Intercultural Communication and its Influence

This assignment delves into the complex realm of intercultural communication, examining how cultural factors shape perceptions, interactions, and understanding in various contexts. It encourages students to analyze the influence of culture on verbal and nonverbal communication, considering examples from business, interpersonal relationships, and global interactions. The assignment also explores strategies for fostering effective cross-cultural communication, emphasizing empathy, respect, and sensitivity to diverse perspectives.

Running head: BUSINESS ETHICS A GLOBAL PROSPECTIVE
Business Ethics a Global Prospective
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1BUSINESS ETHICS A GLOBAL PROSPECTIVE
Table of Contents
Answer to Question 1......................................................................................................................2
Answer to Question 2......................................................................................................................3
Answer to Question 3......................................................................................................................4
Answer to Question 4......................................................................................................................6
Answer to Question 5......................................................................................................................7
Answer to Question 6......................................................................................................................8
Answer to Question 7......................................................................................................................9
Answer to Question 8....................................................................................................................10
Answer to Question 9....................................................................................................................11
Answer to Question 10..................................................................................................................12
References:....................................................................................................................................14

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Answer to Question 1
Cross-cultural communication in business matters helps in addressing the need
through examination of the interactions and communications between the people of various
subcultures and cultures. The emergence of globalization has stressed on the need of
intercultural communication. Cross-cultural communication in addition to being a business
issue also helps in characterizing the community and classroom (Moran, Abramson & Moran,
2014). Technology also has a role in promoting cross-cultural communication through the
presence of internet that has enhanced the probability of things documented online and read
by people of other culture. Businesses inevitably draw in people from different backgrounds
and therefore needs to get accustomed with different working style of the workers belonging
to the varied cultures. Therefore, it is necessary for the business firms to understand the
importance of cross- cultural differences in the operations that helps the management to
communicate easily with the people belonging to varied cultural backgrounds. However, the
communication system of business organizations remain interspersed with the rules,
practices, values and philosophy followed by the business.
Communicating system acts as a bridge in transmitting the norms and values
associated with the different cultures in the organization. As the communication system
helps the transcending of the differences in culture, a multinational company regards
communication systems as a mechanism for transferring knowledge (Thomas & Peterson,
2017). Multinational companies should therefore overcome the barriers of cross-cultural
communication for effectively attaining the objectives of the organization. The intercultural
communication-taking place in business entities takes cognizance of the differences but at the
same time help in developing a synthesis where there must also be unity amongst diversity.

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Answer to Question 2
Communication skills are fundamental to a workplace. Cross-cultural communication
is an ethical issue as it helps in clearly expressing oneself; be a good listener, enable the
application of an appropriate body language and the way of communicating a message. Thus,
ethics is an issue in communication as the cross-cultural communication takes place through
a system of principles and customs determined by the culture of the people (Adekola & Sergi,
2016). In absence of these principles, there occurs miscommunication or breakdown of
communication. Ethics helps undertaking various types of communication in a diverse
workplace by staying within the norms. Cross-cultural communication can take place
verbally, either face to face or via email or phone. Communication ethics helps in governing
the behavior of the group that in turn impacts cross cultural communication. In other words,
the ethics issue in cross-cultural communication mostly relies on honesty. This also includes
ensuring credit to the appropriate sources and at the same time admitting to the mistakes.
An understanding of the ethics would help in assisting effective communication
across culture as it acts as a moral compass in determining the right from wrong. Most
businesses nowadays have diverse workplace and therefore proper cross-cultural
communication is necessary across the workforce for ensuring it to function efficiently (4).
Moreover, ethical cross-cultural communication in a global workplace also helps in building
awareness so that differences anticipated and necessary measures are ensures for adaptation
and observation. Therefore, cross-cultural communication on ethical grounds helps a manager
or leader to better manage and communicate within team consisting of people from diverse
backgrounds.

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Answer to Question 3
Organization needs to develop the capacity of internal communication for monitoring
and controlling the external threats due to its benefits. The benefits of internal communication
are as follows (Stahl & Tung, 2015):
1. Ensuring a Drive for the Purpose:
Employees want to know their goals and understand plans for reaching it and remain
confident about their contributions. Thus, the employees wanted to feel valued and be a part
of the team. Thus, a proper internal communication can help in motivating the employees in
working towards the common goal.
2. Helps in Remaining Control Over the Message and its Origin:
The employees should never get to know about any important information regarding
the company from an external source. This situation leads to the intimidation amongst the
employees and therefore the only way of dealing with the situation includes reliable, fast and
interactive internal communication amongst the employees.
3. Ensures Supporting and Empowering the Middle Management:
Internal communication provides a platform for the management for better
understanding of the workforce and thereby ensuring better training facilities for the
managers. Internal communication specifically important for the millennial since they often
consider them ill equipped for the job.
4. Ensures Sticking to Brand Promise and Satisfying Customers:
Internal communication helps in clear communication of goals, informed as well as
well-trained staffs. This results in happy faces of the employees thereby leading to significant

