FACULTY OF ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS BRAWIJAYA UNIVERSITY

FARA LAYNDS LAMBORGHINI (0910233039) ANINDYA YUNITA ADHARINA (0910233126)

[COMMUNICATION ACROSS CULTURES]

Introduction
Cross-cultural communication (also frequently referred to as intercultural communication, which is also used in a different sense, though) is a field of study that looks at how people from differing cultural backgrounds communicate, in similar and different ways among themselves, and how they endeavor to communicate across cultures. In the past decade, there has become an increasing pressure for universities across the world to incorporate intercultural and international understanding and knowledge into the education of their students. International literacy and cross-cultural understanding have become critical to a countrys cultural, technological, economic, and political health. It has become essential for universities to educate, or more importantly, transform, to function effectively and comfortably in a world characterized by close; multi-faceted relationships and permeable borders. Students must possess a certain level of global competence to understand the world they live in and how they fit into this world. This level of global competence starts at ground level- the university and its faculty- with how they generate and transmit cross-cultural knowledge and information to students.

General Discussion
Communicating across cultures can be as difficult as it is rewarding. This is certainly true when it comes to encounters between Native and non-Native people working in the environmental movement. I know there are many non-Native people who do a great job working and communicating with Native people on important environmental issues. But I also have received phone calls from people seeking guidance about how to deal with young, white activists who, although admirably passionate in their desire to save the forests, were completely incapable and downright arrogant when it came to the subtle types of perception and openness that were needed in order to listen to and effectively communicate with traditional Native people. Unfortunately, many non-Native environmentalists do not seem to consider it important that Native nations and peoples have been engaged for centuries in an ongoing political, environmental, and economic struggle for their very survival. Some of these same environmental activists do not seem to believe that there is anything of real value to be learned from traditional Native cultures when it comes to dealing with environmental issues. They seem to think that there are no fundamental differences between the people from the dominant society and Native peoples. I'd like to explain

why I think this attitude is wrongheaded, and call for a more concerted effort on the part of nonNative activists to build strong alliances between themselves and Native peoples around environmental concerns. It was not y mere happenstance that our Native lands were so beautiful and pristine, with pure water and rich dark soil, and millions of acres of verdant old growth forests that have since been destroyed. Indian nations and peoples had, over a period of thousands of years, understood themselves to be an integral part of the processes and web of life. They understood, based on origin stories and other teachings as well as through deep spiritual discernment, that life consists of and is sustained by certain laws. Elders, philosophers, and spiritual ancestors constantly reminded the people to harmonize themselves ceremonially and otherwise with these natural laws. Because life is naturally self-renewing and self-fulfilling, it is able to provide for the people as long as people uphold the natural laws. Even now, many traditional Native people continue to understand and endeavor to live according to these laws. To a great extent, however, this is made virtually impossible now that these natural laws have been "outlawed" by the dominating society. For Native and non-Native activists alike, there is a common ground that we all share, and that is, quite literally, the Earth beneath our feet. But, in my view, there are three things that any non-Native environmentalist could use when it comes to how they perceive, think about and judge Native people: compassion, humility, and a detailed historical understanding of what Native nations and peoples have been through and are continuing to go through at this time. It is my strong hope that non-Native environmentalists will support traditional Native people ion their efforts to bring forward their own traditional laws. As they do so, perhaps those who don't know will begin to realize how much it is possible for the dominant society to learn from Indigenous ecological wisdom which has been accumulated for thousands of years.

Cross-Cultural Communication The New Norm

The Internet and modern technology have opened up new marketplaces, and allow us to promote our businesses to new geographic locations and cultures. And given that it can now be as easy to work with people remotely as it is to work face-to-face, cross-cultural communication is increasingly the new norm. After all, if communication is electronic, it's as easy to work with someone in another country as it is to work with someone in the next town. And why limit yourself to working with people

within convenient driving distance when, just as conveniently, you can work with the most knowledgeable people in the entire world? For those of us who are native English-speakers, it is fortunate that English seems to be the language that people use if they want to reach the widest possible audience. However, even for native English speakers, cross-cultural communication can be an issue: Just witness the mutual incomprehension that can sometimes arise between people from different English-speaking countries. In this new world, good cross-cultural communication is a must.

