Barriers to Intercultural Communication

8/3/2019 Barriers to Intercultural Communication

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Barriers toIntercultural

Communication


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Definitions

Intercultural communication refers tointerpersonal communication

Descriptive of communication between peopleliving in the same country as well as in differentcountries


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4 terms that apply to interculturalcommunication (Samovar and Porter)

Interracial

Interethnic

International

intracultural


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Culture

Total system of language, values, beliefs,customs, religions, art, and manners

Also includes and is affected by theeconomic system of the country


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Barriers to interculturalcommunication

Stereotypes

Prejudice

Proxemics

Kinesics

Chronemics

Translation limitations

Lack of languagetraining


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Ways to overcome the barriers

Learn about the persons culture

Have patience

Get help when you need it


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Some cultural differences

Indians look down when acknowledgingauthority; seen as untrustworthiness by

North Americans and Europeans

Public reprimands are acceptable and even

effective in the US but not in other cultures


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Argentineans and other South Americansneed time for trust building before doingdeals; for N. Americans, time is money

Germans value experience/seniority/ageand sending young managers to deal with

seniors is a mistake; jokes areinappropriate in business settings


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Taking pictures of local people in Africa isoffensiveKoranic prohibition on

representations of a person, beingphotographed may be equivalent tobecoming a victim of witchcraft

The Japanese smile is a law of etiquette


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Shaking of the head for no and nodding foryes are unknown in some countries

In Middle East, Latin America, andsouthern European countries, male friends

exchange greetings with hugs and kisses


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Arabs in some regions disapprove of usingthe left hand to take food from a serving

dish; to do so is considered unclean.

People in some cultures maintain eye

contact when talking while other avoid eyecontact to show respect.


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Writing for an international audience

Write naturally but avoid abbreviations,slang, acronyms, technical jargon, sports

and military analogies, and other devices.

Avoid words that trigger emotional

responses such as anger, fear, orsuspicion.


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Use simple terms but attempt to be specific aswell

Follow the same techniques for increasingreadability you would use to someone fluent inEnglish

Consider the subtle differences in the waysspecific cultures organize messages


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Use graphics, visual aids, and forms, whenpossible to simplify the message.

Use figures for expressing numbers toavoid confusion.

Be aware of differences in the waynumbers and dates are written


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Write out the name of the month to avoidmisunderstandings.

Adapt the letter format to the traditionalformat of the recipients country


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Reference List

Guirdham, Maureen. (1999). Communicatingacross cultures. London: MacMillan Press Ltd.

Lehman, Carol and Dufrene, Debbie. (1999).Business communication (12thed.). Ohio:South-Western College Publishing.

Documents

Barriers to Intercultural Communication