Intercultural Communication and Negotiation: A Reflection on a Fundraiser Event

This paper reflects on the concepts of intercultural communication and negotiation through the lens of a fundraiser event attended by the author. It discusses the importance of these concepts in the present day world and how a working knowledge of these concepts can help individuals interact more effectively with people from diverse cultural and social backgrounds.

Running head: BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
Business Communication
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

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The process of intercultural communication has emerged as a vital one within the fold
of the present day business world. The process of globalization has made it of paramount
significance for the various business enterprises to operate on an international basis and it is
here that the concept of intercultural communication gains significance (Martin and
Nakayama 2013). The problem of intercultural communication creeps in when the process of
communication is undertaken between people belonging to different cultures (Asante, Miike
and Yin 2013). The process of effective negotiation can be said to be related to the concept of
intercultural communication (Asante, Miike and Yin 2013). It is generally seen that during
the process of intercultural communication the resolution of the issue depends on the
effective negotiation skills of the communicator (Samovar et al. 2014). Thus, the process of
negotiation can be said to be the one which aims at reaching a unanimous decision or
agreement among the different entities who are having a discussion or communicating with
each other (Samovar et al. 2014). In this paper I will discuss about the concepts of
intercultural communication and negotiation through the lens of an event which I attended
recently.
I attended a fundraiser event around a few months ago for the children suffering from
Autism. The event was organized by our local community however people from the different
parts of the city came to attend this particular event. There were more than 200 attendees at
the event from different social as well as cultural backgrounds and different sections of the
society. The primary focus of the event was on raising the required amount of money for the
establishment of a care center where the children facing the disorder of Autism. However, I
would like to comment at this particular point of time that in addition to being a successful
fundraiser the occasion turned out to be a successful social event where the people from the
different sections of the city were able to not interact with each other but at the same time got
to know each other. I myself made a few acquaintances at this particular event with the kind

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of people I never thought that I would be able to know. For example, I came across a few
Chinese students just like me in the event and then there was another student. Initially I was
very reluctant to attend this particular event as I thought that I would be getting bored at the
event as it would be attended by people belonging to the mature age and I would have to
spend three to four hours without having to talk to anyone. However, at the event I found that
out that the scenario was completely different and to be very honest I ended up enjoying my
time at the event as not only I got to know about many people but at the same time I got to
learn important things about the cultural as well as social patterns of the people belonging to
other nations or regions. Thus, it can be said that the event helped me to gain a significant
amount of knowledge about the concepts of negotiation and intercultural communication.
I would like to comment at this particular point of time that now when I look back at
the event in retrospect I find that the event had much deeper connotations than it was
apparent to me. For example, during the event I had interactions with the people belonging to
different cultural as well as social backgrounds without knowing the fact that I was indulging
in the process of intercultural communication. Therefore, when the concept of intercultural
communication was being taught to me by my professor the event naturally came to my mind
and I was able to make a correlation between the two. For example, it really seemed funny to
me when the Chinese as well as the Indian students who a part of the event failed to
understand the English language used by me and at the same time I was unable to understand
the things which they were trying to say to me. Moreover, I also noticed that the standard
words used by me during the course of the conversation were interpreted in different manner
by the people belonging to different cultures as well as social backgrounds. Therefore, in
such a condition we were required to take the help of various kinds of gestures as well as
body languages for the process of making the other individuals understand the things which
we were trying to convey to the other individual. In addition to this, apart from them I myself

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was having a really hard time trying to understand the things which they were trying to
convey to me. Thus, at the initial point of time I was really not very inclined to carry on the
conversation with them. However, I soon found out that I had nothing better to do rather than
to carry on the conversation with them. At this particular point of time I would like to say that
during the course of the conversation I was able to learn many new things about the cultures
of the different people and their style of conducting communication. Furthermore, at this
particular point of time I would also like to add here that now in retrospect when I look back I
think that we took the help of the concept of negotiation also in a significant manner during
the course of the event. The concept of negotiation was used by us in an effective manner to
arrive at various kinds of agreements during the course of the interview. Therefore, I would
like to comment in this particular context that the event was a beneficial one for as it helped
me to gain a practical idea about the concepts which would later on be taught to me by my
professor during the course of my studies.
In retrospect when I reflect back on the event I think that there were various things
which I could have done in a much better manner. For example, if I had an effective working
knowledge of the concept of intercultural communication and the various kinds of theories
related to it I would have been able to interact in a much better with the people belonging to
the different cultural as well as social backgrounds. Furthermore, the use of various
techniques like gestures, body language and others would have further enhanced the kind of
conversation which I had with these people (Samovar et al. 2014). Moreover, the use of the
concept of negotiation during the process of communication and interaction with these people
would have helped me and the other students from the diverse cultural as well as social
background. Thus, I would like to comment in this particular context that a working of these
concepts as well as the theories related to them are of paramount importance since these are
likely to help the concerned individual in a significant manner. In the present times it is

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generally seen that we across people who not only from the various other countries of the
world but at the same time follow a culture which is totally different from the one which we
have been used to follow since our birth. Therefore an effective knowledge of these concepts
is likely to help the individuals in a significant manner not only during the process of their
communication with these individuals but also in carrying out negotiations with these people.
To conclude, the concepts of intercultural communication and negotiation have
gained a considerable amount of significance within the framework of the present day world.
This can be seen as a reflection of the changing status quo of the world and the process of
diversification have contributed much towards the concept of multiculturalism which has
become a part of our society. Thus, it becomes very important for the individuals to take the
help of the concept of intercultural communication for the process of communicating with
these individuals in a much more effective manner. Furthermore, a knowledge of the
framework as well as the theories of the concept of intercultural communication is likely to
help the individuals not only to interact in a much better manner with the individuals
belonging to the other cultures as well as social backgrounds but at the same time would help
them to understand the cultures of these people in a much more effective manner. Another
important concept which has gained a considerable amount of significance in the recent times
is the concept of negotiation. The concept of negotiation helps the individuals to reach at a
conclusion or agreement during the process of communication regarding some important
topic or question. Therefore, it would be apt to say that a working knowledge of these two
concepts is very essential for the individuals as my experience at the fund raiser event which I
have mentioned indicates.

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