CROSS CULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Therefore, when learning cross-cultural communication, learners should always remember cross-cultural principles in order to have an effective communication with people from different cu

Cross-cultural communication

GROUP: 08

Instructor: Nguyen Bach Nga

Student: Nguyen Thi Hong Ngoc Student ID: 1270110182

Question 1: Elaborate on three of the coss-cultural communication principles and give concrete

examples for each of them.

Every country has its own culture which distinguishes them from others Therefore, when learning cross-cultural communication, learners should always remember cross-cultural principles in order to have an effective communication with people from different cultures However, this paper will analyze three most important principles

The first principle is that there are no absolute “rights” and “wrongs” in cultures, only cultural differences What is acceptable in one culture may be unacceptable in another culture For example, in India, before getting married, a woman can spend time with her lover A term for

a short time spent with a lover before marriage could be called “Holiday in Goa” This happens because Indians believe this source of holiday is a compensation for what the woman will do for her future husband for the rest of her life Although the role of a woman towards family in Vietnam, China and India is quite familiar, both Vietnamese and Chinese find it hard to accept a

so-called “Holiday in Goa” Therefore, something that is right in one culture may be wrong in

another and vice-versa

The second principle is that there are two levels of observation in order to approach cultural values The first one is that all cultures have values and ideals that their members say are true The second one is that their behavior may not always reflect those values For instance, Americans strongly believe the value of marrying to the same person for life However, they do not, in reality, reflect this Although the divorce rate in US has gradually decreased in the past years, it is still at the top 10 countries with the highest divorce rate

Last but not least, culture does not explain all behavior Individual’s behavior is not only affected by culture but also by personality, age, gender, economic and educational levels, life experiences and relationships For example, it is impossible to say that everyone in one culture communicates similarly Older people often communicate according to more traditional norms than younger people In addition, there are gender differences in the way people behave When talking about emotional issues and feelings, women tend to be more direct than men

In short, be able to find a comfortable middle ground for ourselves when studying cross-cultural communication, we should pay attention to those principles above By following carefully the principles, learners can see a bigger picture of different culture Moreover, it enables learners to realize the benefit of and be more interested in competing cross-cultural communication

Question 2: An old saying goes, “when in Rome, do as the Romans do” To what extent do

you agree with it? Write about 500 words to support your answer using your knowledge from the Cross-cultural Communication course

With a dramatic development in globalization, the demand of working and studying in other countries has been increased Therefore, increasing cross-cultural competence is vastly significant This is because it enables us to adapt to uncertainty and cope with cultural

differences when being abroad There is an American proverb, “When in Rome, do as the

Romans do” which can fit this occasion It means that when you are in another country, you

should behave like the people in that country In my opinion, I agree with the idea but to some extent I disagree with this saying

There is little room for doubt that when you live in another country or another culture, you should follow their rules and norms to adjust well in that country Obeying another culture’s rules might be the best way in order to avoid misunderstandings and unnecessary conflicts with residents It will also help avoid embarrassment and bring a sense of comfort For example, an American who has just lived in Vietnam for about a month received a wedding invitation from a friend On the invitation, it was written that the ceremony would start at 11 a.m However, in fact, the ceremony was 1 hour late, which made the American feel irritated Later on, he learns that Vietnamese have a tendency of being late As time has gone by, he gradually accepts that and does not feel irritated any more Therefore, when being in another country, obeying their rules is the best way to merge into the new culture and integrate into the new society

Nevertheless, behaving as those around do poses a risk of losing one’s own identities We tend to lose some components of our own culture such as traditions, customs or taboos in attempt to follow and embrace other cultures When ones are too accustomed to a new culture,

he will probably steadily behave or act naturally without trying to follow the rules Eventually, their next generations will totally lose their identities because you yourself have already lost it Another reason which can lead to the loss of your own culture is because you do not want to be bullied by others just because of the cultural differences Therefore, you try to assimilate completely into a new culture This have already happened towards African in the past when they were force to immigrate to America as slaveries

Taking into consideration the above ideas, although the saying, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do” encourages us to behave or act in a way according to local rules and customs when you are in an environment that is different from your own However, while doing that we will gradually lose our own identities Therefore, you should adopt local conventions as well as cherish our own cultures

Question 3:

