DESCRIPTION OF INTERACTIVE

Cultural Differences in Communication.

Time Perception.
Monochronic Cultures:
Believe there is a time for work and a time for play.
Time is a limited resource that needs to be saved or budgeted.
They value punctuality, completing tasks, and keeping to schedules, and prefer to complete one task at a time.

North America, Israel, Germany, Switzerland.

Polychronic Cultures:
Are more flexible about their schedules.
Socializing is often more important than task accomplishment and many events may be happening at once.
Getting through a meeting agenda may be a huge source of frustration for us in these cultures - most time is spent socializing.
Latin America, The Middle East, Africa.

Here in Canada we have timetables and schedules for everything.  We expect the bus to be at the bus stop at a certain time, and arrive there accordingly.

In polychronic cultures, people are used to going to the bus stop and waiting, not knowing when the bus will be there.

Context of Communication.

High Context Cultures:
Behavioural rules are implicit or simply "understood".
People are taught from an early age to notice subtle details that help form the context of communication.
These cultures tend to be hierarchical.
Korea, Japan, China, many Latin American countries/

Low Context Cultures:
Rules and expectations are often explained and discussed.
People usually want as many details as possible.
These cultures tend to be less hierarchical.
North America and most European countries.

In Canada, we love our signs and information.  When you take a course, you receive detailed information about the course and your teacher’s expectations regarding attendance, assignments and evaluation.

You may be surprised to learn that in many other countries, there are often no addresses.  Rather, places are found through descriptions.

Spatial Perception.
Refers to personal space and the amount of physical contact.
Europeans and South Americans are closer than North Americans.
In Canada, hand shaking and patting on the back are appropriate.
In Latin America, kissing, hugging and patting are all appropriate.
In Muslim countries, touching is offensive.
Seating can also be different: Canadians like to sit across from each other; Chinese like to sit side by side.

Individualism vs Collectivism.
Individualistic Cultures:    
The goals of individuals are valued more highly than those of the group.
Individuals are rewarded for behaving independently, making their own plans, and achieving personal goals.
North America and northern and western European countries.

Collectivist Cultures:
The needs of the group are considered over those of the individual.
Kinship ties may take precedence over expertise in matters of appointments and promotions.
E.g. arranged marriages - family chooses who is best.
Africa, Japan, South America.

In Japan, a big corner office with a window indicates a person with little decision making power.  A desk on the main floor in an open area is one of power.

Language.
English may be considered the universal language of international business, but it’s still quite easy to miscommunicate.
Many companies have failed to persistently check linguistic implications of product names and slogans. Something may mean one thing in one country and something completely different in another country.

Pepsi’s slogan "Come Alive with the Pepsi Generation" translated as "Pepsi will bring Your Ancestors Back from the Dead" in Taiwan.
GM introduced the Chevy Nova in South America, unaware that "nova" means "it won’t go".....not a very good name for a car!

EA Sports' slogan "Challenge Everything" met with disapproval in strict religious and hierarchical cultures.

Non-Verbal Communication.
Even the simplest and most taken for granted aspects of advertising and communication need to be inspected under a cultural microscope.
Colours, numbers, symbols and images do not all translate well across cultures.
Red is considered lucky in China, black is lucky in Japan, green is a special colour in Islam, and some colours have tribal associations in Africa.

Many hotels in North America and the U.K. don’t have a room 13 or a 13th floor.  Japanese airplanes don’t have seat numbers 4 or 9.

Pictures of bikinis on advertisements in the Middle East would cause outrage.