Describes three ways in which culture interferes with effective cross- cultural understanding.

Introduction

Culture is a way of thinking and living whereby one picks up a set of attitudes, values, norms and beliefs that are taught and reinforced by other members in the group. This set of basic assumptions and solutions to the problems of the world is a shared system that is passed on from generation to generation to ensure survival. A culture consists of unwritten and written principles and laws that guide how an individual interacts with the outside world. Members of a culture can be identified by the fact that they share some similarity. They may be united by religion, by geography, by race or ethnicity.

Our cultural understanding of the world and everything in it ultimately affects our style of communication as we start picking up ways of one’s culture at around the same time we start learning to communicate.  Culture influences the words we speak and our behavior.

Rawpixel/ dollar photo club

Cross Cultural Communication

Cross cultural communication thus refers to the communication between people who have differences in any one of the following: styles of working, age, nationality, ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. Cross cultural communication can also refer to the attempts that are made to exchange, negotiate and mediate cultural differences by means of language, gestures and body language. It is how people belonging to different cultures communicate with each other.

Each individual can practice culture at varying levels. There is the culture of the community he grows up in, there is work culture at his work place and other cultures to which one becomes an active participant or slowly withdraws from.  An individual is constantly confronted with the clash between his original culture and the majority culture that he is exposed to daily. Cultural clashes occur as a result of individuals believing their culture is better than others.

Cross cultural communication has been influenced by a variety of academic disciplines. It is necessary in order to avoid misunderstandings that can lead to conflicts between individuals or groups. Cross cultural communication creates a feeling of trust and enables cooperation.The focus is on providing the right response rather than providing the right message.

When two people of different cultures encounter each other, they not only have different cultural backgrounds but their systems of turn – talking are also different. Cross cultural communication will be more effective and easier if both the speakers have knowledge of the turn taking system being used in the conversation (For example: One person should not monopolize the conversation or only one person should talk at a time).

LarayBarna’s Sources of Miscommunication in Cross Cultural Exchanges

1) Assumption of similarities : This refers to our tendency to think how we behave and act is the universally accepted rule of behavior. When someone differs, we have a negative view of them

2) Language Differences :  Problems occur when there is an inability to understand what the other is saying because different languages are being spoken.  Talking the same language itself can sometimes lead to discrepancies as some words have different meanings in various contexts, countries or cultures

3) Nonverbal Misinterpretation : The way we dress, the way we express ourselves through our body language, eye contact and gestures also communicates something. A simple gesture like nodding the head is considered to be YES in certain cultures and NO in others

4) Preconceptions and Stereotypes : Stereotypes involves putting people into pre-defined slots based on our image of how we think they are or should be. It may consist of a set of characteristics that we assume that all members of a group share. This may be true or may be false. But stereotypes may lead to wrongful expectations and notions. A preconceived opinion of another can lead to bias and discrimination

5) Tendency to evaluate : Humans tend to make sense of the behavior and communication of others by analyzing them from one’s own cultural point of view without taking into consideration why the other person is behaving or communicating a certain way

6) High anxiety : Sometimes being confronted with a different cultural perspective will create an anxious state in an individual who does not know how to act or behave and what is considered to be appropriate (For example: A Japanese man and an American having a business meeting where both are unsure of the other’s cultural norms)

To reduce the above barriers to cross cultural communication, one can take the effort to develop one’s listening skills. This will ensure that we start hearing the real meaning of what is being said instead of understanding at face value. Becoming aware of our perceptions towards others will ensure that we take steps to not prejudge a person or stereotype them. By accepting people and their differences and acknowledging that we don’t know everything will make us open up to people and their differences resulting in us using contextual information for better understanding. Seeking feedback and taking risks to open up channels of communication and being responsible for our feelings and actions will go a long way in ensuring that miscommunication is mitigated.

This is the second part of a three-part blog series that explores cultural diversity: key concepts, barriers and enablers. I’m focusing on what you need to know and to do in order to avoid cultural misunderstandings and navigate nimbly cultural differences.

1- Ethnocentrism

We all have a natural tendency to look at other cultures through our own lenses. Ethnocentrism happens when we implicitly believe our way of doing things and seeing things is the right and only way. As a result, we negatively judge behaviours that don’t conform to our world vision. We perceive other’s behaviours as odd and improper. Ethnocentrism also creates an “us versus them” mentality that can be detrimental. In a previous company I worked for, countless times I’ve heard the French complain about the Americans in an ethnocentric way and vice-versa.

