Cultural Differences

Communicating across different cultures can also be quite a challenge. Having lived and traveled in many different countries, the tone and the non-verbal communications become very important and a major part of various cultures. There are certain facial and body expressions that are culturally universal in their behavior and provide feedback, for example, facial expressions; however, there are others that mean completely different things, for example, hand gestures. Cultures provide people with ways of thinking–ways of seeing, hearing, and interpreting the world. A friendly hand gesture may signify different meaning from one culture to another (Dutta, 2008). While they may speak your language, what appears to be a friendly gesture from them may mean something totally different than what we interpret. When you get a chance, pick a country of interest and do a search in the UOP Library (Business Source Complete) using name of country and cultural advice. These guides are extremely informative when doing business in a different country as well as working with the various cultures in our own US ‘melting pot’.

Class: Describe three principles of nonverbal communication that you believe are most important. Why are these important for you to keep in mind when communicating?

Dutta, B. (2008). Communication in Cross-Cultural Context. Journal of Soft Skills, 2(2), 7-12. Retrieved from EBSCOhost database