With the development of economic globalization, intercultural communication has played a big part in international business activities. In order to carry out efficient intercultural communication, people should understand and focus on cultural identity more. Jameson (2007) stated that cultural identity which refers to a person’s status in a group includes six components: vocation, class, geography, philosophy, language, and biology (p.210). This essay will discuss that cultural identity of customers is an important consideration for Haier Group when it develops new product and market, especially when it comes to the class, geography vocation.
Cultural identity linked to class has a great effect on a company’s marketing. The social and economic class which people belong to have big effect on their daily consumption decision (He & Liu, 2003, p.249). Leung (2005) claimed that social and economic status of people is the reliable indicators of which class people fall into, providing the valuable practical information for the enterprises (p.362). Generally speaking, the people who are in the high social and economic class usually are more willing to consume. In other words, it can mean the economic class of the consumer will directly affect the consumer demand and spending habit of consumer (Leung, 2005, p.370). Jameson (2007) found that “economic, social and educational classes often define groups of people who share common values, behavior, and attitudes; these cultural groups also cut across national and ethnic lines” (p.212). Therefore, the people belong to the same economic or social class may have the similar consumption tendency. The specific economic class usually requires a particular service or product. In general, Single white-collar crowds belong to the high –income class. They are the class who has considerable income, and they have the requirements of high quality of product. However, they don’t have too many clothes to wash. For example, when Haier Group enters into Japanese washing machine market, it found that most of the washing machines on the market are the big capacity. They are not suitable for the single white-collar class. Therefore, Haier Group designed and introduced a small capacity and high quality washing machine for them. The products are widely appreciated, and Haier Group firstly opened the door of Japan market.
Owing to the profound impacts geographical environments exercise on human life, people living in different regions have different demands for the products. Jameson (2007) argued that “Geography creates cultural groups but not only in terms of nationality.
However, entering into a market as different as Japan is not without its risks, and must be ensured to be successful, with the help of market research, marketing, and operational theories, lest the new venture become a very costly mistake. Target Consumer Market When moving to a market with a consumer culture so different from the home market, a company must be careful to analyse its target audience in detail, to avoid costly cultural faux pas. To get a good feel for the Japanese culture, a good place to start would be the experts in the cultural studies field. Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, created during his in-depth GLOBE study of the cultures of the world, gives a good comparison between the priority differences between Japanese and English culture. A detailed analysis of the cultural differences will be given in the ‘Marketing Issues’ section of the report.
Intercultural communication is type of communication which people from different cultures and groups share information. The occasion where significant basically cultural differences made effective intercultural communication a challenge between me and my friend here in America was about bride price. In my culture bride price is paid by groom to the family of the girl who is going to marry. The bride price symbolizes as a promise to always love and protect. It serves as reassurance to the bride’s parents that the daughter they love with all their heart will be in good hands. The bride price does not represent the value of a women and it was never intended to. Its present a promise to love and respect a women. But my friend who is the citizen here and was born here told me that in America there is no like this culture anymore, they do not pay any bride price to groom or to the bride.
There are many co-cultures in the world. I am a twenty nine year old Caucasian mother of two girls with an annual income of around thirty thousand a year. I am a wife in a Methodist household, where my job is a home maker; as well as, I am a college student. I am a French Canadian, German, Native American, and Polish breed.
Many people who go to visit or work in another country suffer some misunderstanding from the local people, because they have a different culture. Different culture will cause disparity points of view about almost everything. In the article, Intercultural Communication Stumbling Blocks by Laray M. Barna, there are five stumbling blocks mentioned that are seen in a cross-culture communication. These blocks are: language, nonverbal signs and symbols, preconceptions and stereotypes, the tendency to evaluate and high anxiety. Barna wants to use these stumbling blocks to show the common blockades between different cultures. I agree with what she thinks about the language, nonverbal signs and symbols, preconceptions and stereotypes, and the tendency
With an increase in globalization, many people venture into other countries to seek employment and education opportunities. The United States-based corporations employ over 100 million overseas workers. They also hire a large number of locals who then move to take roles in other countries where the company has operations (Reichard et al. 2015). This means that Americans are exposed to a high number of people from other nations with diverse cultures in their workplaces, schools, neighborhoods and other social places. Therefore, people need to improve their intercultural communication skills to enable them to interact efficiently with people with diverse cultures. The improvement of technology has made the media an agent for enhanced
I have learned a great deal about different cultures and the communication between those cultures. I didn’t really think I would learn as much as I did. I am from an older cohort than most of the people in my class; therefore my experience level is a little greater. This did not prevent me from learning a few things and enhancing the knowledge I already have.