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improvement in customer encounter with the brand thereby resulting in enhanced revenue
generation.
5. Helps in Holding Everything Together:
Internal communication helps in steering the perceptions of the people regarding a
situation but also helps in supporting long term and short-term management of any kind of
crisis. Thus, internal communication will help in handling crisis irrespective of the size and
reputation of the industry.
6. Enables Creation of a Better Work Environment:
A good internal communication helps in providing constant purpose and feedback that
helps in increasing employee engagement that in turn helps in decreasing the turnover rates
and ultimately save the company’s money. Timely communication also slows down rumor
mills and helps the employees in interpreting information in a better manner.
Answer to Question 4
Cultural proficiency does not only mean memorizing every cultural nuance of the
market but also knowing how to listen, to ask for help and then speak up. This is because of
the presence of five essential elements required for cultural proficiency. Thus, the elements
include (Watson, Siska & Wolfel, 2013):
1. Valuing Diversity:
The valuation of diversity focuses on respecting and accepting the differences.
Cultural proficiency helps in accepting each culture and finds the behavior and values that
seems important. This is because people come from varied cultural backgrounds, customs,
thoughts, ways of communication, institutions and traditions.

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2. Ensures Capacity for Self-Assessment of Culture:
Cultural proficiency initiates awareness about a particular culture and the influence it
might have on other people. This also helps in recognizing biases about a particular culture.
Identifying and accepting the reality of entitlement and privilege are not only critical but also
the most difficult aspect for addressing.
3. Ensures Managing the Dynamics of Difference:
Cultural proficiency also helps in being conscious of power dynamics that becomes
inherent during the interaction of the people from different cultures. This understanding
helps I recognizing a conflict that is a natural and normal part of life. Thus, cultural
proficiency helps in developing skills for managing the conflict in a positive manner.
5. Helps in Institutionalizing Cultural Resources and Knowledge
Cultural proficiency helps in integrating information about staff development,
education, and skills that help in effectively interacting in cross cultural situations. Cultural
proficiency also helps in the development of institutional practices and policies. In addition, it
also helps in incorporating cultural knowledge into the organizational mainstream. Cultural
proficiency also helps in creating opportunities for the diverse groups for learning about one
another.
Answer to Question 5
Individual differences refer to a cornerstone subject area in the modern psychology. It
refers to the psychology of a person as well as the psychological differences and similarities
that the person has with the other people (Adger et al., 2013). However, the primary attributes
of individual difference includes personality and ability. Ability refers to the traits that help in
distinguishing two people. The traits include speed, depth and mastery of techniques. On the

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other hand, personality refers to the stable system of psychological, philosophical, personal
aspect along with feelings and behavioral systems that characterizes a person.
The identity of every person determined as a combination of characteristics and traits
that forms personality. Individual differences enable the managers and leaders to not only
understand themselves but also relate to the others (Zimbardo & Boyd, 2015). It also helps in
effectively promoting well being and functions amongst the employees since the participation
of employees at work will depend on reputation, production and quality of the organization.
Therefore, this approach is more effective than promoting cultural adaptation defined as the
time and process undertaken by the individuals in integrating to a newer culture and feeling
comfortable in it. Cultural adaptation includes four different stages that are honeymoon,
recovery, culture shock and adjustment of stages.
Answer to Question 6
Cross cultural communication plays a role in interpersonal communication which is
gaining momentum due to its impact on globalization. Companies encouraging cross cultural
communication have a competitive advantage since it helps in enabling the employees in
easily adjusting to the environment of the workplace (Genevieve, 2007). It will also help the
employees in developing and appreciating multiple perspectives put forward by various
cultures.
Cross cultural communication also enables different foreign cultures in coming closer
to each other through same communication patterns. Thus, cross cultural communication
patterns helps in discoursing the variances amongst the varied cultures. Therefore, the
competitive advantages of cross cultural communication in companies are as follows
(Pedersen, 2013):

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1. Cross cultural communication in companies helps in creating an emotionally and
healthy multicultural work ambience.
2. Once the company is capable of promoting an atmosphere where the individuals
can relate with each other in a productive and creative manner, it becomes easier for
promoting healthier relationships between different parts and functions.
3. Cross cultural communication also helps in removing mental blocks and
encourages the receptivity of unfamiliar and newer ideas. This type of communication helps
the managers in identifying people with difference and thereby adds value to the
organization.
4. Cross cultural communication in companies enables excellent planning and
marketing
5. This type of communication within organization also helps in faster decision
making
6. A company relying on cross cultural communication has improved future
competitiveness
7. Presence of cross cultural communication within organization also acts as powerful
tool for change.
Answer to Question 7
Communication Style in United Kingdom
English remains the primary language of United Kingdom and is spoken by around
98% of the UK population. The accents however vary from the north to the south (Bargiela-
Chiappini, Nickerson & Planken, 2013). There are also some regional languages spoken in