Understanding Cultural Diversity

Given different cultural contexts, this brings new communication challenges to the workplace. Even when employees located in different locations or offices speak the same language (for instance, correspondences between English-speakers in the U.S. and English-speakers in the UK), there are some cultural differences that should be considered in an effort to optimize communications between the two parties. In such cases, an effective communication strategy begins with the understanding that the sender of the message and the receiver of the message are from different cultures and backgrounds. Of course, this introduces a certain amount of uncertainty, making communications even more complex. Without getting into cultures and subcultures, it is perhaps most important for people to realize that a basic understanding of cultural diversity is the key to effective cross-cultural communications. Without necessarily studying individual cultures and languages in detail, we must all learn how to better communicate with individuals and groups whose first language, or language of choice, does not match our own.

Developing Awareness of Individual Cultures

However, some learning the basics about culture and at least something about the language of communication in different countries is important. This is necessary even for the basic level of understanding required to engage in appropriate greetings and physical contact, which can be a tricky area inter-culturally. For instance, kissing a business associate is not considered an appropriate business practice in the U.S., but in Paris, one peck on each cheek is an acceptable greeting. And, the handshake that is widely accepted in the U.S. is not recognized in all other cultures. While many companies now offer training in the different cultures where the company

conducts business, it is important that employees communicating across cultures practice patience and work to increase their knowledge and understanding of these cultures. This requires the ability to see that a person's own behaviors and reactions are oftentimes culturally driven and that while they may not match are down, they are culturally appropriate. If a leader or manager of a team that is working across cultures or incorporates individuals who speak different languages, practice different religions, or are members of a society that requires a new understanding, he or she needs to work to convey this. Consider any special needs the individuals on your team may have. For instance, they may observe different holidays, or even have different hours of operation. Be mindful of time zone differences and work to keep everyone involved aware and respectful of such differences. Generally speaking, patience, courtesy and a bit of curiosity go a long way. And, if you are unsure of any differences that may exist, simply ask team members. Again, this may best be done in a one-on-one setting so that no one feels "put on the spot" or self-conscious, perhaps even embarrassed, about discussing their own needs or differences or needs.

Demand Tolerance
Next, cultivate and demand understanding and tolerance. In doing this, a little education will usually do the trick. Explain to team members that the part of the team that works out of the Australia office, for example, will be working in a different time zone, so electronic communications and/or return phone calls will experience a delay. And, members of the India office will also observe different holidays (such as Mahatma Gandhi's Birthday, observed on Oct. 2). Most people will appreciate the information and will work hard to understand different needs and different means used to reach common goals. However, when this is not the case, lead by example and make it clear that you expect to be followed down a path of open-mindedness, acceptance and tolerance. Tip: Tolerance is essential; however you need to maintain standards of acceptable behavior. The following "rules of thumb" seem universal:

Team members should contribute to and not hinder the team's mission or harm the delivery to the team's customer.

Team members should not damage the cohesion of the team or prevent it from becoming more effective.

Team members should not unnecessarily harm the interests of other team members.

Other factors (such as national law) are obviously important. When dealing with people in a different culture, courtesy and goodwill can also go a long way in ensuring successful communication. Again, this should be insisted on. If your starting point in solving problems is to assume that communication has failed, you'll find that many problems are quickly resolved.

Interdisciplinary Orientation
Cross-cultural communication tries to bring together such relatively unrelated areas as cultural anthropology and established areas of communication. Its core is to establish and understand how people from different cultures communicate with each other. Its charge is to also produce some guidelines with which people from different cultures can better communicate with each other. Cross-cultural communication, as in many scholarly fields, is a combination of many other fields. These fields include anthropology, cultural studies, psychology and communication. The field has also moved both toward the treatment of interethnic relations, and toward the study of communication strategies used by co-cultural populations, i.e., communication strategies used to deal with majority or mainstream populations. The study of languages other than ones own can not only serve to help us understand what we as human beings have in common, but also assist us in understanding the diversity which underlies not only our languages, but also our ways of constructing and organizing knowledge, and the many different realities in which we all live and interact. Such understanding has profound implications with respect to developing a critical awareness of social relationships. Understanding social relationships and the way other cultures work is the groundwork of successful globalization business efforts. Language socialization can be broadly defined as an investigation of how language both presupposes and creates new, social relations in cultural context. It is imperative that the speaker understands the grammar of a language, as well as how elements of language are socially situated in order to reach communicative competence. Human experience is culturally relevant, so elements of language are also culturally relevant. One must carefully consider semiotics and

the evaluation of sign systems to compare cross-cultural norms of communication. There are several potential problems that come with language socialization, however. Sometimes people can over-generalize or label cultures with stereotypical and subjective characterizations. Another primary concern with documenting alternative cultural norms revolves around the fact that no social actor uses language in ways that perfectly match normative characterizations. A methodology for investigating how an individual uses language and other semiotic activity to create and use new models of conduct and how this varies from the cultural norm should be incorporated into the study of language socialization.

