Философия/ 4. Философия культуры

Mikhelson S.V.

Krasnoyarsk state agrarian University, Russia

Different cultural factors, which influence business communication

In today’s global business environment, more and more of us are required to understand people who come from countries and cultures different from our own.  This would make culture an important aspect when it comes to business communication. Cultural awareness shapes how business firms behave in cross-culturally reflected international markets.

International business and communication has been largely concerned with identifying cultural differences affecting communication.

Culture affects the way people think about business in their own society. An awareness of cultural attitudes toward business will help you communicate efficiently and effectively when working with people from other cultures.

Ignoring culture in business communication can lead to problems and communication disruptions. Internal business communication can be disrupted or misinterpreted if workers do not share the same understanding of goals, expectations and processes. Understanding a culture can help businesses anticipate potential challenges or barriers in the adoption of new policies or processes before efforts break down. For example, some business cultures may thrive in an exchange and dialogue-based communication system while other cultures (for example, Japanese and Arab cultures) rely more heavily on subtext. If new information or ideas are suddenly imposed on employees accustomed to a more collaborative work culture, there may be a lack of buy-in and the project will fail.

Culture is a shared set of values and perceptions – and a very powerful concept. Culture can be limited to small groups, such as an office or a company, or it can be wide enough to span continents as is the case when people refer to “Western Culture”, which encompasses the commonalities of numerous nations. Each individual runs into culture in our towns, regions, nations, ethnic backgrounds and of course, work. Business intersects with culture at many junctures and a smart businessperson considers all of these when making important decisions.

The focus of this study is on cultural differences and their effects on business and business communication.

First of all, we should identify what culture means. Definitions of culture are numerous and often are vague. Some people think that “Culture is a set of shared and enduring meanings, values, and beliefs that characterize national, ethnic, and other groups and orient their behavior” [3]. E. Adamson Hoebel, a noted anthropologist, defined culture as “the integrated system of learned behavior patterns which are characteristic of the members of a society and which are not the result of biological inheritance” [6].

In international business, the cultural environment factors create the greatest difficulties. That is why correct assessment of differences of national cultures and their adequate accounting are becoming more and more important. To take into account the factors of the cultural environment also makes a complex structure of culture that determines the diversity of its functions in every society. There are informational, cognitive, normative, symbolic, valuable functions of culture.

The symbolic function of culture is the most important in the culture system. Representing a certain symbolic system, culture involves the knowledge, possession of it. Without studying the relevant sign systems to master the achievements of culture is not possible. That is why language (oral or written) is a means of communication between people. Language is vehicle of culture and is often one of the most visible and audible ways of the expression, without ignoring that several cultures may use the same language or that one language may serve more than one culture.

The valuable function reflects the important qualitative state of the culture. Culture as a certain system of values generates a person well-defined needs and value orientation. According to their level and quality, people often judge the cultural degree of a person.

National culture is a synthesis of cultures of different strata and groups of the society. Originality of national culture, known for its uniqueness and originality is seen in the spiritual (language, literature, music, painting, religion) and material (economic structure, agriculture, tradition of labor and production) spheres of life and activities.

There are different factors, which influence international business. They are: geography, politics and law, art, social organization, religion, language, national values and traditions, technology and so on.

Religion is a pillar of society. Of course, religion has an impact on the level of economic development of the country, but to understand the culture of nation is important to take into account religious aspects and their influence on the formation of national character. Hofstede believes that the spread of businesses onto the global stage brings the issue of national and regional differences to the fore. “There is something in all countries called ‘management’, but its meaning differs to a larger or smaller extent from one country to another” [7]. 

We should focus upon the Eastern and Western cultures. A primary influence, if not the primary influence, within the Eastern culture is Confucianism [2], [9]. Confucius lived approximately 2,500 years ago, and his teaching of the importance of society, the group, and hierarchical relationships within a society has endured through the ages. Likewise, Buddhism and Taoism, the primary religions of the Eastern cultures, place similar emphasis on the importance of the group in society [1]. In contrast, the Judeo-Christian religion has been the primary influence in the West. The Protestant Work Ethic epitomizes the Judeo-Christian emphasis on personal achievement and individual self-worth [12]. Ethical roots in the USA date back to the country’s Puritan origins. They tend to be based on a foundation of traditional Judeo-Christian and Western sociotheological laws and principles. Underlying this system is the belief in an intrinsic underlying truth. This belief is central to the biblical system of ethics and morality. Here, moral and ethical bases are provided through the decrees of a sovereign moral authority, God. As a sovereign, God declares right and wrong, providing a general moral and legal framework for organizing a society [2].

The Judeo-Christian perspective on the origin of life suggests that individuals are created by God, and that all human beings are created equal. Based on this presumption, the boundaries around the individual self are defined as worthy of protection. Personality is defined within the individual who functions as an independent being, and the individual is the autonomous unit of action within the social group. Society from this point of view is seen as a collection of individuals, each of whom is a self-contained and, ideally, an almost self-sufficient entity.

Personal goals are emphasized over group goals. Numerous studies support this characterization of individualistic cultures [7], [10].

Ethical roots in the USA date back to the country's Puritan origins. They tend to be based on a foundation of traditional Judeo-Christian and Western sociotheological laws and principles. Underlying this system is the belief in an intrinsic underlying truth. This belief is central to the biblical system of ethics and morality. Here, moral and ethical bases are provided through the decrees of a sovereign moral authority, God. As a sovereign, God declares right and wrong, providing a general moral and legal framework for organizing a society.

