course syllabus · 2018. 9. 4. · 2. final assessment (exam) – 40% 3. course content topic 1....

National Research University Higher School of Economics

Department of Foreign Languages

Course syllabus

Intercultural Business Communication: Exploring Theoretical Background

Bachelor Degree Curriculum

Иностранные языки и межкультурная коммуникация

(45.03.02)

Author of the Course: Irina I. Chironova, PhD (Linguistics), professor, head of the English

language section for the Humanities at the Department of Foreign Languages, National Research

University Higher School of Economics.

Moscow, 2018

1. Course Description

Course type (compulsory, elective, optional): Elective

Credits: 3

Language of instruction: English

trialds of Instruction: Lectures and seminars/workshops

Course instructor: Irina I. Chironova, professor, PhD (Linguistics), a member of InternationalAssociation for Languages and Intercultural Communication.

Pre-requisites

The course bases itself upon the knowledge and skills acquired by the students in thecourse “English language” during their first and second years at the university. The minimallevel of English is Intermediate while for deeper understanding of theoretical foundations ofcross-cultural communication Upper-Intermediate level is advisable.

Though there are no specific prerequisites as far as the students’ academic background isconcerned, knowledge in the areas of British and American cultures, social sciencetheory, psychology and human communication is welcome.

Abstract

It is common knowledge that in today’s increasingly globalized world problems ofintercultural understanding and communication are becoming more and more important. Livingin a multicultural world and interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds is noteasy if you have not developed “intercultural sensitivity”, a specific feature that shows yourability to see and understand cultural differences, and “intercultural competence”, the ability tothink and act in an interculturally appropriate way. Both intercultural sensitivity and interculturalcompetence cannot be developed without deep knowledge and understanding of cross-culturaldifferences among cultures.

The course is devoted to communication between various cultures and includes the study oftheoretical foundations of cross-cultural communication. Within the theoretical component ofthe course ten fundamental topics are covered:

Topic 1 “Introduction to intercultural communication” aims at exploring the notions“culture”, “intercultural communication”, “cross-cultural communication”, “culturalintelligence”.

Topic 2 “Intercultural communication theories and concepts: Edward Hall” discussesEdward Hall’s concept of social cohesion, high and low context cultures and his theory of theorganization of time.

Topic 3 “Intercultural communication theories and concepts: Geert Hofstede” studiesHofstede’s cultural dimensions and national values theory.

Topic 4 “Intercultural communication theories and concepts: Richard D. Lewis” introducesstudents to Lewis Triangle Model of Cross-Cultural Communication and classification ofcultural norms into Linear-Active, Multi-Active and Re-Active.

Topic 5 “Cognitive aspects of cross-cultural communication” explores how cultureinfluences comprehension and cognition, as well as cross-cultural differences in perception andcognition and two ways of thinking: analytic thinking and holistic thinking.

Topic 6 “Linguistic aspects of cross-cultural communication” provides insights into acomplicated interplay between language and culture including the discussion of Sapir–Whorflinguistic relativity hypothesis, as well as introduces the notion of ethno sociology andvocabulary as its key element.

Topic 7 “Psychological and social aspects of cross-cultural communication” studies thenotions “national character”, “national identity”, “national mentality” and their manifestationsin popular culture. It also explores the sacred sources of national identity.

Topic 8 “Non-verbal communication” deals with conscious and unconscious processes ofencoding and decoding information through non-verbal means (body language, gestures,postures, paralanguage, including voice quality and speaking style, etc.)

Topic 9 “Intercultural barriers and conflicts” examines the problems and difficulties thatarise in intercultural communication; dwells on the notions “intercultural barrier”, “cultureshock” and “conflict style”.

Topic 10 “Corporate culture and communication styles” gives the students the opportunity to study various types of corporate culture and business ethics, to apply their cross culturalknowledge in a variety of professional situations.

Learning Objectives

The main goal of the course is to study the basic conceptual and practical dimensions ofintercultural communication in social and business interactions. The course explores basic

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_quality

psychological and cultural concepts that explain cultural differences between people.Accomplishment of this goal will contribute to the increased level of intercultural sensitivity andhelp develop skills necessary for the communication in multicultural environments.

