uncertainty and
ambiguity and to what degree it tries to control uncertainty and ambiguity
through the imposition of explicit rules
long-term orientation: deals with the extent to which a society values thrift
and perseverance versus attendance to more short-term goals such as
fulfilling social obligations
indulgence: measures the degree to which a society allows or represses
gratification and ¨having fun¨
three basic assumptions underlying Hofstede's work:
nation state is seen as the locus of culture, or to put it diferently, the
nation state in which a person lives is the key determinant of their
cultural orientation