Incorporation into College Programs

With the increasing pressures and opportunities of globalization, the incorporation of international networking alliances has become an essential mechanism for the internationalization of higher education. Many universities from around the world have taken great strides to increase intercultural understanding through processes of organizational change and innovations. In general, university processes revolve around four major dimensions which include: organizational change, curriculum innovation, staff development, and student mobility. Ellingboe emphasizes these four major dimensions with his own specifications for the internationalization process. His specifications include: (1) college leadership; (2) faculty members' international involvement in activities with colleagues, research sites, and institutions worldwide; (3) the availability, affordability, accessibility, and transferability of study abroad programs for students; (4) the presence and integration of international students, scholars, and visiting faculty into campus life; and (5) international co-curricular units (residence halls, conference planning centers, student unions, career centers, cultural immersion and language houses, student activities, and student organizations). Above all, universities need to make sure that they are open and responsive to changes in the outside environment. In order for internationalization to be fully effective, the university (including all staff, students, curriculum, and activities) needs to be current with cultural changes, and willing to adapt to these changes. As stated by Ellingboe, internationalization is an ongoing, future-oriented, multidimensional, interdisciplinary, leadership-driven vision that involves many stakeholders working to change the internal dynamics of an institution to respond and adapt appropriately to an increasingly diverse, globally focused, ever-changing external

environment". New distance learning technologies, such as interactive teleconferencing, enable students located thousands of miles apart to communicate and interact in a virtual classroom. Research has indicated that certain themes and images such as children, animals, life cycles, relationships, and sports can transcend cultural differences, and may be used in international settings such as traditional and online university classrooms to create common ground among diverse cultures (Van Hook, 2011). The main theories for cross-cultural communication are based on the work done looking at value differences between different cultures, especially the works of Edward T. Hall, Richard D. Lewis, Geert Hofstede, and Fons Trompenaars. Clifford Geertz was also a contributor to this field. Also Jussi V. Koivisto's model on cultural crossing in internationally operating organizations elaborates from this base of research. These theories have been applied to a variety of different communication theories and settings, including general business and management (Fons Trompenaars and Charles Hampden-Turner) and marketing (Marieke de Mooij, Stephan Dahl). There have also been several successful educational projects which concentrate on the practical applications of these theories in crosscultural situations. These theories have also been criticized mainly by management scholars (e.g. Nigel Holden) for being based on the culture concept derived from 19th century cultural anthropology and emphasizing on culture-as-difference and culture-as-essence. Another criticism has been the uncritical way Hofstedes dimensions are served up in textbooks as facts (Peter W. Cardon). There is a move to focus on 'cross-cultural interdependence' instead of the traditional views of comparative differences and similarities between cultures. Cross-cultural management is increasingly seen as a form of knowledge management. Cross cultural communication gives opportunities to share ideas, experiences, and different perspectives and perception by interacting with local people.

The Aspects
There are several parameters that may be perceived differently by people of different cultures. These may include:

Perception of Time: In some countries like China and Japan, punctuality is considered important and being late would be considered as an insult. However, in countries such as

those of South America and the Middle East, being on time does not carry the same sense of urgency.

Perception of Space: The concept of "personal space" also varies from country to country. In certain countries it is considered respectful to maintain a distance while interacting. However, in other countries, this is not so important.

Non-verbal Communication: Cultures may be either Low-context or High-context: Lowcontext cultures rely more on content rather than on context. They give value to the written word rather than oral statements. High-context cultures infer information from message context, rather than from content. They rely heavily on nonverbal signs and prefer indirectness, politeness & ambiguity.