Learning Objectives:

- to explore the fundamental types of cultures and corresponding behaviour types;

- to analyze how cultures create the worldviews and to study the peculiarities of nationalverbal and non-verbal behavour;

- to explore the interaction of language and culture, as well as the role of vocabulary as akeeper of cultural information;

- to consider various types of corporate culture and intercultural conflicts in theworkplace;

- to develop an understanding of intercultural communication competence;

- to learn about different communication styles and to try out different styles andtechniques.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will become more sensitive tointercultural communication differences and will be provided with the knowledge and skills thatwill help them communicate successfully across cultures. The students will have acquired:

the knowledge of

- basic types of cultures and behaviour;- cognitive aspects of intercultural

communication; - linguistic aspects ofintercultural communication;

- strategies for the development of intercultural communication competence;- students’ own cultural background and its impact on how they communicate.

the skills to

- critically read, analyze and assess various theories and concepts of cross-culturaldifferences;

- compare and contrast communication styles in different cultures; - use instruments and tests for intercultural competence assessment;- give presentations and speak in public in English;

the abilities to

- identify barriers to effective intercultural communication;

- explain how cultural differences affect business and communication in the workplace;

- be aware of their own problems in communication and ways to cope with them;

- communicate successfully across cultures.

2. Course organization

The course is offered in the combination of theoretical (lectures) and practical parts(seminars/workshops). The latter include group discussions on the basis of resources from thereading list and group classroom activities that give students an opportunity to practiceintercultural communication, as well as study practical examples of real life interculturalencounters. The course is highly interactive as most time at the seminars and workshops is givento the development of discussion and presentation skills. Intercultural communicationcompetence will be developed through doing tests, exercises and discussing cases that expandthe ability to communicate with people from different cultures.

Lectures – 20 academic hours;

Seminars/workshops – 24 academic hours;

Self-study – 64 hours

Total hours – 108 (3 credits)

Distribution of the workload

№ Topic Total Face-to-face Hours Self-Hours

Lectures

StudySeminars Hours

1. Introduction to intercultural 8 2 2 4 communication

2. Intercultural communication theories 10 2 2 6 and concepts: Edward Hall

3. Intercultural communication theories 16 2 4 10 and concepts: Geert Hofstede

4. Intercultural communication theories 10 2 2 6 and concepts: Richard D. Lewis

5.Cognitive aspects of cross-cultural 12 2 2 8

communication

6. Linguistic aspects of cross-cultural 12 2 2 8 communication

7. Psychological and social aspects of 8 2 2 4 cross-cultural communication

8. Non-verbal communication 8 2 2 4

9.Intercultural barriers and conflicts 10 2 2 6

10. Intercultural communication and 14 2 4 8 corporate culture

Total 108 20 24 64

Guidelines for Knowledge Assessment and Grading System

The course includes the following types of knowledge assessment:

1. Ongoing monitoring

Assessment of class activities: participation in group discussions and prepared at homepresentations on the topics under discussion.

2. Final assessment

Written exam

Assessment formula:

1. Attendance and participation: 60%

2. Final assessment (exam) – 40%

3. Course Content

Topic 1. “Introduction to intercultural communication”.

Theoretical part:

Cross-cultural communication vs. intercultural communication. Cultural intelligence.Definitions of culture. Big “C” and little “c” cultures.

Practical part:

1. Cultural awareness self-assessment test.

2. Case study: Cultural dimensions and global web user-interface design. Website analysisand discussion.

Reading list for T o pic 1:

1. Everett M. ROGERS, William B. HART, Yoshitaka MIIKE (2002). Edward T. Halland the History of Intercultural Communication: The United States and Japan. In:Keio Communication Review, No. 24, pp. 1-15.

2. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. Anchor Books Doubleday, New York, London, Toronto. Chapter 1 “The Paradox of Culture” (pp. 9-24).

3. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. Anchor Books Doubleday, New York, London, Toronto. Chapter 4 “Hidden Culture” (pp. 57-69).

Topic 2. “ Intercultural communication theories and concepts: Edward Hall”.

Edward Hall’s contribution towards the theory of cross-cultural communication.The concept of High and Low context cultures. The role of context in communication. The mainpeculiarities of High-context cultures. The basic characteristics of Low-context cultures.Distinguishing features of people’s behaviour in High-context cultures. Distinguishing featuresof people’s behaviour in Low-context cultures.

