Avoiding Misunderstanding in Cross-Cultural Communication
AVOIDING CROSS-CULTURAL MISCOMMUNICATION Abstract International business has been developing fast in the globalization. We can see Chinese businessmen in most of places in the world, from Africa to America, and many
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foreign companies are investing in China, vise versa. I, a Vietnamese woman, am working for Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) in oil and gas field in Vietnam where lots of foreign oil and gas corporations are operating such as KNOC, Halliburton, Schlumberger, BP, and Premier. The world has become flatter and flatter, more and more people from different countries and different cultures work together, thus how to avoid cross-cultural communication to ensure people understand each other well has become a hot topic.
What are the key elements that define a culture?
Ramsey, (2004) discovered “the culture is the unwritten code of conduct made up of the mores, core values, cherished beliefs, priorities, traditions and informal rules and roles of the organization”, and it “defines what‘s important, what‘s expected, what’s accepted, what’s preferred, what’s tolerated, what‘s rewarded, what’s punished and what’s taboo within the group” (Ramsey, p3, 2004) in which, according to Daniels et al.(2009), “groups based on nationality, ethnicity, religion, gender, work organization, profession, age, political party membership, and income level” (Daniels et al., p94, 2009).
How does a company overcome ethnocentricity?
In order to overcome superior, aggressive, even hostile attitudes and actions toward other cultures(ethnocentrism), a company operating in globalization world should not “draw attention to yourself (the company) and , above all, learn and respect the culture” (Daniels et al., p130, 2009). The management need respect the local specific characteristics, and
AVOIDING CROSS-CULTURAL MISCOMMUNICATION determine suitable principles that should be applied in its overseas branches otherwise force them to follow all current rules and principles which are
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foreign companies are investing in China, vise versa. I, a Vietnamese woman, am working for Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) in oil and gas field in Vietnam where lots of foreign oil and gas corporations are operating such as KNOC, Halliburton, Schlumberger, BP, and Premier. The world has become flatter and flatter, more and more people from different countries and different cultures work together, thus how to avoid cross-cultural communication to ensure people understand each other well has become a hot topic.
What are the key elements that define a culture?
Ramsey, (2004) discovered “the culture is the unwritten code of conduct made up of the mores, core values, cherished beliefs, priorities, traditions and informal rules and roles of the organization”, and it “defines what‘s important, what‘s expected, what’s accepted, what’s preferred, what’s tolerated, what‘s rewarded, what’s punished and what’s taboo within the group” (Ramsey, p3, 2004) in which, according to Daniels et al.(2009), “groups based on nationality, ethnicity, religion, gender, work organization, profession, age, political party membership, and income level” (Daniels et al., p94, 2009).
How does a company overcome ethnocentricity?
In order to overcome superior, aggressive, even hostile attitudes and actions toward other cultures(ethnocentrism), a company operating in globalization world should not “draw attention to yourself (the company) and , above all, learn and respect the culture” (Daniels et al., p130, 2009). The management need respect the local specific characteristics, and
AVOIDING CROSS-CULTURAL MISCOMMUNICATION determine suitable principles that should be applied in its overseas branches otherwise force them to follow all current rules and principles which are
References: 8 Daniels, J. D., Radebaugh, L. H., & Sullivan, D. P. (2009). International Business, Environments and Operations (12th ed), p90-133, p154-169, Saddle River, N.J. Pearson International Edition. Johnston, T. C., & Burton, J. B. (2009). International Exercise to Increase Awareness of Cross-cultural Issues by U.S Negotiators. Journal of International Business Research, Jan2009, Vol. 8 Issue 1, p79-90, 12p, 6 Graphs; (AN 45197104). Database: Business Source Complete. Liangguang H. (2010). Cross-cultural Communication in Business Negotiations.Full Text Available. International Journal of Economics & Finance, May2010, Vol. 2 Issue 2, p196-199, 4p; (AN 51360800). Database: Business Source Complete. M&C News, (2010). Bangkok demonstrations affect Thailand 's credit rating, tourism. Retrieved from http://www.monstersandcritics.com Physical Environment Definition. (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.education.vic.gov.au Ramsey, R. D. (2004). Understanding the culture of your workplace. Supervision. Aug2004, Vol. 65 Issue 8, p3-5, 3p; (AN 13959325).Subjects: CORPORATE culture; WORK environment; SUPERVISORS; CULTURE; MIDDLE managers. Database: Business Source Complete. Resick, C. J., Hanges, P. J., Dickson, M. W., & Mitchelson, J. K. (2006). A Cross-Cultural Examination of the Endorsement of Ethical Leadership. Journal of Business Ethics, Feb2006, Vol. 63 Issue 4, p345-359, 15p; DOI: 10.1007/s10551-005-3242-1; (AN 19617707). Database: Business Source Complete.