Marketing Philosophies

M31865-2022/23-SMSEP
Group 5 in Business
Intercultural Communication
Introduction

• According to the UN in 2019, 272 million people

were living in countries that were not their
country of birth.
• International migration has been on the rise in
the recent years due to a number of factors.
• Globalization and technology are the biggest
culprits linking nations worldwide and enabling
interaction.
• People of different cultures have interacted and
engaged more than ever as a result.
• This has introduced issues such as intercultural
communication in business

United Nations, 2020

Intercultural Communication

• Intercultural communication is the interaction

between two people from different cultural
backgrounds.
• It is a transactional, symbolic, interpretive,
contextual process where people with different
cultural backgrounds create shared meanings.
• Intercultural communication is the study of
how interactions between various cultural
groups affect communication behavior.
• As a result, one perspective on intercultural
communication is that it takes place in
symbolic intercultural settings.
Chen & Starosta, 1998, : Lustig & Koester, 2007:Arasaratnam, 2013
Challenges in intercultural communication
Cultural Conflict
• A cultural conflict is an aversion, animosity, or struggle between
communities that adhere to various lifestyles and ideas, leading to
opposing objectives and actions
• Cultural conflicts develop from differences in values and behavioral
norms of people from different cultures.
• Cultural conflict is a challenge to intercultural communication due to
the differences in culture and perceptions which might affect the
business.
• A communication gesture from one person might mean a different
thing to another person. Such an instance would lead to
misunderstanding in a business or company reducing productivity.
• An example would be use of emoji’s which would mean something
to people while confusing to others deciphering the meaning .
Banaszkiewicz & Buczkowska 2016: Gritzbach, 2018
Challenges in intercultural communication
Cultural Change
• Culture change is inevitable especially in an
intercultural setting which affects the dignity,
equality and respect.
• Intercultural communication introduces
different cultural aspects that contribute to the
cultural dilution and change
• This results in a loss of a cultural identity that
initially defined the people at the beginning
• This evidenced in the accent and the cultural
frames being disregarded years after a person
is assimilated into an intercultural environment
Bregu, 2021.
Challenges in intercultural communication
Productivity
• Cultural differences hinder the communication
process that translates into execution of tasks in an
organization.
• With cultural differences present in a work setting,
productivity is reduced considerably as the people
establish meaning and communication procedures
• Another issue comes through the international
holidays a business is supposed to observe for
intercultural employees.
• An international organization loses work days to
allow some staff to observe their national or
religious holidays
Edubirdie, 2021
Opportunities in intercultural communication
Effective Leadership
• Effective leadership in an organization is also
facilitated by intercultural communication.
• Considering the diversity of the workforce in
today's firms, managers are required to inspire
their employees while fostering a knowledge of
the company's rules.
• Any company's leadership team can inspire their
teams regardless of their cultural background if
they have received intercultural training
• Good communication is a result of intercultural
training, and effective leadership is the next
stage.
Poirier, 2018
Opportunities in intercultural communication
Growth and expansion
• Intercultural communication is a big factor in
growth and expansion of companies.
• Through intercultural communication, a business
can expand beyond their locality to a wider scope
due to the understanding of other cultures
• Walmart for instance has expanded beyond the
American border to other continents based on
intercultural communication and harmony.
• Globalization and technology have facilitated
intercultural communication that has favored
business to reach global markets.
Bregu, 2021
Opportunities in intercultural communication
Diversity and inclusivity
• Diversity and inclusivity in a business support
intercultural communication and progress.
• Intercultural communication creates a larger
platform for people to provide their services which
were not initially enjoyed.
• With an inclusive and diverse staff a business
experiences a wider talent pool that work together
to achieve the objective of the organization
• Starbucks venture into China and hiring of the
locals coupled with the international contributed
to success
Gritzbach, 2018
Opportunities in intercultural communication
Innovation
• Innovation and creativity are great products of
intercultural businesses.
• Normally people tend to think similarly from the
same culture and rarely do they question the
norms
• Intercultural staff have unique perceptions and
they add value to the company by thinking
extraordinarily from those of similar culture
• By developing a shared meaning of
communication, intercultural staff provide a new
way for organizational relationship to develop.
Edubirdie, 2021
Hofstede’s cultural dimensions in
intercultural communication.
Power distance
• The level of acceptability of the unequal
allocation of power in cultures is known as the
"power gap."
• Accepting inequality in a setting with a lot of
power distance interferes with how modern
organizations run, which makes it difficult to
communicate at work or even leads to
accidents there.
• Although there was no difference in
communication with subordinates and
colleagues, the participants with high power
distance beliefs had unsuccessful workplace
communication, particularly ineffective
communication with superiors.
Laigo, 2020
Hofstede’s cultural dimensions in
intercultural communication.
Masculinity vs Femininity
• A civilization where social gender roles are
distinctly different is represented by masculinity
• Women are supposed to be more modest,
tender, and concerned with the quality of life.
• Whereas men are expected to be forceful,
tough, and focused on material achievement.
• Walmart in Germany had female cashiers who
men mistook smiling for flirting that is not
culturally expected.

