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Annie Ertle
Dr. EJ Han
Intercultural Communications
9 April 2015
Research Paper
It is approximately 8,100 miles from the capital city of Vietnam, Hanoi, to 1 John Carroll
Boulevard in University Heights, Ohio, in the United States of America. A flight between these
two destinations is approximately 21 hours long, meaning that it takes nearly a whole day to
travel the globe from one place to the other. For all intents and purposes, you could say that from
where we are situated, Vietnam is on the other side of the world.
In some ways, this feels like an accurate and appropriate summation; Asian
communication style differs greatly from that of Western cultures, with a tendency to be more
submissive and indirect. Someone might mean one thing but say another, meaning that an
American talking to a native Vietnamese person might actually feel like they are in another
universe. A conversation in Vietnam would take place according to etiquette that is much
different from that which dictates a typical American exchange. However, in some ways, an
American in Vietnam might feel right at home, attributing that familiarity to the globalization of
popular culture.
The general goal of my study was to delve into the communication style of Vietnam, and
to see how those assets of an Asian culture compare to the style of communication utilized by
American people. I specifically chose to focus on verbal communication style, history and how it
relates to communication patterns, and pop culture and its expanding globalization. It was also
interesting to see if this one specific person from one country was representative of the overall

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Asian communication style that we have studied in part in class. I think that my findings are
neither definitive nor black or white; they point to some similarities but also demonstrate that
there are definitely some differences. There are the more glaring examples of how Western ideals
are perpetuated by younger generations of Vietnamese citizens, and yet there are also differences
in the aforementioned indirectness that tends to be employed by people who speak in a typical
Asian communication style.
In order to research these three topics, I used a combination of class notes, interviews,
and scholarly articles. I found that much of what we talked about in class pertained to this
subject, such as the article regarding the Filipino principle of pahiwatig, or the use of
ambiguity. I will touch more on this later when I describe the typical communication style of
Vietnam.
In terms of interviews, I met several times with two foreign exchange students from
Vietnam. Duy Nguyen is a freshman here at John Carroll University, and he plans to study here
for all four years of his college education, as does Le Nguyen. Duy was certainly not what I
expected. I would have imagined that he would have been much more shy and indirect with his
answers. Instead, I found that he gave very frank and blunt responses when answering all of my
questions; I found him to be very unconcealed and straightforward by American standards, much
less by Asian standards. This is indicative of the concept of stereotyping that we talked about in
class. I assumed that he would fit into the narrow portrait that we painted of Asians, and I was
surprised to see he went far beyond that. He was very thoughtful and seemingly very
knowledgeable about the subject of communication styles and he had a lot of answers that he
seemed very confident about giving and that seemed rather well thought out and like they came

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from a place of experience and from years of observation, which is probably inevitable when you
grow up in a certain environment.
Because he is so different from what I expected and from mostly everything that we have
described in class, I do not know that he is representative of the typical Asian communication
style. Instead of expecting me to read between the lines of what he was saying, he was very
forthcoming. This goes to show that there are always outliers and that you cannot judge an entire
ethnicity off of textbook examples, because people cannot be confined to one or two assumptions
that we have about them because of their nationality.
Le was much more indirect and seemed to place an emphasis on being non-offensive. She
was much more representative of the typical Asian speaker. She was polite, quiet, and was an
attentive listener and also a thoughtful interviewee.
My first theme that I chose to research was about the typical verbal communication style.
In America, we tend to be very direct when we speak. Generally, we tend to say what we mean
and mean what we say. I asked Duy to reflect on his own verbal communication style. He said, I
don't speak much. I try to be succinct, clear and direct when I do. This answer in and of itself
shows the style that he is talking about. I asked him to elaborate on this and to see if his way of
speaking was typical of his culture, to which he responded This is not typical of most
Vietnamese people as we tend to rely on indirect speech to avoid offending the other party. We
also rely heavily on non-verbal cues such as body language and facial expression. These same
characteristics were listed by Le, and her own behavior pointed out the accuracy of that
statement.
Duys reflections on his cultures communication style seemed directly in line with those
identified by Guo-Ming Chen and William J. Starosta in their 2003 article Asian Approaches to