Parallel to Protestantism in the West, Confucianism has been hypothesized to provide the ideological foundation that promotes economic development in Asia. Although the influence of Confucianism has been studied at the national and societal level, the manner in which Confucian values relate to individual job attitudes is yet to be adequately addressed. Confucian cultures emphasize that one’s life is an inheritance from one’s ancestors, just as one’s children’s lives flow from one’s own. Family is conceptualized as the “great self ” (da wo), and the boundaries of the self are flexible enough to include family members and significant others. It is this great self that an individual is obligated to protect against any threat from the outside, in contrast to the individual self of Western culture. Chinese identity is defined in terms of the system of relationships in which a person is involved [10]. As a result, other personal relations may be treated as part of the self, and selfness is confirmed only through interpersonal relationships. Being a member of a group entails being held in esteem by that group, which in turn means that certain demands are made on one, and that one is entitled to make certain claims. These expectations are what confer value on the individual, so if status as a member is lost, status as a person is also lost. Personal identity is dependent on continued relations with the group. Confucian ethics also advocate the principle of respecting the superior. That is, the person in the superior position has different moral obligations and responsibilities from people in lower positions. Confucianist ethics is best summarized by Herman Kahn in his World Economic Development: 1979 and Beyond (1979). He states that Confucianism promotes a high value on education, a desire for accomplishments in various skills, and seriousness about tasks, job, family, and obligations in the individual and the family. There is very little interest in advancing individual interests [8].

Communication takes an important role in intercultural collaboration. Because people from different cultures understand the same word multiply. National and cultural specific character of the verbal communication consists of the system of factors determining differences in theorganization, methods and forms of communication. These are social factors, cultural traditions, specific verbal and nonverbal means, revealing the terms of intercultural communication[4]. Western people favor more explicit forms of communication, whereas Eastern people prefer an implicit style of communication. Hall used the cultural dimension of high- and low-context as a theoretical framework to explain the different preference of communication style across cultures. He defined context as the amount of information packed into a specific instance of communication. People from a low-context culture (e.g., European Americans and Germans) rely more on the explicit message and pay less attention on the surrounded information, whereas people from a high-context culture (e.g., Chinese and Koreans) pay more attention to the contextual information and rely less on the direct information [5]. When high-context and low-context people attempt to communication, misunderstanding often occurs.

Victor depicted cross-cultural business communication as an applied form of ethnography in which a communicator closely observes and analyzes components of another culture. He discussed sevenvariables that affect business communication as they shift across cultures: language, environment/technology, social organization, contexting, authority, nonverbal behavior, 5and conceptions of time. By framing the right questions about these variables, he said, one can gain insight into new cultures and their business practices. Then, to adapt to a target audience, businesspeople can “draw their own conclusions regarding the best way to accommodate cultural factors affecting business communication” [5].

To increase understanding of a communicator’s state of mind in an intercultural business communication situation, it is necessary to reconceptualize cultural identity. Edward Hall’s work launched decades of inquiry into the nature of intercultural communication in a variety of venues, including business, technical, and other professional settings.

However, much of the resulting work privileges nationality and, to a lesser extent, ethnicity over other components of cultural identity. A broader, more balanced concept of cultural identity would help people gain self insight, would expand the analysis of business problems, and would influence the design of business communication research.

Communication is the main problem in cross cultural businesses. Always explain and clarify the meaning of what you are saying to maintain harmony and miscommunication. It is very important to learn the culture and customs of the country in which you have to reside now. It is important to have a smooth and efficient life as you have to work in that country now, with the country men, so it is for your benefit.

A large part of international business success depends how well businesses appreciate cultural differences, adapt their business to accommodate these differences and learn to carry out their business objectives within this environment. Ignoring culture in business communication can lead to problems and communication disruptions. This is why it is important to be aware of possible differences you can encounter and how these can impact your international business.

References

1. Dollinger Marc J. (1988) Confucian ethics and Japanese management practices. Journal of Business Ethics, 7: 575-84.

2. Engardio Pete. (1995) China: Move over, Karl Marx - Here comes Confucius. Business Week, May 29: 53.

3. Faure G-O., G. Sjostedt (1993) Culture and negotiation: An introduction. In Culture and Negotiation, edited by Guy Olivier Faure and Jeffrey Z. Rubin. Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage. p. 3.

4. Gesteland R.R. (2005) Cross-Cultural Business Behaviour. Negotiating, Selling, Sourcing and Managing Across Cultures. 4th edition. Copenhagen Business School Press; Liber. – 341 p.

5. Hall E.T. (1976) Beyond culture. New York: Anchor Press.

6. Hoebel E. A. (1972) Anthropology: The study of man. 4th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill. p.7.

7. Hofstede G. (1993) Cultural constraints in management theories. The Academy of Management Executives, 7(1): pp 81-94. 

8. Kahn Herman. (1979). World Economic Development: 1979 and Beyond. New York: Westview Press.

9. Pye L. W. (1985) Asian power and politics. The cultural dimensions of authority. Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press of Harvard University.

10. Triandis Harry C., Robert Bontempo, Michael Bond, Kwok Leung, Abelando Brenes, James Georgas, C. Harry Hui, Geraldo Marin, Bernadette Setiadi, Jai Sinha, Jyoti Verma, John Spangenberg, Hubert Touzard Germaine de Montmollin (1986) The measurement of the etic aspects of individualism and collectivism across cultures. Australian Journal of Psychology, 38(3): 257-67.

11. Victor D. A. (1992). International business communication. New York: Harper Collins. p. 4.

12. Waley Arthur (1938) The analects of Confucius. New York: Vintage Books.