Theoretical part:

The attitude toward time in various cultures. Hall’s theory of the organization of time:monochronic vs polychronic cultures. Typical patterns of people’s behaviour inpolychronic cultures. Typical patterns of people’s behaviour in monochronic cultures.

Practical part:

Test: Low- and High-Context Communication Scale

trialng list for T o pic 2:

1. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. Anchor Books Doubleday, New York, London, Toronto. Chapter 7 “Contexts, High and Low” (pp. 105-117).

2. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. Anchor Books Doubleday, New York, London, Toronto. Chapter 8 “Why Context?” (pp. 117-128).

3. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. Anchor Books Doubleday, New York, London, Toronto. Chapter 9 “Situation – Culture’s Building Block” (pp. 153-168)

4. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. Anchor Books Doubleday, New York, London, Toronto. Chapter 12 “Imagery and Memory” (pp. 169-188).

Topic 3 “Intercultural communication theories and concepts: Geert Hofstede.

Geert Hofstede as a pioneer in research on cross-cultural groups and organizations.“Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind”.

Hofstede’s main dimensions of national cultures as means to elaborate the culturaldifferences or diversity between nations:

Dimension 1—Power Distance Index;

Dimension 2—Collectivism vs. Individualism Index;

Dimension 3—Femininity vs. Masculinity Index;

Dimension 4— Uncertainty Avoidance Index.

Practical part:

Test:Individualism and Collectivism Scale.


1. Hofstede, Geert; Hofstede, Gert Jan (2005). Cultures and organizations: software of themind (Revised and expanded 2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill:

- (a) Part II “Dimensions of National Cultures” - The Power Distance Index:

Chapter 3. More Equal than Others (pp. 53-87):

- PD in the sphere of social class, education, occupation (p. 64)

- PD in the family and at school (p. 67)

- PD and ideas (p. 79)

- Origins od PD differences (p. 82)

- (b) Part II. Dimension 2 - “The Individual and the Collective in Society”:

Chapter 4. I, We, and They (pp. 89-134):

- The Individual and the Collective in Society and how to measure them (pp.89-102)

- Individualism and Collectivism in the Family and at school (p. 106, 117)

- Individualism and Collectivism in Language, Personality, and Behavior (p. 112)

- Individualism and Collectivism: Origins and Ideas (p. 127, 131)

- (c) Part II “Masculinity-Femininity as a Dimension of Societal Culture” (Chapter 5, pp.135-186):

- Masculinity-Femininity notions (pp. 135-144)

- Masculinity-Femininity: Family and Gender Roles (pp. 151-158)

- Masculinity-Femininity in Education (pp. 158-163)

- Masculinity-Femininity in the workplace (pp. 164-170)

- Masculinity-Femininity and the state (pp. 170-175)

- Masculinity-Femininity: religion and origins (pp. 175-183)

- (d) Part II “Measuring the (In)tolerance of Ambiguity in Society: Dimension 4 - TheUncertainty-Avoidance Index (Chapter 6, pp. 187-234):

- Uncertainty Avoidance notion (pp. 188-198)

- Uncertainty Avoidance: Family and Happiness, School (pp. 200-206)

- Uncertainty Avoidance in the workplace + Motivation (pp. 208-216)

- Uncertainty Avoidance and the state + Corruption (pp. 216-223)

- Uncertainty Avoidance: religion, ideas and origins (pp. 226-233)

Topic 4 “Intercultural communication theories and concepts: Richard D. Lewis.

The role of Richard Lewis in developing cross-cultural communications theory and practice:When Cultures Collide. Managing successfully across cultures (1996).

Cultural Conditioning: dependence on perception. Triangle Model of cultural differences. Classification of cultural norms into Linear-Active, Multi-Active and Re-Active.Their characteristics in various spheres of life: the use of space and time, listening habits,types of leadership, organization of society and business, etc. Some combinations ofcultural norms. Intercategory comparisons.

The Use of Time: Linear Time, Multi-Active Time, Cyclic Time. Time for the Chinese andthe Japanese. The Validity of Time Concepts.


