“BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

AND THE
GLOBAL CONTEXT”
Objectives

A concept of Culture
 Intercultural Communication
 National Cultural Variables
 Individual Cultural Variables
 Objective One: A concept of
Culture
What is Culture?

1. “The word culture, from the Latin colo, -ere,

with its root meaning "to cultivate", generally
refers to patterns of human activity and the
symbolic structures that give such activity
significance.” (Wikipedia)

2. “The system of shared beliefs, values, customs,

behaviors, and artifacts that the members of
society use to cope with their world and with one
another, and that are transmitted from
generation to generation through learning”
Intercultural Differences
Culture is everyday life activities.
Culture is:

 What we wear
 How we ‘greet’ other people
 How we communicate with other
people (Verbally or non-verbally)
 What we play
 What we eat, etc
 Difference of culture in terms of
Clothing
Arabian Clothing
Sub-Continent
(male)
Clothing (male)
Difference of culture in terms of
Food

Hot Dog; The most One of the most

popular American Food popular Chinese foods;
Crab
 Objective Two: Intercultural
Communication
Definition:
“Intercultural Communication is the
management of messages for the purpose
of creating meaning across cultures. 
(Griffin, 3rd ed. 404)  

Note: Studies have long determined that all

of us are more comfortable with persons
we know and who hold similar beliefs,
traits or interests.
 Different Theories about
Intercultural Communication:
 Anxiety Uncertainty Management Theory by William B.
Gudykunst (1985)
  Critical Theory by Jurgen Habermas (1964)
  Critical Theory  by Stanley Deetz (1982)
 Cross-cultural Adaptation by Young Kim (1977)
  Cultural Critical Studies by Stuart Hall (1976)
  Face Negotiation by Stella Ting-Toomey (1985)
 Feminist Genre by Karlyn Kohrs Campbell (1973)
  Genderlect by Deborah Tannen (1984)
  Marxist Theory by Karl Marx (1984)
  Meaning of Meaning Theory by I. A. Richards (1936)
  Muted Group Theory by Chris Kramarae
  Nonverbal Typologies by Paul Ekman and Wallace Friesen
(1969)
 Standpoint Theory by Sandra Harding and Julia T. Wood
(1982)
  Stranger by William Gudykunst (1985)
Objecitve Three: National Cultural
Variables
Politics Religion Social Norms

National Cultural Variables Language

Economics Laws & Regulations Education

 Education

 People’s attitude towards

education
b. What is the level of education of middle
managers?
c. To what degree is education of women
supported in the country?
d. Does education constitute a significant
portion of the national budgets?
 Education Levels of Chinese,
Asian and U.S Managers
Highest Level Chinese, Asian, % U.S, %
of Education %
Less than 5.4 2.5 0.1
High School
High School 31.8 12.4 3.2
Graduate
Some College 34.6 19.4 16.9

Undergraduat 27.6 65.4 79.8

e Degree
Postgraduate 0.7 25.0 30.0
Degree
 A quick assumption might be that Asians,
particularly Chinese are less interested in
education. If you made such an assumption, you
will be wrong. We must go beyond surface
conlcusions and asses the reasons that Chinese
managers lack executive education.

1. In relation to its size, China does not have many

institutions of higher educations, by 1985 there
were only 1016 institutions of higher education.

2. China is an agrarian economy. Over 800 million

people still live in the countryside; 69 % of the
labor force is agricultural. Some early Chinese
leaders felt that education was not needed in
such an environment.
National Cultural Variables

Politics Religion Social Norms

National Cultural Language

Variables

Economics Laws & Regulations Education

 Laws & Regulations

 Laws & Regulations; Degree of formality

 To what extend are the laws of the country
codified?
 Is there uniform enforcement of the laws & the
regulations of the country?
 Are the laws & regulations of your country
accepted and enforced?
 In both the developed and
underdeveloping nations, various
governments regulations affect business
communications and the sales of products.
For example:
 Advertising directed at children is restricted
in USA & Canada.

 Advertisement of Cigarettes is restricted in

Europe.

 Countries like France, Mexico have

restriction on the use of foreign languages in
advertisements.
Can you find advertisement of liquor in any
Pakistani newspaper like this?