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the country that includes Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic and Welsh. The people of UK are non
confrontational in matters related to business. Thus, the British relates directness with
confrontation that is open and possesses a fear that bluntness might offend other party. This
often makes the British to be evasive in situations related to meetings since they are always in
a search for transforming a negative situation into positive one. The British people are not
only diplomatic but they use the language in manner that is coded thereby ensuring to saying
palatable things that remain more acceptable. Humor is however unacceptable in any kind of
business situations (Keyton et al., 2013).
Communication Style in Australia
English is also the official and most common language spoken in Australia.
Australian believes in placing directness before the act of diplomacy and hence considered
blunt in various business situations (Park et al., 2012). The Australian people cherish
directness and thus the failure to address something directly can be mistaken as hypocrisy or
evasiveness. Australia is among the very few countries where humor is acceptable in business
situations.
Similarities between the Communication Styles:
Both the countries have English as the most common spoken language.
Differences between the Communication Styles:
The people of UK are quite diplomatic in their communication style while in
Australia people prefer directness in communication style (Zhu, 2012). Humor is not an
acceptable norm in the business situations of UK while humor remains a part of the
Australian business culture.

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Answer to Question 8
Australians considers being direct rather than being diplomatic in a business
environment. This is done from the fear of making a negative impact on the people being
spoken to. In case of a direct culture, people usually say what they seem to mean not only
briefly but also clearly with addition of any kind of context. They also use various non verbal
means of communication so that the spoken language is able to deliver the necessary
information (Bowe, Martin & Manns, 2014). In addition to this, they are also taken at their
word and open expression of disagreement. Australian people also ensure delivery of
messages that are able to ensure complete understanding.
This sometimes makes them quite blunt in certain situations. Being diplomatically self
promotional should also be avoided in Australia (Biddle & Swee, 2012). The approach of
hard sell is often misunderstood as bragging and can result in provoking a negative impact.
Businesses in Australia believe in factual description rather than on hyperbolic approach.
Answer to Question 9
Culture represents social transmission of behavior, language, symbols, signs, beliefs,
traditions, rituals and norms and mostly shared within particular social group belonging to the
same ethnicity, religion and nationality (Kastanakis & Voyer, 2014). Culture is a gradual
transition from one generation to another. This provides people with their own means of
seeing the world and interpreting it accordingly. However, a culture represents various
subcultures.
Cultural diversity often makes communication tough as people belonging to varied
cultures have different mindset, signs, symbols and language. Moreover, different cultures
have different meaning for their behavior, words and gestures (Paulhus et al., 2013). Culture
is also responsible for giving rise to prejudices, manners, opinions and ethnocentrism. This is

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also the way in which people behave as well as they think. Therefore, when people from
varied cultures communicate these factors might result in the creation of barriers.
Thus, a person’s communication style represents the culture that he or she has been
brought up in. Therefore, our communication style represents our culture to a larger extent.
For instance, in the United States people communicate quite freely which is also a part of
their culture. In Australia, a British who is quite indirect and diplomatic in this
communication style might find their means of speaking directly not only quite rude but also
blunt (Samovar et al., 2014). Direct communication is a part of the Australian culture and
gets reflected in the manner in which people communicate. Thus, communication in a way
shapes culture and culture also shapes communication.
The different communication styles prevailing amongst the various cultures results in
stereotyping sometimes thereby lead to a communication hindrance. However, the promotion
of proper cross cultural communication in a business environment can help people overcome
such hindrance.
Answer to Question 10
Australians Stereotyping People of UK
Australians Stereotypes the people of UK saying that though the British possess
traditional sense of equality, they still primarily focus on authority. This leads to confusion
amongst people coming from a flat organizational structure especially Australia or
Netherlands. They give preference to seniority compared to credentials (Bos et al., 2013).
According to Australian people, they believe in hierarchical differentiations between the
subordinates and supervisors even though they believe in informal communication amongst

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each other. The British are quite fair in their approach in dealing with staffs in a business
environment and are also quite polite in their approach.
UK Stereotyping the People of Australia
The people of United Kingdom stereotype the Australian people saying that they have
a fairly direct communication style. They also believe that even though non verbal language
does not play a major role in Australia but handshake and eye contact plays a vital role while
addressing business meetings (Allen, Ottmann & Roberts, 2013). The Australian people also
love to stand at arm’s length when communicating with each other. They also have respect
for people who have the capability of speaking their mind.
Though these stereotypes are accurate but promotion of cross cultural communication
in a workplace can help overlooking the stereotypes and enable the spread of harmony.

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