Hello all,
Because of a recent situation with the apt rental company, I am remembering a really interesting class from grad school about understanding the difference between high and low context cultures.
High context cultures can use very few words to communicate very complex ideas, wants, needs, etc.
Low-context cultures (i.e. America) need to spell out everything, give direct answers that don't rely on body language, implications, etc.
Interacting with someone from a different type of culture could bring conflict if you aren't aware of where your friend/business partner/client is coming from.
Here are a list of cultures that fit into either category (Of course it's not a definitive list and is based on generalizations, etc., and there are always exceptions), but nevertheless it's interesting.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_context_culture
Lower Context Culture AmericanAustralianEnglish CanadianEnglishGermanIrishNew ZealandScandinavia Higher context Culture AfricanArabBrazilianChineseFilipinosFinnishFrench CanadianFrenchGreekHungarianIndianItalianJapaneseKoreanLatin AmericansRussianSpanishThaiTurkishSo, my question is, have yall experienced and situations where your background of a high/low context culture has caused you misunderstand someone which causes conflict?
I'm trying to understand this culture (BsAs) better while I'm here, so I'm just throwing this out there to discuss or for anyone to share their experiences, since they are so often a great way to learn about what things are like here!
Ciao!
Because of a recent situation with the apt rental company, I am remembering a really interesting class from grad school about understanding the difference between high and low context cultures.
High context cultures can use very few words to communicate very complex ideas, wants, needs, etc.
Low-context cultures (i.e. America) need to spell out everything, give direct answers that don't rely on body language, implications, etc.
Interacting with someone from a different type of culture could bring conflict if you aren't aware of where your friend/business partner/client is coming from.
Here are a list of cultures that fit into either category (Of course it's not a definitive list and is based on generalizations, etc., and there are always exceptions), but nevertheless it's interesting.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_context_culture
Lower Context Culture AmericanAustralianEnglish CanadianEnglishGermanIrishNew ZealandScandinavia Higher context Culture AfricanArabBrazilianChineseFilipinosFinnishFrench CanadianFrenchGreekHungarianIndianItalianJapaneseKoreanLatin AmericansRussianSpanishThaiTurkishSo, my question is, have yall experienced and situations where your background of a high/low context culture has caused you misunderstand someone which causes conflict?
I'm trying to understand this culture (BsAs) better while I'm here, so I'm just throwing this out there to discuss or for anyone to share their experiences, since they are so often a great way to learn about what things are like here!
Ciao!