No! Because Laws and Regulations in

Pakistan restrict such an advertisement in
any newspapers.
 What will be the consequence if
you still dare to advertise for liquor
in Pakistan?
National Cultural Variables

Politics Religion Social Norms

National Cultural Language

Variables

Economics Laws & Regulations Education

 Economics

 Economics; Past history and

projections

c) Which economic changes have accurred

in the past 5 years that will affect the
future?
d) Is the government supportive of the
economic changes accurring?
e) How welcome are outside investors in
your host country?
f) May funs be removed easily from your
host country
 Some examples of the economic
Variations in different
Countries/Cultures
 Under the U.S free-enterprise system,
competitors usually set their own prices.
 OPEC (Organization of Petroleum
Exporting Countries) as a cartel, sets oil
prices.
 Isreali agricultural competitors mutually
agree on a price.
 Japanese businesses have to check with
the governemt before initialting major
production and trading changes.
National Cultural Variables

Politics Religion Social Norms

National Cultural Language

Variables

Economics Laws & Regulations Education

 Politics

 Politics; Past History and

projections for Future
 Which political changes have accured
within past 5 years?
 How supportive is the government of
outside investors? Of joint ventures?
 What are the protocols, the
conventions individuals must respect
in the host country?
Some pertinent Examples:
 If you are intending to do job or business in
North Korea, you need to be cautious of
saying/writing anything directed against the
government otherwise you might need to face
sever consequences.
 If you are intending to get connected with the
field of media, you should know that the present
government of Pakistan is much liberal in this
regard as compared to previous governments.
(This may not be the case in next 5 years due to
possible change in reign).
National Cultural Variables

Politics Religion Social Norms

National Cultural Language

Variables

Economics Laws & Regulations Education

 Religion

Religion: Diversity of belief

structure
 Are you aware of the major religious
beliefs that could affect your business
relationships?
 Will the religious holidays affect your
rhythm of conducting business?
 What personal behavior is acceptable
and nonacceptable?
National Cultural Variables

Politics Religion Social Norms

National Cultural Language

Variables

Economics Laws & Regulations Education

 Social Norms

Social Norms: Importance of family,

influence of past colonial influence
 Are you aware of the social hierarchies of
the country?
 Is there a rank order of importance for
participants at meetings?
 Who will really make the business
decisions?
 Which country’s influence is still evident
after previous colonial control?
A Business group celebrating
with Champagne in West

What will native people think if you do it in

Pakistan?
 Language

 Language: Use of English, and

other languages used in business
relationships
 Is it necessary to have an interpreter at
business sessions?
 Is English understood at the oral or
written level?
 Is there a protocol to follow for formal
and informal communication?
 Why to study and analyze all
these factors?

“Failure to prepare is preparing to Fail”

(Coach John
Wooden)
 Objective Four: Individual Cultural
Variables
Decision Making
Manners Verbal Communication

Individual Cultural
Acceptable Dress Variables Nonverbal Communication

Food Space Time

 Time

Prescriptions of Time
 Is the concept of considered linear or
circular
 What impact will time have upon
business decisions?
 Is time considered variable or an
intangible assets?
 Space

 Perception of Space

What is the average acceptable personal

space between native and the host
country?
 Food

Perceptions of Food

Are you aware of the eating habits of

your host?
Are their table conventions you should
be aware of?
Are there foods you might find
disagreeable?
 Manners

 Perception of
Manners

 What is the
Note: Do not try giving gifts
protocol regarding like this to the girls wearing
the introduction of Hijaab
persons in a
business situation?
 What are the rules
of gift giving?
Acceptable Dress

 Perception of Dress

 How much skin may be exposed in

the both an informal and in a formal
situation?
 Are certain colours disturbing?
 Will western attire be accepted?
This dress code may be deemed decent in
Muslim countries but will people accept
this as a business dress code in USA,
Europe or any other western country?

Our Humble Advice: Don’t get

impressed by a girl wearing
Hijaab, she might be wearing it
reluctantly!!

”‫”ہات ھی ک ے دانت ک ھان ے ک ے اور دک ھان ے ک ے اور‬

 Decision Making

Perceptions of Decision Making

Is the pattern of making decisions
consistent from one company to another?
Is placement of the major decision maker
consistent in a meeting situation?
Is an inductive or deductive partner of
the decision making preferred?
Verbal Communication

 Volume varies culture to culture and

country to country.

 Different voice volume shows

different attitude of the human
behavior.
Nonverbal Communication

They say: “Action

speaks louder than
the words”