2- Stereotyping

It’s also common to rely on oversimplified clichés about people from different cultures. In fact, there are quite a few cross-cultural trainings in the market that are focused on memorizing cultural differences and can reinforce stereotyping. Learning about differences can be useful as a starting point. But individuals are unique; you can never predict a person’s behaviour based on his or her nationality. When we were moving to the UK, French friends told us, The British never invite you for dinner, which is a common social activity in France. We happen to have the loveliest British neighbours who invite us for dinner often.

3- Psychological barriers

To manage cross-cultural teams successfully, you need to flex your own style. It’s not easy to go against your natural preferences. People can feel unauthentic and incompetent. I know the case of a French manager who went to the United States. He found out that his typical French style of giving feedback, focused on what was “wrong” rather than on what was working well, was undermining his team’s confidence. He realised what the problem was, but he felt artificial acting the “American” way. He went back to France as soon as he could.

4- Language barriers

All teams have a common language, but when some people are more fluent than others, it creates social distance between members. In global teams, people who are less fluent in English tend to withdraw from communication, which means the team may not get all the input it needs. Understanding what’s said can be challenging if people speak too fast or use too much slang. This also might have an influence on how people’s competence and performance are perceived. I worked for an organisation where non-English native speakers felt that their career progression opportunities were not the same as for English native speakers.

5- Geographical distance

In global virtual teams, people don’t get the chance to interact and build relationships with each other as in a traditional office environment. And the less you know about people, the less you share information with them. Collaboration within virtual teams is, therefore, more challenging. Groups outside of the head office can also feel excluded. On the other hand, head office group members might think that other colleagues are not contributing. Differences in time zones also can be challenging. Often if you’re not in the headquarters, you are expected to cope with meeting timings that are less convenient. I know of a highly talented woman who left a global senior leadership role because she got tired of having frequent meetings in the night.

6- Conflicting values

Culture is like an iceberg: what you see are the behaviours, and those are influenced by the invisible values under the water line.  Cultural clashes happen when other people’s behaviour compromises our own values. Often, when you don’t understand or don’t agree with a behaviour, it means that there are conflicting values under the water line. There is no right or wrong way of doing things; it’s just a matter of cultural norms. Below, you’ll see a (non-exhaustive) list of common conflicting cultural values:

Task oriented vs. relationship oriented

In some countries like the US, people view conversations as an opportunity to exchange information. People get down to business quickly. In Latin American countries, for instance, conversations are primarily an opportunity to enhance the relationship. I once worked for an American company where, in meetings, participants barely introduced each other; we got down to work immediately. Being a Latin American, it took me a while to get used to it.

Direct vs. indirect communication

In countries like Germany, it is a sign of professionalism to speak clearly and leave no room for misinterpretation. In countries like Korea, people prefer to communicate indirectly. People approach problems through vague references. The danger here is that a person from a direct culture may come across as insensitive, while the person from the indirect culture may appear imprecise.

Open subtle disagreement

Cultures that place a high value on “face” and group harmony may be averse to confrontation, like in China. In other cultures, having a “good fight” is a sign of trust, like in the Netherlands. People from different parts of the world also vary in the amount of emotion they show during professional conversations. For example, Italians raise their voices, while the British are more composed.

Informality vs. formality

In some countries, such as Australia, people are generally casual; in others, like Japan, people tend to be more formal. To informal people, formality might be interpreted as the sign of stiffness, while informality to formal people might be perceived as a lack of professionalism.

Structured vs. flexible scheduling

All businesses follow timetables, but in some cultures, people strictly adhere to the schedule, whereas in others, they treat it as a suggestion. For some, “five minutes” could mean half an hour, and “tomorrow” could mean the next few days. In Brazil, I wouldn’t start a meeting exactly on time. It feels disrespectful not to wait a bit for the late comers. In the UK, not starting the meeting on time might be considered disrespectful towards those who made it to the meeting on time.

Egalitarian vs. hierarchical

Team members from more egalitarian countries, such as Sweden, may be accustomed to voicing their unfiltered opinions and ideas, while those from more hierarchical cultures tend to speak up only after more senior colleagues have expressed their views. I ran quite a few audits in Morocco, and people’s behaviours were totally different, depending on whether their bosses were in the same room or not.

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This is an excerpt from one of the chapters of my book “Succeed as an inclusive leader – Winning leadership habits in a diverse world”. To get my articles and updates directly in your inbox, sign up for my newsletter.

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