Communication is more than just speaking, writing, and editing; it also involves information gathering and teamwork. In the economy of the new century, this means communicating cross-culturally. There are three main components to any communication:

subject matter medium of delivery cultural considerations Of the three, the third is generally ignored. While fashionable phrases get uttered - mostly, celebrating cultural diversity, what results are mostly exercises in politically correct language -or attempts at controlling personal irritation. (Few people seem to feel the need to truly face the underlying issues that cloud even the simplest of delicate, and frequently confusing, crosscultural interactions.)

ICEBERGS Culture? People have characterized the idea to death for our purposes let's define culture as the way in which each of us is programmed to behave in the environment. Cultures are like icebergs; some features are apparent to anyone not in a fog, while others are deeply hidden. Above-thesurface features include overt behaviors: how people

dress eat

walk talk relate to one another conduct themselves during public ceremonies such as weddings or funerals Also included are such things as social distance. Other aspects are so far below the surface that they are hard to recognize. We may see evidence of these aspects, but we usually cannot pinpoint them precisely and usually do not have a clue where they came from. They are hard to define even for our own culture because we take them in with our mother's language. This might include such things as:

how we encode and retrieve information What is justice? Music? Proper parenting? Beauty or ugliness? What meaning is attached to "teaching" stories? What does being well-educated mean? What constitutes status?

CONVERGENCE AND DIVERGENCE

Global communication, transportation, and changes in living styles have begun to blur many of the surface distinctions between different cultures. Many cultures are adopting Western dress, for example.

The deeper differences remain. For example, compare the respect due to elders in some Asian, Latin, and African societies--still true today even in modern urban environments--with the way seniors are viewed in many Western countries. While there is some surface convergence, there is divergence as well. In fact, the world seems to become more tribal as opportunities for communication expand.

As the idea of a unified Europe becomes a reality, for example, many people are exerting their differences more, not less. Or, witness the ethnic strife and new nation-states that have emerged with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Cross-cultural communication is more important now than it has ever been. How can this idea be put to practical use?

HIGH- AND LOW-CONTEXT CULTURES

One of the deep or hidden aspects that differentiate cultures is the amount of context a culture's members expect in social interactions. People who study such things divide cultures into those, which are high context, and those which are low context. In general, high context cultures place great importance on:

ambience decorum the relative status of the participants in a communication the manner of a message's delivery. Low context cultures tend to want to ignore such things and emphasize the content of a communication, an attitude that might be expressed in the phrase "cut to the chase."

Example: Imagine a business environment; several team members have been gathered from around the world to attend a corporate meeting. At this meeting they are expected to make key decisions that will affect corporate goals and objectives. Included on the new team are people from

Korea Malaysia Singapore South Africa Mexico Chile Germany Denmark

Canada This is the first full face-to-face meeting of the entire team. They are all gathered in the foyer outside the conference room of the Seoul office. Formal introductions are made during this preliminary meeting while the team members breakfast on coffee, tea, and pastries.

After a while, they all move into the conference room. The tables and chairs are arranged facing the front of the room in traditional classroom style. The Canadians, the Germans, and the Danes look rather unhappy, and with a few disapproving words about this making for poor interaction, begin rearranging the furniture. The host Koreans looks confused and makes no comments. Neither do the other Asians or those from Latin America. The meeting begins; the agenda is announced; issues are raised, discussed, and decided upon. At the end of the morning session, the Germans comment to the Danes that the Koreans, Chileans, Mexicans, and Malays have not said much. The Canadians and the Danes nod in agreement, and shrug. After lunch, the Koreans host Malay and a Mexican colleague takes the Canadian team leader aside and expresses very strong reservations about one of the decisions. The Canadian is aghast; the morning meeting has been wasted; the discussion will have to begin again. "Why didn't you say so during the meeting?" he fairly shouts.

WHAT HAPPENED? For the Asians and Latin Americans, members of high-context societies such as issues, circumstances, relationships are as important as the work. In this case the business being discussed at the meeting. Interpersonal relationships were not developed well enough in this fledgling team for the objection to an argument to be raised publicly. Also, team members with higher status in the organization were present. The cultural orientation of those from High Context societies insisted that comments be made at a more private (appropriate) time. The context of where and how comments and opinions are heard was, clearly, more important to them than the comments themselves. The others, coming from low-context cultures, just wanted to get the job done. The furniture was rearranged because they were interested in the task and in getting it accomplished as efficiently as possible. The Asians and Latin Americans wanted to spend some time learning about each other and establishing a

foundation for relationships. The classroom atmosphere and the brief opportunities for socializing were, in fact, exactly what they needed in this new setting.