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Human Communication: A Dialogue. In the aforementioned article, Starosta gives a sort of

disclaimer, stating, It is time to pick up the task of defining what is quintessentially Asian
about the communication of Asians. This is a task that cannot be left to orientalists, who pose
Asia as an exotic, mirror image of things western, but must be picked up by persons who turn to
the content of various Asian societies in the terms of those who live in those societies (p. 3). I
think that by interviewing natives of Vietnam, I did learn to see the culture for what it was as
opposed to the exotic, mirror image of things western that I previously had held it to be. I will
admit ethnocentrism on my own part, in that I just assumed that Vietnam was the opposite of the
American experience and I judged their communication styles in comparison to my own
experiences, even though I tried to go into these interviews with an open, unbiased mind.
In keeping with the communication style of Asians, Duy and Le said that the Vietnamese
tend to focus on mostly verbal communication, with an emphasis on being polite, which usually
results in an indirect method of communication. Chen gives a more fleshed out reasoning behind
this style: The principle of harmonious relationship prevents Asians from going to extremes in
communication, but instead encourages them to practice the middle way, which in turn leads to
a more reserved communication style. This Asian communication style is manifested through the
control of emotion and avoidance of aggressive behaviors in the process of interaction (p. 10).
This need for harmonious relationship can be traced back to Asian ideals that focus on the
philosophies of Confucianism and Buddhism. Confucianism is especially important to the
Vietnamese culture. I plan to elaborate on this topic more when I discuss the theme of the
globalization of popular culture and the rifts that it causes between the older and younger
generations of Vietnamese citizens.
Duy also mentioned in one of our interviews that Vietnam is a collectivist culture.

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According to our textbook, this means that there is an emphasis on responsibility for other group
members as well as elder respect that has implications that they will take their relatives wishes
regarding their marriage and career decisions into consideration (p. 31). Duy said that he has
noticed a very communal culture, with an emphasis on a shared set of values. He mentioned that
while Vietnam does have its big, metropolitan cities that serve as exceptions, most Vietnamese
tend to live in tiny communities in which these aforementioned shared values are enforced if not
formally then informally by societal pressures. To follow this set of rules is to belong, and that
is an important quality in a collectivist culture for obvious reasons.
Asian cultures are generally classified as high-context cultures, and Vietnam is no
exception to this. Citing the textbook, high-context cultures are ones in which most of the
information is either in the physical context or internalized in the person, while very little is in
the coded, explicit, transmitted part of the message (p. 135). This emphasis on harmony, trust,
and group achievement can be related back to the Asian collectivist culture.
The second topic that I chose to research was the nation of Vietnams history and in turn
that historys influence on communication style. The French colonized Vietnam in the 19th and
20th centuries. Since it became its own country, it has never been officially colonized by the
Chinese, but because of the two nations proximity, Vietnam has always felt the pressure of the
larger and more domineering China. In his 1997 article The Anthropology of Colonialism:
Culture, History, and the Emergence of Western Governmentality, Peter Pels writes
Postcolonial societies are mainly based on development regimes constructed under colonial
rule (p. 178). This means that the effects of colonization can be seen for some time, even
centuries, after colonization is not longer in effect. It appears that the communication style of
Vietnam is indicative of this idea.

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My claim is that the effects of colonization result in a people who are more submissive,
quiet, and obedient. I think that this occurrence does not take place all at once, but occurs over a
gradual period in which subjects learn to obey their rulers. I believe that this results in a more
indirect communication style that is used in order to not offendthe main idea here being that
everyone is trying to blend in and not cause too much trouble, because to be singled out might
mean punishment or humiliation. This would also tie back into the earlier notes about Asia
having a highly collectivist culture. Here we could have a chicken or egg scenario in which we
ask are people collectivist because of colonization that discouraged being singled out or are
people more easily colonized because of their unwillingness to stand out. Regardless, I believe
that Vietnams history of colonization by the French does have an effect on the way that this
country communicates.
This topic reminded me of an additional reading that we did for class. Pahiwatig: The
Role of Ambiguity in Filipino American Communication Patterns addresses the effects that
colonization might have on speech patterns. Here the country at hand is the Philippines, a nation
that was a colony under the Spanish for centuries, then was turned over to American rule before
becoming a sovereign nation.
In this specific article, people who were born or who had lived in the Philippines but had
transitioned to the United States were asked about their experiences with pahiwatig and if they
thought that it had any affect on their communication styles. One participant in the study says, in
regard to broaching the topic of the accommodative response in the face of authority that This
may be a legacy of colonialism, the hundreds of years that weve had to survive under several
masters, when the wrong answer or action could lead to negative consequences or even
sanctions where there are persons of authority or of higher status present, et cetera (p. 156).

