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Cross-cultural Communication working paper
Problems of cross cultural communication
Inter-cultural communication
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Even when the speaker attempts to express their cultural identity in a language that is not their own, there can still be a disconnect in understanding. This reinforces the idea that language is a powerful tool for expressing cultural identity, but it can also create barriers when used to communicate across cultural divides. Overall, "Eyes" illustrates the importance of language in shaping cultural identity, and the complexities that arise when language is used to communicate across
The author uses the example of how people from different cultures react differently to insults and this to affect the importance of communication that can be seen in the business world. Moreover, the author uses cases of plane crashes such as why the Korean Airlines were having a lot of crashes and the reason of the accident of the Colombian plane from Avianca Airlines. In the case of the Korean Airlines, the main reason was due to their mitigated language where different phrases could have other meaning and one who is was in a lower rank, tended to use a different language to those form a higher rank. Therefore, language and culture are important when the communication needs to be straight and there is not sufficient time to imply the meaning of phrases. The same idea is presented in the Avianca Airline case, where due to
The Europeans had “curiosities and thirst for power” (Angel, 2012), so communication with the Natives didn’t seem to be a thought. One could say each culture was different in the sense of being a high context culture or a low context culture. The Europeans were definitely the low context culture and the Natives the high context culture. Kittler, Nelms, and Sucher (2015) suggests that in a high context culture, the meaning of conversation is found in context, not in words. On the other hand, low context cultures focus on actual words to be expressed rather than focusing on who is receiving the message (p.
In the essay “The Cost of Diversity in Communication: Two Camels”, the author Eva Karlsson shows how the lack of speaking a common language and diverse cultural perspectives can cause misunderstanding and embarrassing situations. Karlsson tells us about a very unusual misunderstanding that happened to a couple from Sweden who were on a vacation in Tunisia. The author says, in Souse, where Sara and Larry were enjoying their time, they decided to go to a night club. While they were there, a Tunisian man came up to Sara’s boyfriend asking permission to dance with her. Larry approved.
Throughout generations cultural traditions have been passed down, alongside these traditions came language. The language of ancestors, which soon began to be molded by the tongue of newer generations, was inherited. Though language is an everlasting changing part of the world, it is a representation of one’s identity, not only in a cultural way but from an environmental standpoint as well. One’s identity is revealed through language from an environmental point of view because the world that one is surrounded with can cause them to have their own definitions of words, an accent, etc. With newer generations, comes newer forms of languages.
She emphasizes the recognition of “cross-cultural” communication is beneficial to repair the conversational issues (Tannen 264). She proposes couples to improve their relationship by learning differences, adjusting conversational styles, and changing attitude. Learning differences is crucial to couples at the beginning of improvement, which helps couples to achieve mutual acceptance. Ideally, couples change their communication patterns according to their partners’ preference.
Lera Boroditsky, a professor at Stanford, introduces readers to the question of whether a person’s language can shape their thought processes and views of the world around them through her research conducted at Stanford and MIT. Boroditsky explores further into the questioning about a language’s influence in her article “Lost in Translation”. Boroditsky proves to an audience of broad audience of scholars and people interested in cultural psychology that a person’s language not only influences the way a person thinks but can change a person’s perception of the world and media around them. Lera Boroditsky, through her use of rhetorical questions, comparisons, and addressing the counterargument achieves her purpose of proving that language does
While at a public speaking, Tan realized that she was using all these large words that her audience understood but her mother did not. “I was saying things like, “The intersection of memory upon imagination” and “There is an aspect of my fiction that relates to thus–and-thus…the forms of English I did not use at home with my mother” (Tan 58). Tan’s mother was in the room while Tan was giving the speech and that was when she realized that language could be a powerful tool that can connect each other in different ways. The English language can also bring people together who speak English but not in such a common way. “We were talking about the price of new and used furniture and I heard myself saying this: “Not waste money that way” (Tan 58).
Languages are complex because they are made up of many components. Some components include the culture, meaning, and interpretation. The way people understand language has to do mostly with their culture and their understanding of what is being said. Also, depending upon where someone is raised, the pronunciation of certain words can be different and therefore it influences the understanding. My goal in this paper is to demonstrate that language and culture are intertwined.
Cultural identity plays a very vital role in cross cultural communication, people from a particular culture communicate with partners and employees from many different cultures and in this situation every individual strives to keep their cultural and individual identity. According to Gardiner and Kosmitzki, identity is defined as “a person 's self-definition as a separate and distinct individual, including behaviours, beliefs, and attitudes” (Gardiner & Kosmitzki, 2008, p. 154). Also, Ting-Toomey defines identity as a "reflective self-conception or self-image that we each derive from our family, gender, cultural, ethnic, and individual socialization process"( Ting-Toomey, 2005). Both definitions bring out the generalisation of cultural identity
Language is a system of communication consisting of sounds, words and grammar, or the system of communication used by the people of a particular country or profession. Even animals communicate. Birds use sound and movement to transfer information. Likewise human beings use sound and movement like speech and gesture to communicate. Language is the fundamental factor leading and affecting communication.
All human beings communicate either with intention or without intention every single day. According to Barth (2014), Palo Alto Team stated “ one cannot not communicate” in one of their axioms of communication. Communication can be defined as “a social process in which individuals employ symbols to establish and interpret meaning in their environment” (Went & Turner, 2014, p. 5). It can be divided into three models in order to enhance our understanding towards the function of communication, which are mainly linear model, interactional model and transcactional model (Wood, 2009). According to Went & Turner, 2014, there are also different traditions and contexts in communication where it helps us to break down difficulty when we attempt to understand communication theory and their process.
Conflict is a normal part of human interaction. Due to the differences in high-context and low-context cultures as well as the variation in verbal and non-verbal communication, there does not seem to be any gesture and manner of communication that have the same meaning in all societies. Furthermore, not many people have a profound knowledge in the communication styles of their partners. Misinterpretation appears and entails cultural conflict as a result.
The Language Culture and Society programme provides us with strong theoretical and interdisciplinary foundation for the study of a range of educational practices across the human lifespan and in a range of theoretical and methodological perspective is brought to bear on studies that explore the nature of literate practices, democracy and civic engagement and participation in social life. The programme focuses on relationships between education school and the dynamics and changing structures of language, culture, and society. It examines connection between broader, social, cultural, linguistic, historical, aesthetic and political factors in education and the local context in which these issues take place. It has long been recognized that language is an essential and important part of a given culture and that the impact of culture upon a given language is something intrinsic and indispensible. Language is a social phenomenon.
Language is an important part of our life. Language and communication cannot separate. People use the language as a means of communication to express their ideas and feelings. They communicate either with each other using language in every social interaction; communicate with others directly or indirectly in the spoken and written form. Therefore, language is an important thing of communication in social life.