A VERY EXPENSIVE MISTAKE

The per diem cost of gathering people from all over the world could easily reach tens of thousands of U.S. dollars. The best that can be hoped for in this kind of a multicultural team situation is an environment that fosters the building of a shared culture -- a context, mutually agreed upon - wherein this "virtual" culture can grow, thrive, and benefit from the cultural richness of individual members.

THE CHALLENGE
So, let's take a look at this: people, programmed differently and with little, or at best, a superficial knowledge of each other, now have to communicate something in such a way as to make meaning clear and not provoke misunderstanding. The message might be anything from a simple sales pitch ("buy my widgets") to an attempt by a global corporate leader to communicate a vision to employees in fifty countries. The communicator wants a particular and sometimes well defined reaction to the message. The challenge is to get the desired reaction from the communication. It is sometimes very difficult to do so.

BUILDING UNDERSTANDING
Understand the cultures you are attempting to communicate with. Begin by looking for rich points such as those found in a culture's rituals. Rich points provide a web of associations. By analogy they may give you insights into the culture.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Reading rich points is similar to learning a new language. You're traveling and you notice such things as food, articles of clothing, etc., that are different, yet similar to things in your own culture. Your language skills say: replace this old word with this new one. (A serape is a blanket that is worn like a coat.)

Eventually you acquire a simple vocabulary in the new language. Similarly, you are somewhat familiar with various rites and rituals--weddings, funerals, rites of passage--that occur in every culture. Your cultural skills say: replace this idea with that one. Eventually, you begin to understand (superficially and overtly) the new cultural environment. A web of understanding begins to develop based on prior experiences. Sometimes, the language and cultural cues are such that you have no experience with the situation or any clues at all. It is nearly impossible to develop a "web" in such a situation. At such times you need a cultural guide, someone to provide you with the clues you will need--to develop understanding.

COMMON DENOMINATORS
Know your audience(s) well enough to be able to anticipate their reaction to your communication. It is impossible to learn all the cultures you must communicate with, especially if you are developing something for export to many countries. The best you can do is tried to find a common denominator and work from there.

SUCCESS STORY
One successful example is the Macintosh GUI interface with its folders and trash cans. Its use of icons and simple concepts satisfies the communication needs of most people. Have you know anyone who experienced serious difficulty figuring it out on a MAC? Some people are such sophisticated users that the loss of control over the details of the system irritates them; others are confused by the icons on the screen and need additional help. And, most people looking at the interface can intuit what to do. This works regardless of language. The lesson: giving most of your audience access to your material is not really impossible; doing so takes creativity and imagination.

Conclusion
Culture is, basically, a set of shared values that a group of people holds. Such values affect how you think and act and, more importantly, the kind of criteria by which you judge others. Cultural meanings render some behaviors as normal and right and others strange or wrong.

In reality, cultures are not right or wrong, better or worse; they are just different. In today's global business community, there is no single best approach to communicating with one another. The key to cross-cultural success is to develop an understanding of, and a deep respect for, the differences. When you communicate, keep in mind that even though English is considered the international language of business, it is a mistake to assume that every businessperson speaks good English. In fact, only about half of the 800 million people who speak English learned it as a first language. And, those who speak it as a second language are often more limited than native speakers. When you communicate cross-culturally, make particular efforts to keeping your communication clear, simple and unambiguous. And (sadly) avoid humor until you know that the person you're communicating with "gets it" and isn't offended by it. Humor is notoriously culture-specific: Many things that pass for humor in one culture can be seen as grossly offensive in another. Finally, if language barriers present themselves, it may be in every one's best interest to employ a reliable, experienced translator. Because English is not the first language of many international businesspeople, their use of the language may be peppered with culture-specific or non-standard English phrases, which can hamper the communication process. Again, having a translator on hand (even if just during the initial phases of work) may be the best solution here. The translator can help everyone involved to recognize cultural and communication differences and ensure that all parties, regardless of geographic location and background, come together and stay together through successful project completion.

References
http://www.h-o-m-e.org/Communication/Newcomb.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-cultural_communication http://www.hodu.com/across-cultures.shtml http://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/Cross-Cultural-communication.htm http://ideas.repec.org/p/fem/femwpa/2003.78.html http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/488-communicating-across-cultures