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I shared a quotation earlier about how there is an Asian tendency to follow the middle
way that will result in not offending anyone, and I believe that this ties in with this subject as
well.
Of course, this faade of compliance does not necessarily agree with what an Asian
communicator is thinking under the surface. Ambiguity and the use of silence or general
agreeableness might be used as a coping mechanism to help deal with the discomfort that results
from power distance. According to Newman and Nollen (1996), Power distance is the extent to
which people believe that power and status are distributed unequally and accept an unequal
distribution of power as the proper way for social systems to be organized. In organizations,
power distance influences the amount of formal hierarchy, the degree of centralization, and the
amount of participation in decision making (p. 756). This makes sense because Vietnam has a
very strong emphasis on power distance, specifically regarding elders, which results in the
formal hierarchy mentioned by Newman and Nollen.
I asked Duy about his thoughts on Vietnams history of colonization and its effects on
communication style, but he did not agree with my claims that it affected his communication at
all. He did say, however, that this history of colonization and civil war has made him and his
fellow citizens very loyal, nationalistic, and proud of their country.
Duy did seem to have pride in his country throughout our interviews, although this
seemed to falter a little bit when we talked about the globalization of popular culture. According
to class, popular culture is systems or artifacts, cultural products designed for and by people.
They are forms of contemporary culture made for mass consumption, and because popular
culture is so ubiquitous, it tells us what we are and who we should be. Popular culture is a lens
through which we see other cultural groups, and provides a media portrait of these groups.

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I think that the colonization of Vietnam also relates to their predisposition to Western
culture. For such a long time, they were told that the Western way to do things was the right
way, so it only makes sense that this sentiment would be ingrained in them and that this idea
would spill over from ideas about government and the internal set up of their country into a more
mainstream, superficial realm. The country as a whole had to struggle with the subjects of
avowal, or what they say that they are, while trying to fend off ascription by other countries who
tried to tell them who they were and what they stood for.
On this subject of pop culture, Duy said that globalization of popular culture can be both
good and bad. He stated that its good because you are learning about what is going on outside
your own national sphere, and you can apply what you have learned to improve yourself and
maybe in turn your own nation and culture. However, he thinks that it is bad for more obvious
reasons. He specifically cited the influences of Kim Kardashian and Justin Bieber, two people
that he seemed to really despise, because he doesnt seem to think that they have much to offer,
especially in light of his aforementioned claim that sometimes good things can come out of
popular culture.
I think that his responses make sense, and in fact many Americans would probably agree
with him that there are certain things that we indulge in because they can cause some reflection
and others that act as guilty pleasures that act as nothing more than mere entertainment, such
as Keeping Up With the Kardashians.
Duy said that there has been an increasing amount of importance awarded to Western
celebrities among the younger Vietnamese citizens. He even went as far as to say that many
Vietnamese people put Western people on a pedestal and try to imitate their celebrities, fashion
trends, and general pop culture fads. Le agreed with this sentiment and even stated Vietnamese