When individuals or groups from different cultures communicate, this process is called intercultural communication. The transaction process of listening and responding to people from different cultural backgrounds can be challenging. The greater the difference in culture between two people, the greater the potential of misunderstanding and mistrust. Misunderstanding and miscommunication occur between people from different cultures because of different coding rules and cultural norms, which play a major role in shaping the patterns of interaction (Jandt, 2012).
Intercultural communication is an evolving discipline that occurs between individuals from contrasting backgrounds. It include...
In business, communication is a fundamental concept as it is a collaborative activity which enables goods and services to be created and exchanged through close coordination of individuals on domestic and global scales. According to Hooker (2008), when it comes to the intercultural exchange of business activities, complex product characteristics or production schedules for example, should be mutually understood and trading between partners should be negotiated taking into account differences in business communication. It is important to realize the way in which spoken and written language is interpreted in a business context. Understanding of intercultural communication is critically related to business and can determine efficiency and the outcome of a business position. Intercultural Communication is a form of communication that aims to share information across different cultures and social groups. Applying practices of intercultural communication within a business organization requires the understanding of cultural values, social expectations and workplace practices in order to ensure the collaboration between people to be effective. It is also important to understand the coordination and management of people from
In the contemporary global economy which can be categorized as dynamic and evolutionary in nature, one needs to be cognizant of change that is inevitable within the tourism industry. Due to the demands of the global customer the world can be viewed as being more so inter-connected, owing to this fact the traditional workplace has become more diverse. With diversity in mind the barriers to communication have become prevalent. Within the ambit of the essay such barriers to intercultural communication outlined by LaRay M. Barna shall be explored; anxiety, assuming similarity instead of difference, ethnocentricity, stereotypes and prejudice, nonverbal misinterpretations, language and modern technology will be further discussed. In going forward it is essential to define culture and communication.
Humans have been communicating since four million years. On the other hand, the birth of culture is estimated to have taken place about 35,000 years ago. Today, both culture and communication have evolved considerably and have become interdependent of one another, to the point that communication is considered to be a product of culture. Thus, our own culture has a deep impact on our thoughts and behaviors. Since each culture has its distinct aspects, intercultural communication can be the cause of conflict and disorder. There are three main issues which are at the root of the problem of intercultural miscommunication : language as a barrier, cultural diversity and ethnocentrism. I will analyze these three notions in situations in which intercultural communication is frequent such as : the workplace, the classroom and vacation trips.
Interpersonal Communication in an Intercultural Setting Cultural growth in the twenty-first century has heightened the emphasis on interpersonal communication in an intercultural setting. As our world grows, expands and becomes increasingly more interconnected by various technological advances, the need for effective interpersonal communication among differing cultures has become quite clear. Due to the advancement of technology in today's world, a world in which some businesspeople are involved in transactions with other businesspeople in faraway countries, the call for knowledge of intercultural communication within this setting has become a reality. Interpersonal communication is a form of communication that involves a small number of people who can interact exclusively with one another and who therefore have the ability to both adapt their messages specifically for those others and to obtain immediate interpretations from them (Lustig et al, 1993). Although interpersonal communication is usually thought of as being perf!
More specifically, it is affected by how people from different countries and cultures behave, communicate, and perceive the world around them. Most people have a variety of intercultural relationships that may feature differences in age, physical ability, gender, ethnicity, class, religion, race, or nationality. In the context of globalization, intercultural communication has become ubiquitous in contemporary business communication. People keep moving around the world and have always traveled from their homelands, but with the increasing technological ease of travel, people are moving much more than ever before. Sojourners, business travelers, tourists, immigrants, and refugees have very different reasons for
I wasn 't quite sure what I was getting into when I first enrolled in Intercultural Communications. I had assumptions as to the goals of the course such as I would be learning about the way cultures interact with each other, learn about communication in general, or I would be learning about the ways we use communication through our culture. I think that I achieve the latter goal, but I also gained knowledge about more then just my culture. I came to realize that there is more to a culture than just language, appearances, and customs, which are aspects of culture that could be seen above the waterline, or they are more noticeable/obvious to someone outside of that culture. There are aspects of culture that are below the waterline, or more
Recently, I read an article on intercultural communication. I also watched three videos that showed problems in intercultural communication.Intercultural communication is communication between people from different cultures or countries. After reading the article about intercultural communication by Laray M. Barna, I found some of the reasons that caused the problems in the video.