Chapter 7: Cross-Cultural Communication and Negotiation

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PowerPoint slides by R. Dennis Middlemist,
Professor of Management, Colorado State University
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Cross-Cultural Communication and Negotiation

• The specific objectives of this chapter are
• DEFINE the term communication, examine some
  examples of verbal communication styles, and
  explain the importance of message interpretation.
• ANALYZE the common downward and upward
  communication flows used in international
  communication.
• EXAMINE the language, perception, and culture of
  communication, and nonverbal barriers to
  effective international communications.

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Cross-Cultural Communication and Negotiation
The specific objectives of this chapter are

1. PRESENT the steps that can be taken to overcome
   international communication problems.
2. 5. DEVELOP approaches to international
   negotiations that respond to differences in
   culture.
3. REVIEW different negotiating and bargaining
   behaviors that may improve negotiations and
   outcomes.

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Communication Process and Verbal Communication
Styles

• Communication
• The process of transferring meanings from sender
  to receiver
• See Diagram
• Verbal communication styles
• Role of context in communication High or Low
• Indirect and Direct Styles
• Succinct vs. Exacting vs.Elaborate
• Contextual and Personal Styles

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Context What is it?

• Context is information that surrounds a
  communication and helps convey the message.
• High-Context Societies
• Messages are often highly coded and implicit ,
  such as Japan and many Arab countries
• (implicit implied but not said directly)
• Low Context Societies
• The message is explicit and the speaker says
  precisely what he or she means such as the United
  States and Canada

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High Context

• Less verbally explicit communication, less
  written/formal information
• More internalized understandings of what is
  communicated
• Long term relationships
• Strong boundaries- who is accepted as belonging
  vs who is considered an "outsider"
• Knowledge is situational, relational.
• Decisions and activities focus around personal
  face-to-face relationships, often around a
  central person who has authority.

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Low Context

• Rule oriented, people play by external rules
• More knowledge is codified, public, external, and
  accessible.
• Sequencing, separation--of time, of space, of
  activities, of relationships
• More interpersonal connections of shorter
  duration
• Knowledge is more often transferable
• Task-centered. Decisions and activities focus
  around what needs to be done, division of
  responsibilities.

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Ways that High and Low Context Differ

• The Structure of Relationships
• High
•   Dense, intersecting networks and longterm
  relationships, strong boundaries, relationship
  more important than task
• Low
•   Loose, wide networks, shorter term,
  compartmentalized relationships, task more
  important than relationship
• Main Type of Cultural Knowledge
• High
•   More knowledge is below the
  waterline--implicit, patterns that are not fully
  conscious, hard to explain even if you are a
  member of that culture
• Low
•   More knowledge is above the
  waterline--explicit, consciously organized

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Entering High and Low Context Situations

• High contexts can be difficult to enter if you
  are an outsider (because you don't carry the
  context information internally, and because you
  can't instantly create close relationships).
• Low contexts are relatively easy to enter if you
  are an outsider (because the environment contains
  much of the information you need to participate,
  and because can you form relationships fairly
  soon, and because the important thing is
  accomplishing a task rather than feeling your way
  into a relationship).

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Explicit and Implicit Communication
Japanese
Arabs
Latin Americans
Italians
English
French
North Americans
Scandinavians
Germans
Swiss Germans
Adapted from Figure 71 Explicit/Implicit
Communication An International Comparison
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Communication Process and Verbal Communication
Styles
Verbal communication styles

• Indirect and direct styles
• In high-context cultures, messages are implicit
  and indirect
• Voice intonation, timing, and facial expressions
  play important roles in conveying information
• In low-context cultures, people often meet only
  to accomplish objectives and tend to be direct
  and focused in their communications

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Communication Process and Verbal Communication
Styles
Verbal communication styles (continued)

• Elaborate and succinct styles
• Three degrees of communication quantity
  elaborate, exacting, and succinct.
• The elaborating style is more popular in
  high-context cultures that have a moderate degree
  of uncertainty avoidance
• The exacting style focuses on precision and the
  use of the right amount of words to convey the
  message and is more common in low-context,
  low-uncertainty-avoidance cultures
• The succinct style is more common in high-context
  cultures with considerable uncertainty avoidance
  where people tend to say few words and allow
  understatements, pauses, and silence to convey
  meaning.

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Communication Process and Verbal Communication
Styles
Verbal communication styles (continued)

• Contextual and personal styles
• Contextual style is one that focuses on the
  speaker and relationship of the parties
• Contextual style is often associated with
  high-powerdistance, collective, high-context
  cultures
• Personal style focuses on the speaker and the
  reduction of barriers between the parties
• Personal style is more popular in
  low-power-distance, individualistic, low-context
  cultures

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Phases of Multicultural Development
Table 71 Major Characteristics of Verbal Styles
Adapted from Table 71 Major Characteristics of
Verbal Styles
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Phases of Multicultural Development
Table 71 Major Characteristics of Verbal Styles
Adapted from Table 71 Major Characteristics of
Verbal Styles
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Summary of Verbal Styles
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Nonverbal Communication

• Nonverbal communication
• The transfer of meaning through means such as
  body language and use of physical space
• Kinesics
• The study of communication through body movement
  and facial expression
• Eye contact
• Posture
• Gestures
• Chromatics
• The use of color to communicate messages

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Nonverbal Communication

• Proxemics
• The study of the way that people use physical
  space to convey messages
• Intimate distance is used for very confidential
  communications
• Personal distance is used for talking with family
  and close friends
• Social distance is used to handle most business
  transactions
• Public distance is used when calling across the
  room or giving a talk to a group

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Personal Space in the U.S.
Adapted from Figure 73 Personal Space
Categories for Those in the United States
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Nonverbal Communication

• Chronemics
• Monochronic time schedule
• Things are done in a linear fashion.
• Manager addresses Issue A first and then moves on
  to Issue B
• Time schedules are very important and time is
  viewed as something that can be controlled and
  should be used wisely
• Polychronic time schedules
• People tend to do several things at the same time
• People place higher value on personal involvement
  than on getting things done on time
• Schedules are subordinated to personal
  relationships