Laigo, 2020
Value orientation theory
• Every civilization must address the same universal concerns and deal with the same fundamental survival
demands. Cultural values are the result of this need.
• The fundamental issues that affect people everywhere can be divided into five categories, each of which
addresses a different aspect of human nature, the link between humans and the natural world, time, human
activity, and social relations.
• Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck proposed three potential responses or orientations.
Basic Concerns Orientations
Human nature Evil Mixed Good
Relationship to natural Mastery Harmony Submission
world
Time Past Present Future
Activity Being Becoming Doing
Social relations Hierarchical Collateral Individual

Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck, 1961: Weil, 2020

Schwartz Culture Model
Embeddedness vs. Autonomy
Embeddedness
Focuses on sustaining the social order, of eluding change and holding
tradition. Values tradition, obedience & security.
Autonomy
Individuals have control over their choices as opposed to having to consider
others and shared rules.
Mastery vs. Harmony
Mastery
Individuals seek success through personal action. This may benefit the person
and/or the groups to which they belong. Mastery needs independence,
courage, ambition, drive and competence.
Harmony
Instead of seeking self-improvement, people are content with their place in
the world. People here put greater emphasis on the group than on the
individual.
Hierarchy vs. Egalitarianism
Hierarchy
Presence of a clear social order, with some individuals in superior positions while others are in subordinate positions.
Egalitarianism
Everyone is considered to be equal and everyone is expected to show concern for everyone else.
Schwartz,1992
How cultural models are used in intercultural
communication
• Hofstede power distance and gender cultural dimensions determine how
employees in an organization will respond to information.
• Power distance stipulates that the information flows from the top to
bottom. Further Schwartz model, Hierarchy vs. Egalitarianism supports
this idea.
• Value relational theory similarly captures Schwartz culture model where
the personal interaction with nature could be mastery, harmony or
submission.
• These frameworks despite being from different periods and people have
common perspectives that are useful in structuring intercultural
communication.
• Where power distance is high it is important to maintain it for the people
involved to function normally.
• Challenging the norms of the society tend to present obstacles to a
business and would end up failing.
• These frameworks are also not completely right in profiling the
intercultural staff for information relay and should be used when
appropriate.
Pastorelli, 2020
Skills for cross-cultural communication
Social science approach
• This model focuses on observing behavior in order to
describe and contrast it with behavior from other cultures
• Additionally, depending on who they are speaking to, it looks
at how people modify their communication with others in
various contexts.
• For instance, how we relate the same story to our colleague
and our boss will differ.
Skills needed for this model
Observational skills are crucial in learning about culture
especially body language where words do not explicitly define
the message conveyed.
Interpretational skills are crucial in establishing the information
being conveyed without having to understand the words.
Ehlion Team, 2021
Skills for cross-cultural communication
Interpretive strategy
• This idea emphasizes learning about a culture through
communication in the form of shared narratives based on a
person's unique, subjective experiences.
• Ethnography is heavily utilized in this study since the main focus is
on intercultural communication as it is employed in specific speech
communities.
• Since each person's circumstance is so crucial in this model, it does
not seek to make generalized projections based on its findings.
Skills needed for this model
Interpretation of communication between two cultures to give them
a singular meaning instead of diversifying the meaning into complex
statements
Association is a great skill in relating two different cultures in
establishing a common meaning of understanding through relating
an item of one culture to another.
Ehlion Team, 2021
Skills for cross-cultural communication
Dialectical method:
•  This technique looks at features of cross-cultural communication in
terms of six contrasts: cultural vs. individual, personal vs. contextual,
differences vs. similarities, static vs. dynamic, history vs. past-present-
future, and privilege vs. disadvantage. 
• We can avoid putting everything in either or dichotomies by taking a
broader perspective and understanding the tensions that must be
resolved by using a dialectical approach, which enables us to think
about culture and intercultural communication in complicated ways.
Skills needed for this model
• Comparison skills in dialectical method involves having a unique
perspective and comparing to the different cultures to establish a truth.
Comparison is crucial as it establishes the differences and similarities of
cultures.
• Empathy skills of understanding the other cultures despite the
differences and tolerating the conflicts from other cultures.
Ehlion Team, 2021
Skills for cross-cultural communication
Critical thinking:
• This method analyzes cultures in light of how they differ fro
m the researcher's own culture, paying particular attention 
to how these cultures are portrayed in the media. 
• The critical approach is intricate and multifaceted, which re
sults in a deep comprehension of cross-
cultural communication.
Skills needed for this model
Analysis skills tend to be important in critical thinking
approach in cross cultural communication. They are used in
developing
Critical thinking skills are crucial in establishing respect and
precision thinking to establish a judgement especially in
intercultural communication.
Ehlion Team, 2021
Conclusion

