Педагогические науки /2. Проблемы подготовки специалистов

Ph.D. Kapustina L. V.

Ph.D. Yermakova Y. D.

Samara State University of Economics, Samara, Russian Federation

Cross-cultural communication development in business communication

Abstract. This article considers the problem of cross-cultural communication development in business sphere. It emphasizes the importance to research the business partner’s style, to develop cross-cultural communication in the professional sphere as an individual characteristic showing the degree of tolerance or intolerance to partner’s mental states, qualities, traditions and customs in the professional field. The authors propose to use cross-cultural business games to enhance the level of cross-cultural communication skills with business partners.

Keywords: cross-cultural communication, business communication, cross-cultural games, business games.

I. Introduction

To be succeed in international business communication, a contemporary specialist must be fluent to take into account interlocutor‘s social and individual characteristics, to predict the dialogue development and the business partner’s reaction, to create and maintain favorable atmosphere for business communication, to control their emotional state and the state of the partner during the communication process.

The role of the dialogue in the trainings has been repeatedly emphasized by Kan-Kalik V. A. [2], Kuharsky G. N. [3].

Obdalova O.A. and Gural S.K. wrote about the demand for a specialist who is able to interact effectively with other people and with different cultures, who is able to respond flexibly to changes in the modern world and able to form an adequate picture of the world [4].

The problem of cross-cultural communication development is dedicated in works by Sadokhin A. P. [5], Skorikova T. P. [6], and Ter-Minasova S. G. [7].

Glukhov G.V., Yermakova Y. D., Kapustina L.V. consider cross-cultural communication in business negotiations as professionally significant quality including original and flexible thinking in professional situations, phrases literacy, the appropriate communication tone to the professional situation, ability to set oneself up for effective professional communication and the skill of emotional self-regulation [1].

II. Methods and Materials.

The aim of this study is to build up the business cross-cultural communication style in professional communication, namely such a characteristic of the individual that shows the degree of tolerance or intolerance to partner’s mental state, qualities, traditions and customs.

This characteristic of personality is considered to be core as it largely determines the career, the performance of professional duties and the company prosperity.

We consider the process of cross-cultural communication development in professional communication as the development of human intellectual, psychological and social readiness for an effective professional interaction and the development of ways for practical implementation of this readiness.

The most important part in preparing for intercultural communication is to organize socially valuable attitudes between the participants of business communication. They need to treat communication partners as a target and not as a means of achieving their own well-being. There is a necessity to generate interest to the process of international business communication and not only to its outcome, to understand that communication is a dialogue that requires tolerance of ideas of the partner, and the ability to listen and to temper the monologue fervor.

Building up the intercultural communication skills could be conducted in several ways:

· The first is using the relevant guidance on how to communicate in particular professional situations.

· Secondly, in the course of specially created professional situations in group’s daily life which require interaction.

· The third is through various trainings, games, sketches.

III. Results.

The viability of cross-cultural business games for developing intercultural communication skills in professional communication is justified as it helps to establish the conditions compliance to learn the parameters of natural communication. The game as a model of reality gives an option of teaching the subject and social contexts of the communicative activities and simulating authentic communication conditions.

The possibility to know not only the language but also the subject context makes cross-cultural business games for developing intercultural communication skills particularly relevant. That was due to the need for more familiarization of trainees with the subject and other cultures social reality that in turn provided the implementation of the intercultural approach.

The use of cross-cultural business games where great importance is given to professional communication development in different cultural characteristics of the modern business world has become necessary for the correct functioning of intercultural communication.

The most important parameter of the cross-cultural business game is its cross-cultural basis. Using country-specific material in the cross-cultural games is determined, first and foremost, the authenticity of the communication situation development as the basis of simulation in the communication game. In cross-cultural business game there is a part of multicultural material that may be complemented by data on the business culture of a particular country and/or selected information for a particular game. Here is an example of a cross-cultural business game.

Cross-cultural business game "Business Negotiations with Foreign Partners"

Information for participants: You need to reach an agreement with foreign partners to conduct business negotiations and make a deal.

One group is asked to play the situation with the business partners in Sweden and the other in Egypt. The estimated cross-cultural material for cross-cultural business game is presented in tables 1 and 2.

Table 1

Regional studies material for the cross-cultural business game "Business Negotiations with Foreign Partners"

Sweden

· Never be late for a business meeting.

· If you are still running late, call in the office and inform about the delay backed by all reasonable and sensible arguments.

· Be punctual everywhere: from business meeting to dinner invitations.

· Business meetings should be appointed over the fortnight.

· Business Sweden can "take work home".

· It is considered acceptable to call a colleague on the home phone number in the evening on weekdays with the business question of great urgency.

