Assignment On Intercultural Encounter

Running head: INTERCULTURAL ENCOUNTER
INTERCULTURAL ENCOUNTER
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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INTERCULTURAL ENCOUNTER
PREAMBLE
Once in my university, there was an exchange program under which the students were
sent to Egypt to learn about the culture there. I was amongst the few lucky students who were
given the chance to visit Egypt under the exchange program. I was very excited about the trip
because it was my first trip to an African nation although I have been to other countries
previously. I had no idea about anything related to Egyptian culture or tradition, not even the
little nuances. I did not even try to learn the Egyptian culture and the language before my visit
there. Hence, I did not know how I would manage the intercultural differences that I would
necessarily encounter. Nonetheless, our student delegation visited the Cairo University to attend
a seminar followed by a workshop on international business. I was put in a team of five where
three members were Egyptians. We were asked to form the team and work on a business project
to be presented at the ending seminar. I was very enthusiastic about the project and more
importantly, for the opportunity to make friends in Egypt.
On the first day of our team meeting, things did not go as I expected. The other student
from my university began to be bossy and started instructing the Egyptian students on what to
do. When I confronted him and told him that it is not the way to talk, he replied Egyptians are
very lazy as he has heard and they should be treated this way. I was not happy with his answer
but that day I did not say anything, only observe the other student. I observed that the Egyptian
students just accepted whatever plan or idea he had to say to them. I was amazed at their
behavior because they did not refute or argue throughout the entire team meeting. I thought the
students were behaving so because they thought of us to be superior to them intellectually and
academically. I then took the initiative to befriend the Egyptian students and help them feel
active part of the team and not just passive listeners. I told them that they are also free to discuss

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INTERCULTURAL ENCOUNTER
their ideas but I got no response. It went on for the next couple of days but the students did not
change their behavior.
Now when I look back, I realize that they were viewing my friendly behaviors as my
weakness to come up with an idea. They thought that I was not competent like my counterpart to
provide a good idea for the project. I then understood the problem with the situation and found
that it was related to the cultural differences. The encounter has remained with me even today
because that was my first experience of intercultural encounter. I had many encounters but this
one taught me the value of learning about various cultures. I became more aware about
intercultural communication and began to value other cultures more.
495 Words
PROPOSAL
Research question: What is expected from an expatriate manager sent to a foreign nation
for business deals while leading a team?
As explained in the preamble, I encountered an intercultural communication dilemma
while I was in Egypt under the student exchange program. The research question has been
completely derived from the experience I had from my Egypt visit. In the future, I plan to work
in a multinational corporation and if I am given the responsibility to become an expatriate
manager to visit a foreign country I would want to be prepared. The country might be Egypt as
well. The research question asks what an expatriate manager should do during her or his visit to a
foreign country on business deals. The research question also asks in what way the manager will
conduct business deals while leading a team. From my experience in Egypt, I have found that it
is very difficult to lead a team especially in intercultural contexts.