When Cultures Collide: Leading Across Cultures
When Cultures Collide: LEADING ACROSS CULTURES
Richard D. Lewis
Nicholas Brealey International
✦
When Cultures Collide
✦
LEADING A C R O S S C U LT U R E S
✦
When Cultures Collide
✦
LEADING A C R O S S C U LT U R E S
A Major New Edition of the Global Guide
Richard D. Lewis
First published in hardback by Nicholas Brealey Publishing in 1996. This revised edition first published in 2006. 100 City Hall Plaza, Suite 501 Boston, MA 02108, USA Information: 617-523-3801 Fax: 617-523-3708 www.nicholasbrealey.com 3-5 Spafield Street, Clerkenwell London, EC1R 4QB, UK Tel: +44-(0)-207-239-0360 Fax: +44-(0)-207-239-0370 www.nbrealey-books.com
© 2006, 1999, 1996 by Richard D. Lewis All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Printed in Finland by WS Bookwell. 10 09 08 07 06 1 2 3 4 5
ISBN-13: 978-1-904838-02-9 ISBN-10: 1-904838-02-2 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lewis, Richard D. When cultures collide : leading across cultures / Richard D. Lewis.—3rd ed. p. cm. Rev. ed. of: When cultures collide : managing successfully across cultures. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-1-904838-02-9 (13-digit isbn, pbk : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 1-904838-02-2 (pbk : alk paper) 1. International business enterprises—Management—Social aspects. 2. Management—Social aspects. 3. Intercultural communication. I. Title. HD62.4.L49 2005 658'.049—dc22 2005022299
To Jane, Caroline, Richard and David, multicultural all . . .
Contents
✦ Preface to the Third Edition: Us and Them Acknowledgments PART ONE
xv xxiii
Getting to Grips with Cultural Diversity
1 Different Languages, Different Worlds
Appearance and Reality 3 Concepts and Notions 4 Powerful Mental Blocks 7 Language Straitjacket 9 Thought = Internalized Language 11 Humor across
Richard D. Lewis
Nicholas Brealey International
✦
When Cultures Collide
✦
LEADING A C R O S S C U LT U R E S
✦
When Cultures Collide
✦
LEADING A C R O S S C U LT U R E S
A Major New Edition of the Global Guide
Richard D. Lewis
First published in hardback by Nicholas Brealey Publishing in 1996. This revised edition first published in 2006. 100 City Hall Plaza, Suite 501 Boston, MA 02108, USA Information: 617-523-3801 Fax: 617-523-3708 www.nicholasbrealey.com 3-5 Spafield Street, Clerkenwell London, EC1R 4QB, UK Tel: +44-(0)-207-239-0360 Fax: +44-(0)-207-239-0370 www.nbrealey-books.com
© 2006, 1999, 1996 by Richard D. Lewis All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Printed in Finland by WS Bookwell. 10 09 08 07 06 1 2 3 4 5
ISBN-13: 978-1-904838-02-9 ISBN-10: 1-904838-02-2 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lewis, Richard D. When cultures collide : leading across cultures / Richard D. Lewis.—3rd ed. p. cm. Rev. ed. of: When cultures collide : managing successfully across cultures. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-1-904838-02-9 (13-digit isbn, pbk : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 1-904838-02-2 (pbk : alk paper) 1. International business enterprises—Management—Social aspects. 2. Management—Social aspects. 3. Intercultural communication. I. Title. HD62.4.L49 2005 658'.049—dc22 2005022299
To Jane, Caroline, Richard and David, multicultural all . . .
Contents
✦ Preface to the Third Edition: Us and Them Acknowledgments PART ONE
xv xxiii
Getting to Grips with Cultural Diversity
1 Different Languages, Different Worlds
Appearance and Reality 3 Concepts and Notions 4 Powerful Mental Blocks 7 Language Straitjacket 9 Thought = Internalized Language 11 Humor across