1. Lewis Richard D. (2006). When Cultures Collide. Managing successfully acrosscultures. Nicholas Brealey International, London, Boston:

- (a) Cultural Conditioning. Categorizing Cultures (pp. 17-48)

- (b) The Use of Time (pp. 53-63)

- (c) Asian (South, Southeast, East) Countries (pp. 480-519)

- (d) Middle Eastern Countries (pp. 395-420)

Topic 5. “Cognitive aspects of cross-cultural communication”.

Theory:

Influence of culture on cognition. Cross-cultural differences in perception. Processing visualinformation. Misperceptions and illusions. The reasons why illusions work in the Westernworld: "Carpentered world" hypothesis.

Cross-cultural differences in cognition. Experiments: Focus on individual items separate fromtheir environment vs. attention to backgrounds and to the links between these backgrounds and the central figures.

The two ways of thinking: Analytic thinking and Holistic thinking.

The role of context in assessing information in some countries.

Information Processing: Focus on the Relationships between Things. “Cow, Chicken,Grass” experiment. Analytic versus holistic information-processing styles.

Practical part:

Activity: Assessing your perception style.


1. Richard E. Nisbett, Kaiping Peng, Incheol Choi, Ara Norenzayan (2001). Culture andSystems of Thought: Holistic Versus Analytic Cognition. In: Psychological Review,Vol. 108, No. 2, pp.291-310.

2. Richard E. Nisbett. And if the nature of thought is not everywhere the same? In: TheGeography of Thought, Nicholas Brealey Publishing, London, Boston, 2011, pp. 191-218.

Topic 6. “Linguistic aspects of cross-cultural communication”

Theory:

Sapir–Whorf hypothesis (the principle of linguistic relativity). Colour Language andColour Cognition.

Influence of cognition on various aspects of language (Lexicon, Semantics, Grammar).Vocabulary as a key element of ethno sociology, psychology of culture and politics. Languageas a guide to culture. Word frequencies and cultures. Words with special, culture-specificmeanings or conceptual categories (Freedom/ Liberty; Svoboda/ Volja). The lack of a specificlinguistic label (Untranslatable Russian and English words).

Practical part:

1. Case study: "Freedom" in Latin, English, Russian.

2. Case study: The meanings of “soul” in English and “душа” in Russian.


1. Wierzbicka, A. (1997). Understanding Cultures Through Their Key Words. New York: Oxford University Press.

2. Wierzbicka, A. (2006). English: Meaning and Culture. New York: Oxford UniversityPress.

3. Richard E. Nisbett. Is the world made up of nouns or verbs? In: The Geography ofThought, Nicholas Brealey Publishing, London, Boston, 2011, pp. 137-163.

Topic 7 “Psychological and social aspects of cross-cultural communication”

Theory:

Notions “national character”, “national identity”, “national mentality” and their manifestations inpopular culture. National identity and its interconnection with national history. National character and religion: sacred sources of national identity.

Russian national character. British national character. American national character.

Cultural profiling as an assessment tool for identifying cultural styles, its value and limitations. Acountry profile for comparison and analysis.

Rtrialg list for T o pic 7:

1. Jeremy Paxman Jeremy. The English: A Portrait of a People, 2007.

2. Edensor Tim. National Identity, Popular Culture and Everyday Life, London, 2012.

3. Smith Anthony D. A National Identity, London, 1998.

4. Hurn Brian, Tomalin Barry. Cross-Cultural Communication: theory and practice, Palgrave MacMillan, 2013. Chapter 14: Cultural Profiling and Classification, pp. 259-273.

Topic 8 “Non-verbal communication”

Theory:

Non-verbal communication as a means to convey meaning and information. Types of non verbalcommunication: Facial Expressions, Gestures, Paralinguistics, Body Language and Posture, Proxemics, Eye Gaze, Haptics, Appearance.

Cultural Differences in Non-verbal Communication. Why is non-verbal communicationimportant?


1. Neuliep James W. Intercultural Communication: a contextual approach, SAGEPublications, 2009. Chapter 8: The Nonverbal Code, pp. 245-288.

Topic 9. “Intercultural barriers and conflicts”

Barriers to effective communication: Ethnocentrism and Stereotyping. Ethnocentrism:definition and types. Stereotypes: definition. Examples of Racial and Ethnic Stereotypes.

Definition of intercultural conflict. The ways individuals approach, avoid, and manageconflicts. Face-negotiation theory. The notion of “face” as an emotional extension of the self-concept. Three types of face: self-face, other-face, mutual-face approaches.

