MODULE PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

CHAPTER 3: COMMUNICATION IN MULTICULTURAL SETTING

Objectives:
At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to: a.) explain the effect of culture in communication;
b.) recognize the impact of culture in communication especially in English;
c.) shoot a vlog showing concern about communication barriers.

LOCAL COMMUNICATION IN MULTICULTURAL SETTINGS

Chad Lewis, in his Successful Communication in Multi-cultural Environments,

orchestrates how the non-verbal
expressions matter to the
successful
communication under the
diverse cultural settings.

Another challenge
of the communication in a
diverse setting lies in the
fact that the secondary
channel to convey an
expression maybe
interpreted just opposite
to people with other
cultural identity.

KINESICS

- It refers to the usage of body

language, gestures; eye-contact etc.
can be another issue to pose
challenges in a diverse culture.
 Eye contact can be
interpreted differently either paying attention or being aggressive.
 Head wobbling being used in India to answer a question but can
be misinterpret by other group of people.

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 MODULE PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

INTONATION

- Conveying a non-verbal
message can be another
communication challenge for a
diverse group as the meaning
associated with it is not
universal.

COMMUNICATION TIPS by: Robert Rosen

1. Simplify your sentence

2. Never shout to understand

3. Define the meaning of technical words and acronym

4. Be patient and try to follow team members‟ ideas and logic

5. Ask people to repeat once, maybe twice if you don‟t understand

6. Remain cool and compose

7. Clarify the meaning of what others want to sat before giving yours.

8. Clarify with the person or with someone who has experience in dealing with similar
cultural group.

9. Adapt your space requirements to those of your counterparts whenever possible.

10. Communicate important messages via several different media to ensure that they
are received.

COMMUNICATION TIPS FOR

Because this way of formulating questions does not exist in many other languages, it can be confusing for non-

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 MODULE PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

2. Ask the person if he/she wants help with finding words that might convey their
meaning.

3. If you do not understand a word, ask the person to spell it, write it down, use a
synonym or say the word in his/her native language or have someone else translate if
possible.

4. Try to involve non-native English speakers in discussion.

5. If you receive a voice mail message and you do not understand, ask another person
with the same linguistic background to listen to it.

6. In continuous meetings, provide some break time for the non-native speakers to think
and for some follow ups.

7. Avoid scheduling presentations by non-native English speakers at the end of the day.

8. Consider providing ESL courses to the non-native English speakers on your staff or
team.

9. Offer to proofread non-native English speakers‟ documents or presentations.

10. Slow down your delivery and clearly articulate each word. Avoid contractions such
as “gonna” and “wanna”.

11. In face-to-face meetings, face the people to whom you speak.

COMMUNICATION TIPS FOR NON-NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKER

1. If you do not mind people

suggesting words so that you can
communicate quickly, say so.

2. Try to participate in discussion,

especially brainstorming sessions,
even if you feel uncomfortable.

3. If your organization offers ESL

courses, take them, even if your
English is already functional.

4. Keep a dictionary handy and make

sure the words you use mean what you
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think they mean.

5. Ask native English speaker for help with your documents, presentations, and even
sensitive e-mails or phone calls.

6. Before calling someone, think of what you want to say and look up any words that
you are unsure of.

7. Make sure you know and use appropriately the technical words that people in your
field use.

8. Do not attempt to use slang and idiomatic expressions until you are quite comfortable
with the language.

GLOBAL COMMUNICATION IN MULTICULTURAL SETTING

The homogenous team is a thing of the past in most

international organization and companies. Some
would argue that the „international language of
business‟ negates any real communication issues
within such a cross-cultural team. When people of
different cultural backgrounds come together in any
setting there will always be issues in terms of
interaction. Cross-cultural issues will not always be a
hindrance in fact they can be a force for positive
creativity.

1. LANGUAGE ISSUE

- Although English is the

language in use in
every office it doesn‟t
mean everyone is
totally confident in its
use.
- Also bear in mind they may not appreciate the language to the same degree as
a native speaker.
 ISSUES RESULTING FROM THIS INCLUDE:
 Non-native English speakers may be more reluctant to express
themselves freely.
 Non-native speakers may not always be able to express
themselves in the manner they intended.
 Some cultures rely heavily on the use of body language and
gestures.

2. CONFLICT RESOLUTION ISSUE

- Different cultures approach conflict and

disagreement in sometimes very contrasting
ways.
- Some cultures accept that conflict occurs in
the natural order of things and when it does.
- Other cultures are uncomfortable with open
disagreement and will do their best to avoid
it order to save face and not put people in
uncomfortable positions.
- It is important for a team to define the way it
wishes to handle conflict and disagreement.
- People from cultures where harmony is
more important will still do not be totally comfortable dealing with conflict and
confrontation.

3. GENDER ISSUE

- Every culture or society has its own understanding of

gender relations and acts according to them.
- What is acceptable in one culture may offend in the
other.
- The men and women in a team interact, the way
authority is allocated, assumed or perceived, and the
roles and responsibilities are distributed can all be
impacted by different viewpoints on gender.
4. DECISION MAKING ISSUE

- Different cultures have

different ways of making and
expecting decisions to be
made.
- Some expect that consensus
is the only way to go.
- Others believe that the
majority rules and debate is
waste of time. Then here are others who believe that decisions are made by the
leader or most senior person and not the team.

VARIETIES IN SPOKEN LANGUAGE

- Spoken language is a language

provided by articulate sounds, as
opposed to a written language.
- Many languages have no written
form and so are only.
-
DIFFERENT LEVELS OF
VARIETIES IN SPOKEN
LANGUAGE

 PROFESSIONAL SPOKEN LANGUAGE –used by professionals

from specific industries
 LITERARY SPOKEN LANGUAGE –this is the language used in
magazines and newspaper. The stress is more on communicating
with large crowd.
 CONVERSATIONAL SPOKEN ENGLISH –this English is the most
widely used in daily conversation, where rules of grammar are more
related, stress is more on just getting the message across .
Sentences might be dropped half-way on realizing that the listener
has gotten the message.
 SLANG, ETHNIC, and VULGAR LANGUAGE –every language
comes with a set of words that have multiple meanings, and
depending upon the situation you use them, multiple interpretations
as well. These words are called slangs, and are native to a
particular region.
THE VARIETIES OF WRITTEN LANGUAGE

- The written language is more carefully

organize, more self-explanatory, and the
choice of word is more deliberate.
- The written language is only secondary.
- The written language is mostly maintained in
the form of a monologue.
- The written language is able to live forever
with the idea it expresses.
- The written language can be detailed and
objectively looked at.
- The writer has an opportunity to correct and improve what has been put on
paper.

USING APPROPRIATE TERMS, EXPRESSIONS, IMAGES, AND OTHERS

- Languages, expressions, terms, and word meanings differ according to cultural

settings.

THE APPROPRIATE TERMS AND EXPRESSION

1. Slow down when you speak.

2. Speak clearly and concisely.

3. Keep it simple.

4. Maintain respect and courtesy for people who come from different cultures.

5. Smile and be open.

6. Avoid slang.

7. Shun/avoid humor.

8. Adopt formal communication approach.

9. Stay away from using negative questions or answers.

10. Ask for feedback.

11. Summarize what you have said.