Unit 3. Cross – cultural understanding.

Cross- cultural (adj.) –involving or combining

different cultures, belonging to

or involving two or more different

societies, countries or cultures

Cultures and culture

:Culture is the “way we do things here”. “Here” may be a country, an area, a social class or an organization such as a company or school. You often talk about:

a) company or corporate culture: the way a particular company works and the

things it believes are important.

b) canteen culture: the ways that people in an organization such as the police

think and talk, not approved by the leaders of the organization.

c) long-hours culture: where people are expected to work for a long tome each

day.

d) macho culture: ideas typically associated with men: physical strength,

aggressiveness, etc.

Cross – cultural communication

Here are some areas of potential cultural misunderstanding:

a) distance when talking to people: what is comfortable?

b) gesture: do people make lots of facial gestures? How much do they

move their arms and hands?

c) greetings / goodbyes: do people shake hands every time? Are there fixed

phrases to say?

d) humour: is this a good way of relaxing people? Or is it out of place in

some countries?

e) physical contact: how much do people touch each other?

f) presents: when should you give them? When should you open them?

What should you say when you receive one?

g) rules of conversation and the role of silence: how long can people be

silent before they feel uncomfortable? Is it acceptable to interrupt when

others are speaking?

h) eye contact: how much of the time do people look directly at each other?

Task 1 What other things can block the communication?

Suggest your ideas:

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TRANSLATION PRACTICE

TEXT 1. Read the following text and do the translation in written form.

EYE CONTACT.

In many Western societies, including the United States, a person who does not maintain “good eye contact” is regarded as being slightly suspicious, or a “shifty” character. Americans unconsciously associate people who avoid eye contact as unfriendly insecure, untrustworthy, inattentive and impersonal.

However, in contrast, Japanese children are taught in school to direct their gaze at the region of their teacher’s Adam’s apple or tie knot, and, as adults, Japanese lower their eyes when speaking to a superior, a gesture of respect.

Latin American cultures, as well as some of African cultures, such as Nigeria, have longer looking time, but prolonged time contact from an individual of lower status is considered disrespectful. In the US, it is considered rude to stare- regardless of who is looking at whom. In contract, the polite Englishman is taught to pay strict attention to a speaker, to listen carefully, and to blink his eyes to let the speaker know he or she has been understood as well as heard. Americans signal interest and comprehension by bobbing their heads or grunting.

A widening of the eyes can also be interpreted differently, depending on circumstances and culture. Take, for example, the case of an American and a Chinese discussing the terms of a proposed contract. Regardless of the language in which the proposed contract is carried out, the US negotiator may interpret a Chinese person’s widened eyes as an expression of astonishment instead of as a danger signal (its true meaning) of politely expressed anger.