Cultural Competence and Global Teams

Cross-cultural communication

Cross-cultural communication necessitates that a person possess the necessary understanding of the many methods of connecting with persons from diverse cultural backgrounds. Culture is undoubtedly one of the most frequent impediments to communication. Evidently, both verbal and nonverbal communication styles will always vary amongst people from different cultures. An analysis of cross-cultural communication between Chinese and Americans was provided in the assignment that was presented. The major goal is to demonstrate the observed differences and how culture affects communication style in a significant way.

Communication contrasts between Americans and Chinese

Nowak and Dong state that “the major differences between the Chinese and the Americans include language, geography, history, religion, and political and economic systems” (116). The presented cultural differences will determine the way the members of the Chinese team interact with the Americans.

Group Vs individuality

The group verse individuality focus is one of the four behavioral scales for consideration. Evidently, the individuality and the group focus is an important aspect that determined the working relationship between the Chinese and the Americans from an intercultural communication perspective. The Chinese are known to be a group-oriented community who value working together as a team. The members of the identified cultural community depend on each other and they strongly emphasize on the element of togetherness. On the contrary, the Americans are known to be highly an individualistic community. Apparently, the members of the identified cultural community will always emphasize on individual achievement, hold a great value for their space and freedom. Therefore, they are highly likely to be more comfortable working in privately owned businesses and companies while the Chinese prefer to work on state-owned organizations.

Verbal and non verbal communication techniques

It is also a fact that the verbal and non verbal communication differences can be considered as a behavioral scale for analyzing the manner of interaction between the Chinese and the Americans. Evidently, Fall states that ”people’s willingness to express themselves and take risks is different” (117). Taking into consideration the case of Americans, it is apparent that the members of the identified community are highly open-minded, easy-going and straightforward. Furthermore, the members of the American culture are known to have a rich facial expression which can provide an indication of their feelings. Additionally, the members of the identified community are know to have the potential of easily saying ”no” and can easily show their frustrations whenever they face difficulties.

On the contrary, the Chinese are known to be quite reserved. The members of the community are introverted in that they do not easily reveal their feelings. Furthermore, they find it difficult to say ”no” or turn an individual down whenever asked to do a favor. They are also known to be subtle in their behavior in that they will rarely show their level of dissatisfaction with their work. Fall indicates that the Chinese’s behavior is inclined to their desire to always avoid problems and disagreements (412).

Greeting Habits

Greeting habits is also a common behavior than can explain the noted difference between the way of communication between the American and the Chinese culture. It is evident that in China, when people meet at a social place, they simply exchange a handshake rather than hugs especially in the case of people of different genders. Within a business setting, the greetings are accompanied with an exchange of name cards. The cards are exchanged with the use of two hands to show respect. The other party is also expected to show respect by reading the details of the card therefore suggesting their interest. The same cannot be said in the Americans case. Evidently, most Americans do not offer their cards when they first meet. Furthermore, they never use two hands when presenting their business cards. Furthermore, they are known to have a tendency of putting the card away even before looking.

Interviews and public speaking

The way the Americans and the Chinese behave during interviews and public speaking also suggests a great difference in the way of communication between the identified cultures. Lauring shows that Americans strongly emphasize on the use of verbal skills at all times (232). Therefore, through the use of verbal skills they can make their point of view without the use of their hands or oral presentations. On the contrary, the Chinese are known to make their speeches through non verbal techniques such as in the form of hand-written speeches. The noted emphasis on verbal skills is also common during an interview process. The American interviews strongly focus on oral presentation which enables an applicant to sell their skills. Therefore, the Americans are considered to be more confident and aggressive in comparison to their Chinese counterparts (Ainsworth 28). In China, applicants during an interview process will strongly focus on written materials which outline their achievements and educational background. In cases where the applicant chooses to focus on their oral skills to show aggressiveness indicates that the applicant is arrogant to a point that he/she will probably fail the interview.

Adjusting Behavior to meet the team Rapport

To build trust, it is recommended that the Chinese team members as well as those of the American culture should recognize that differences exist between the manner of communication between the Americans and the Chinese. As a result, they will have knowledge of the requisite areas of change to ensure to build trust among themselves as they communicate. For the identified members of the Chinese to adjust their behavior, they should consider changing their communication behavior to meet the requirements of the Americans. For instance, the members of the identified team should focus on becoming more individualistic. Additionally, they should value the use of verbal cues even more when engaging in communication. Furthermore, they should always consider being more straightforward when communicating. To achieve this, they should always find it easy to say ”no” when they are not in the position of completing favors. Last but not least, the identified Chinese members should refrain from offering their cards during the first instance when they meet an individual. The presented change in behavior will significantly increase on the trust levels among the Chinese and the Americans therefore creating a team rapport. Evidently, the changes in behavior will make it easier for the members of the two varied cultures to realize that they are on the same page when it comes to communication.

Shared Preference for a good working relationship

A good working relationship will only be achieved between the Chinese and the Americans when the members of the identified cultural divide acknowledge that communication should be unified. Evidently, when the Americans and the Chinese decide on the use of strong verbal communication techniques other than the nonverbal communication means that a good working relationship may be ensured between the identified members of the cultural divide.

Possible areas of Conflict

The possible areas of conflict between the Americans and the Chinese during communication include the use of verbal and non-verbal cues. Evidently, the Americans value the use of verbal techniques while the Chinese associate the use of various non-verbal cues with respect. Therefore, when interacting, it is highly likely that the two communities will be conflict as the members of the Chinese community may consider the Americans as disrespectful since they do not highly value the use of non verbal techniques. On the other hand, the Chinese may also consider the Americans as unfriendly and difficult to interact with as a result of their high level of individualism. Apparently, the members of the community do not value working within a group but as individuals.

Overcoming Tension to achieve success

The members of the identified cultural group can overcome the noted tension to ensure a successful interaction by acknowledging the fact that differences exist between the way of communication of the identified groups. Through this, the members from the Chinese and those from the American communities will easily identify the best ways of resolving conflict by settling for a unified way of communicating. Furthermore, acknowledging the differences in communication will direct the members of the team to understand the fact that diversity exists therefore reducing any potential of conflict development.

Works Cited

Fall, Lisa T.. “Intercultural Communication Apprehension and Emotional Intelligence in Higher Education: Preparing Business Students for Career Success.” Business Communication Quarterly, vol. 76, no. 4, Dec. 2013, pp. 412-426. 

Ainsworth, Judith. “Business Languages for Intercultural and International Business Communication: A Canadian Case Study.” Business Communication Quarterly, vol. 76, no. 1, Mar. 2013, pp. 28-50. 

Lauring, Jakob. “Intercultural Organizational Communication: The Social Organizing of Interaction in International Encounters.” Journal of Business Communication, vol. 48, no. 3, July 2011, pp. 231-255.