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love white people. Whereas the elder generations subscribe to Confucian ideals and are more
isolationist in their worldviews, the younger generations tries very hard to involve themselves in
the Western world. Duy talked about the popular option of Vietnamese students studying abroad,
and how many of his friends had chosen this option. He related this increase in people studying
abroad to both the increasing interest in the West and with the poor quality of Vietnams higher
education. He said that this seemingly idolatry often causes a clash between the two generations,
and that it can result in tensions in a culture that has for so long been dominated by a respect for
elders.
To demonstrate the respect that elders are accustomed to receiving, I point to a quote by
Confucius that says Filial piety today is taken to mean providing nourishment for parents, but
even dogs and horses are provided with nourishment. If it is not done with reverence for parents,
what is the difference between men and animals? Therefore, reverence is expected and
according to Confucius, it is really the only thing that separates us humans from mere
domesticated and barnyard animals. This reverence extends from life into death, as there is often
an emphasis on the care of the elderly, and there is a long sort of checklist that is to be consulted
upon the death of elder family member.
With all of this being said, I could see how the globalization of popular culture has the
potential to be viewed as a bad thing by the Vietnamese. It seems that a sort of invasion of
Western ideals is threatening a set of philosophies that dates back several millennia. However, in
his 2001 study, Kyu-Taik found that elder respect has not decreased so much as it has changed
with the times, which seems like a reasonable expectation considering how much has evolved
since Confucius taught. Sung writes:
The meaning of respect is shifting from obedience and subservience to courtesy and
kindness (Mehta, 1997). For instance, listening to parents when they talk, which does not always

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mean obeying or following what parents talk to them, is taken by many young people as a form
of elder respect (Sung & Kim, 2000). Consulting elders, which involves open communication
and mutual aids between generations, has become a prevalent form of elder respect (IngersollDayton & Saengtienchai, 1999 and Mehta, 1997). As more young people value reciprocity
between generations, consulting is bound to be widely practiced. Instead of bending the body
forward to greet seniors, juniors now tend to shake hands with them. Increasingly, public respect
is taken more seriously by voluntary and public organizations (Palmore and Maeda, 1987; Sung,
2000). These changes in recent years largely indicate a new trend, a move from authoritarian and
patriarchal relationships to egalitarian and reciprocal patterns of mutual respect between
generations. In response to the challenges from social changes, East Asians are modifying their
ways of respecting elders.
Within this writing, you can see Western influences. A specific example of this is how
young East Asians are now tending to go for a handshake as opposed to bending forward. This is
interesting because for so long that act of bending forward and bowing was a given in Asian
culture, and one of the most repeated movements in movies and television involving this
continent. The slow phasing out of such a gesture makes one reflect on the preservation of
culture and what that means in this world that is trending toward homogeneity.
I found this research of Vietnam to be a fascinating study of a country that, while itself is
very old, is still struggling to find its footing in a modern world in light of pressures from the
United States and from China. It is such an interesting study in urbanization, in that 80% of this
countrys population resides in the more rural areas of the countryside, while the other 20%
enjoy the flashing neon lights of cities such as Hanoi.
Ultimately I think that whether a Vietnamese person chooses to live in a tiny rural
community or to live in the big city, their communication style will, for the most part, be shaped
not by their surroundings but by their countrys communication patterns. This involves an Asian
tendency to be indirect and polite, and to save face whenever possible. It also incorporates the
three themes that I have discussed here, which include some of the other standard qualities of the
Asian communication style, that particular styles possible roots in the countrys history of

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colonization by the French and outside pressures from China and the United States of America,
and Vietnams more recent adaptation of Western ideals and trends.
I began this paper with a physical description of how far the United States is from
Vietnam. This difference in geography is emphasized by the different ways that we
communicate, but with the expansion of globalization and if prepared with an extensive
knowledge of a countrys communication style and customs, its possible that we could get to a
point where the other side of the world feels just like home.

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Reference Page
Chen, G. M., & Starosta, W. J. (2003). Asian approaches to human communication: A dialogue.
Intercultural Communication Studies, 12(4), 1-15.
Martin, J., & Nakayama, T. (2011). Experiencing intercultural communication: An introduction
(4th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Mendoza, S. (2004). Pahiwatig: The role of ambiguity in Filipino American communication
patterns. In M. Fong and R. Chuang (Eds.), Communicating ethnic & cultural identity (chapter
10). Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Newman, K., & Nollen, S. (1996). Culture and congruence: The fit between management
practices and national culture. Journal of International Business Studies, 27(4), 753-779.
Pels, P. (1997). The anthropology of colonialism: Culture, history, and the emergence of western
governmentality. Annual Review of Anthropology, 178.
Sung, K. (2001). Elder respect: Exploration of ideals and forms in East Asia. Journal of Aging
Studies, 15(1), 13-26.