• Intercultural communication arises when more than one culture

interact.
• Growth and expansion presents one of the advantages while cultural
conflict is the downside to intercultural interaction.
• Hofstede, Schwartz and Value theory are suitable frameworks to
understand intercultural communication based on the cultural
backgrounds.
• Social science, dialectical, critical thinking and interpretative methods
are used and further outline the skills that are necessary for
intercultural communication.
References
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Banaszkiewicz, M., Buczkowska, K. (2016). Cultural conflict. In: Jafari, J., Xiao, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Tourism. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01384-8_249

Bregu, E. (2021, January 9). The role of intercultural communication in business in the face of global change. Retrieved from https://www.culturalstudiesinbusiness.org/post/the-role-of-intercultural-communication-in-

business-in-the-face-of-global-change

Chen, G. M., & Starosta, W. J. (1998). Foundations of intercultural communication: Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Dai, Y., Li, H., Xie, W., & Deng, T. (2022). Power distance belief and workplace communication: The mediating role of fear of authority. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(5), 2932.

doi:10.3390/ijerph19052932

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communication/

Ehlion Team. (2021, July 20). Intercultural communication - Definition, theories, skills | EHLION. Retrieved from https://ehlion.com/magazine/intercultural-communication/

Laigo, K. (2020, October 18). Masculine vs. feminine culture: Another layer of culture. Retrieved from https://witi.com/articles/1824/Masculine-vs.-Feminine-Culture:-Another-Layer-of-Culture/

Lustig, M. W., & Koester, J. (2007). Intercultural competence: interpersonal communication across cultures (5th ed.). Shanghai, China: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press

Pastorelli, B. (2020, May 4). Hofstede, Schwartz,… why to learn them and when to forget them? Retrieved from https://

benjamin-pastorelli.medium.com/hofstede-schwartz-why-to-learn-them-and-when-to-forget-them-cc5cd7ea908b

Poirier, A. (2018, May 15). The advantages of intercultural communication. Retrieved from https://www.theclassroom.com/advantages-intercultural-communication-12066503.html

Schwartz, S.H. (1992). Universals in the content and structure of values : Theoretical advances and empirical tests in 20 countries. San Diego: Academic Press