A saying goes, ‘To know another’s language and not his culture is a very good way to make

a fluent fool of one’s self’ It means to learn a new language, learners should learn the culture of

the country in which specified language is spoken In other words, learning a new language means learning a new culture because the culture reflects the language that how we communicate This might be because of the strong connections between language and culture as well They influence each other, reflect each other and co-exist with each other In my opinion,

to succeed in second language learning acquisition and to communicate skillfully and effectively, linguistic knowledge is not enough Besides that, learners should be competence in cultural knowledge in order to avoid cultural shock or communication breakdown

It is generally agreed that language and culture are closely related Language is certainly a big part of culture Therefore, to be able to communicate effectively with foreigners, not only do

we need to learn their language but also their culture Linguistic competence alone is not enough to competent in that language Culture of the target language plays an important role in achieving that It is undeniable that cultures do greatly influence communication styles Cultural styles apparently obviously can and do create misunderstandings in conversations among people from different cultures Therefore, having a great knowledge of a target language culture is significant for facilitating communication with people from different backgrounds There are different types of communication patterns related to cultural differences, which can cause a cultural shock or communication breakdown for one and another For instance, considering directness and indirectness in communication, people from cultures which favor directness are likely to express their opinions, feelings and needs directly They tend not to beat around the bush and wait for others to understand what they really want However, people from cultures which prefer indirectness in communication tend not to get to the point directly and consider indirectness as politeness, which usually cause misunderstanding among cultures For example, compared to American way of speaking, Vietnamese speak much more indirectly Directness is sometimes considered as a form of impoliteness in Vietnam When visiting Americas’ house,

Vietnamese people tend to stay polite when being asked “Are you hungry” by answering “Yes, a

little” However, Americans may not understand that and postpone the meal and continue the chat Later on, they might notice the rumbling noise from the guests why their Vietnamese guests did not tell the true This is because Americans do not hesitate to express what they want

as directness is honesty for them This example above can clearly indicate how cultures affect the way we speak Therefore, mastering in grammars and vocabularies does not guarantee that you will have a successful communication with foreigners unless you learn its culture Furthermore, learning to understand a target language culture may help learners to use words and expressions more skillfully and act naturally in different cultures

In conclusion, while learning a foreign language ones should not only develop their knowledge in term of linguistic components, but also improve intercultural competence Moreover, through using the knowledge of a language and its culture, people will know how to survive in different life situations and behave properly Therefore, try to not just be bilingual but

be bicultural as well

Question 4: Differentiate between cultural generalizations and cultural stereotype Give

concrete examples to illustrate.

Generalizations and stereotypes are two well-known concepts that have usually come together However, they function differently though they may appear the same Therefore, when learning other’s culture, it is important to be able to distinguish the differences between generalizations and stereotypes in order to interact effectively with others and avoiding misunderstandings and cultural shocks

Generalizations are statements made about tendencies of a group of people In other words, a generalization is a description of a cultural trait that comes after being observed, experienced and educated a large number of people A generalization never applies to everyone

in specific culture in every situation Moreover, generalizations provide general characteristics

on cultural and social factors and recognize that the individuals within a group vary in many ways The point of a generalization is to say what is true most of the time It provides us a general picture of a culture that is different from ours for the purpose of discussion or learning Cultural generalizations also help people to behave properly or know how to interact with other

people from different culture in different situations Generalizations often use the words ‘some’

or ‘many’ in their statements For example, when talking about differences in directness

between American males and female, there is a generalization that many American women have traditionally been less direct than men in making requests, expressing criticism and offering opinion However, not every American woman is like that, there are still some exceptions Generalizations are useful and necessary, as long as they remain guidelines and do not turn into rules

On contrast, a stereotype is an exaggerated or distorted generalization or an assumption about an entire category of people that does not acknowledge individual variation It is applied

to everyone in every situation in that culture without exceptions Even worse, stereotypes are retained even when they are no longer accurate or useful It presents a fixed and inflexible image of a group Stereotypes often use the words all or most in their statements and/or presume the categorical For instance, some people say that all Americans are overweight but clearly not all American is overweight Stereotypical beliefs prevent us from seeing people as individuals with unique characteristics Negative stereotypes lead to prejudice and result in some forms of discrimination An illustration for a prejudice resulting from negative stereotype is that a family strongly forbidden their son to get married a Mien Tay woman just because they think that all Mien Tay woman is lazy However, in fact, this woman is very hard-working This illustration indicates clearly the relationship between prejudice and stereotypes, which leads to misjudgment and unfair toward certain people

In conclusion, although similarities between generalization and stereotype are apparent, they still function in different ways Therefore, people should pay attention to the differences between them This is because generalizations and stereotypes impact intercultural communication