· July-August, end of February and beginning of March is not the most suitable months for planning large business meetings in this country, everyone is going on holiday and on vacation.

· The best time for business meetings is from 9.00 to 10.00 and from 14.00 to 16.00. Changing the time of negotiations is considered highly rude.

· The Swedes strictly follow the start and the end time of the meeting.

· In Sweden the decision will not be imposed at the first meeting.

· A big mistake is to show emotions openly. You should be quiet and talk in a smooth voice.

Table 2

Country-specific material for the cross-cultural business game "Business Negotiations with Foreign Partners"

Egypt

· In the business culture of Egypt punctuality is not strictly necessary for a businessman. Standard procedure in this country is to be forced to wait for a business partner. It is therefore not advisable to appoint more than one business meeting per day. No business talks on Friday, the Muslim Holy day. Many businesspeople also do not work on Thursday. The basic working week is from Saturday until Wednesday.

· In winter, many firms and business centers are closed in the afternoon, continuing work for a few hours in the evening. Office hours are from 8.00 to 14.00 in summer, from 9.00 to 13.00 and from 17.00 to 19.00 in winter.

· Egyptian business partners are receptive to any information that is not contrary to Islamic values.

· Business leader is always at the head of the decision but he makes decisions in agreement with the group or team.

· Women are active part of the business world.

· Business meetings are conducted in Egypt slowly, decisions are made slowly occupying a lot of time. To rush a partner is a futile deal.

· The social side of the deal is also important. Before a business colleague in this country does not come to the conclusion that he could trust you and he likes you, business negotiations may not even begin.

· The Egyptians are very fond of the language. Their language is replete with metaphors, poetic lines, emotions. However, be careful, the Arabic language is the language of hyperbole. If the business partner said "Yes", actually he could mean "maybe", although it does not mean the end of negotiations or a negative attitude.

IV. Conclusion.

In the preparatory phase of the cross-cultural business game and after it had been finished, there was organized the psychological-pedagogical diagnostic test to illuminate the level of intercultural communication skills in business communication. The diagnostic results are presented in table 3.

Table 3

The level of formation of intercultural communication skills in business communication

Personality	Before the game ( %)	After the game ( %)	Dynamics index ( %)
The ability to accept individuality of encountered people from different countries	47	90	+ 43
The manifestation of a tendency to evaluate other cultures and people from your own culture and yourself	81	41	- 40
The degree of categoricalness and conservativeness in estimating other people	69	39	- 30
The ability to hide or smooth unpleasant experience when confronted with the communicative qualities of people from other countries	35	86	+ 51
The tendency to alter or rehabilitate a business partner	71	31	- 40
The tendency to adjust business partners and professional situation for yourself, making them a convenient and recognizable	84	47	- 37
The ability to forgive business partner’s mistakes	46	89	+ 43
Tolerance for uncomfortable professional terms and surrounding conditions	46	80	+ 34

Thus, the authors can conclude the following:

1) Cross-cultural business games have become a creative process of "discovering" other countries, way to join other national professional culture that, in turn, allowed the learner to find a harmonious place in the contradictory collaboration of different cultures and to expand opportunities to participate in intercultural business communication.

2) Building up intercultural competence in business communication through cross-cultural business games, contacting with the new cultural and professional reality have discovered an unknown community. The identity acquired another vision of the world.

3) Cross-cultural games brought the ability to empathize and, as a consequence, to overcome the national cultural centrism.

References:

1. Glukhov G. V., Yermakova Y.D., Kapustina, L. V., Formation of tolerance of professional foreign language communication by means of cross-cultural business games at Samara State University of Economics. - Vestnik of Samara State Technical University // Series "Psycho-Pedagogical Sciences". - Samara, 2015. - № 1 (25). - 298 p. - P. 41-48.

2. Kan-Kalik V. A. Grammar of communication. – M.: Residentsto, 1995. – 110 p.

3. Kukharskaya G.N. The teaching of professional communication // Foreign languages: a comparative study and teaching. – Tyumen, 2013. – P. 154-157.

4. O. A. Obdalova, S. K. Gural. Conceptual bases of development of the educational environment for training intercultural communication. - Language and culture. № 4 (20). - 2012.

5. Sadokhin A. P. Intercultural communication: study guide / A. P. Sadokhin. –Moscow: Alpha - M, 2011. - 288 p.

6. Skorikova T. P. Teaching of the theory and practice of intercultural communication (using the virtual learning environment) - Bulletin of PFUR. Ser. "Russian and foreign languages and methods of their teaching." - 2013, № 2. - P. 136-143.

7. Ter-Minasova S. G. Language and intercultural communication. M: the WORD/SLOVO. - 2000. - 262 p.