Week 1

What happened and Why?

 Does anyone know what happened when Euro-disney first opened, just outside Paris in 1992?



Why this module?

We live in a globalised world  Migration is much more common now  We are more likely to be working with/trading with people from other countries  Cultural misunderstandings can have a huge impact (teams, trade etc)  Technology has helped this but we need to know how to use it  English is the lingua franca of the business world but is all spoken English the same?

 Brookes Graduate attribute of Global citizenship

Module Learning Outcomes

 Analyse the relationship between language, communication and culture and how this impacts on organisations  Consider intercultural issues in your communications  Critically evaluate the intercultural communication process and identify barriers to communication in international, national and local business relations  Demonstrate a critical understanding of the various communicative styles

Key Module Elements

 The Communication Process  Culture and Communication in an international/global context  Communication and team work in diverse groups

Assessment

 Individual essay: due on Monday 15 th weighting December – 100%  Don’t panic though because you can submit a draft by Monday 10 th November and receive formative feedback  Review brief and marking grid

What is English culture to you?

 Think of all the words/sayings, pictures and symbols that you think describe the English culture  Write/draw them on separate post its and put them on the flipchart

Which elements of culture as easiest to discover

 Taking the words/symbols etc everyone has put on their post its  In pairs discuss and list which would be obvious when you first meet someone/visit another culture and which would take more time to find out  Come up with your meaning of the word ‘culture’

Some definitions of culture

 “Culture is the way of life of a group of people” (Foster 1962)  “..the sum of a social group’s patterns of behaviour, customs, way of life, beliefs and values.” (Fox 2004 p10*)  “the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from another...” (Hofstede 1980)

Why is it difficult to see our own culture?

 Fish 1 to Fish 2: How’s the water?

 Fish 2 to Fish 1: What’s water?

 Lao Tzu ‘Water is the last thing a fish notices’

Health check

 The study of culture is about generalisations. You need to be mindful that not all elements apply to everyone as we are individuals  Generalisations are a starting point  Stereo-types are dangerous and an end point  Also be aware of ethnocentricity = belief that ones own culture is superior to that of others’

Its not possible to learn about all cultures so.......



Intercultural training model

(Kohls and Knight,1994)  Awareness of the concept of culture  Awareness of one's own culture  Development of general intercultural skills  Awareness of a targeted culture

Steps in Intercultural Awareness (Beamer and Varner 2008 = core text)

 1) Self analysis  2) Understanding and accepting differences  3) Use categories (tools for understanding how cultures compare)  4) Challenge the categories  5) Analysis of communication behaviour  6) Enacting what you have learnt



Country Profiles

Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries and territories, and background on key institutions  Look the BBC website and find a country profile: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/country_profiles/default.stm

    How useful would this information be if you were: a) a short business trip b) a holiday c) going to live and work there for a year?

 Which sections might be useful for a), b) and c)

Cultural briefings

 Go to: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/country profiles.html

 Select a country profile, read it then consider the same questions:  How useful would this information be if you were:  a) a short business trip  b) a holiday  c) going to live and work there for a year?

 Which sections might be useful for a), b) and c)

Informative websites?

 Other website that give you information on different countries/cultures  http://www.eiu.com/default.aspx

an account but its free) (you need to set up  http://www.countrywatch.com/country_profile.aspx

 http://www.doingbusiness.org/  http://www.vayama.com/etiquette/

Some Additional Reading for the Module

     Joynt, P. & Warner, M. (2002) Managing Across Cultures: Issues and Perspectives. 2 nd Edition. London: Thompson Learning Locker, K.O. & Kaczmarek, S.K. (2011) Business Communication – Building Critical Skills. 5 th Edition. California: Wadsworth Robbins, H. & Finley, M. Why Teams Don’t Work. London: Texere Schneider, S. (2003) Managing Across Cultures. 2 nd Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall Edition. Scollon, R. & Scollon, S. (2012) Intercultural Communication. 3 rd Edition. Oxford: Blackwell (also available as an e-book)