Communication strategies used in intercultural conflicts:

Facework;

Individualistic and collectivistic approaches to conflict;

Outcome-oriented approach and process-oriented approach.

Technique that creates an opportunity for positive communication: “BridgingBehaviours”.

Practical part:

1. Activity: Do you always mean ‘yes’ when you say ‘yes’? Does ‘no’ always mean‘no’?

2. Activity: Dealing with Differences.


1. Neuliep James W. Intercultural Communication: a contextual approach, SAGEPublications, 2009. Chapter 10: Intercultural conflict, pp. 323-340.

2. Hurn Brian, Tomalin Barry. Cross-Cultural Communication: theory andpractice, Palgrave MacMillan, 2013. Chapter 5: Developing cross-cultural communicationskills, pp. 78-97.

Topic 10. Intercultural communication and corporate culture

The impact of culture on international business relations. Selected national communicationand negotiating styles. Behavioral traits associated with Individualism and Collectivism. Verticaland horizontal individualism and collectivism. Communication Consequences of Individualism-Collectivism.

High-context (HC) and low-context (LC) communication. Communication Consequencesof Low- and High-Context Cultural Orientations.

Value orientation and its influence on communication. Postulates of basic American valuesvs. basic Chinese values. Direct and Indirect communication styles.

Decision-Making Styles: (a) Consensus, Collaboration and Command; (b) Rational,Emotive, Intuitive; (c) Leadership across cultures. Leadership styles.

Practical part:

1. Self-assessment tests: (a) Assessing time orientation; (b) Dimensions of PrivacyQuestionnaire.

2. Activity: Assessing your personal communication style.


1. Neuliep James W. Intercultural Communication: a contextual approach, SAGEPublications, 2009. Chapter 11: Intercultural communication in organizations, pp. 341-372.

2. Hurn Brian, Tomalin Barry. Cross-Cultural Communication: theory and practice,Palgrave MacMillan, 2013. Chapter 7: Leadership across cultures, pp.125-140.

4. Reading List

a. Required

1. Hall Edward T. (1976). Beyond Culture. USA

2. Hofstede, Geert; Hofstede, Gert Jan (2005). Cultures and organizations: software of themind (Revised and expanded 2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill

3. Hurn Brian, Tomalin Barry. Cross-Cultural Communication: theory and practice,Palgrave MacMillan, 2013.

4. Lewis Richard D. (2006). When Cultures Collide. Managing successfully acrosscultures. Nicholas Brealey International, London, Boston.

5. Neuliep James W. Intercultural Communication: a contextual approach, SAGEPublications, 2009.

6. Thomas David C, Kerr Inkson (2009). Cultural Intelligence: Living and WorkingGlobally

b. Optional

1. Bennett M.J. (2004). Becoming interculturally competent. In J. Wurzel (Ed.),Towards multiculturalism: A reader in multicultural education (second edition, pp. 62—77).Newton, MA: Intercultural Resource Corporation.

2. Berardo Kate (Editor).(2012). Building Cultural Competence: Innovative Activities andModels.

3. Berardo Kate, Darla K. Deardorff, Fons Trompenaars. (2002). Exploring Culture:Exercises, Stories and Synthetic Cultures.

4. Chen, G., & Starosta, W. (1998). Foundations of Intercultural Communication. London:Allyn and Bacon.

5. Cooper, J., Calloway-Thomas, Carolyn, & Simonds, C. (2007). InterculturalCommunication: A Text with Readings. New York: Pearson.

6. Gannon, M. (2004). Understanding Global Cultures: Metaphorical Journeys Through 28Nations, Clusters of Nations, and Continents. London: Sage Publications.

7. Hammer M.R. (2005). The Intercultural Conflict Style Inventory: A conceptualframework and measure of intercultural conflict approaches, International Journal ofIntercultural Research, 29, 675—695.

8. Harris P.R., Moran R.T., & Moran S.V. (2004). Managing cultural differences: Globalleadership strategies for the 21st century (sixth edition). New York: Elsevier

9. Hirsch E.D., Joseph F. Kett and James Trefil (2002). The New Dictionary of CulturalLiteracy: What Every American Needs to Know. New York

10. Holliday, A., Hyde, M. & Kullman, J. (2004). Intercultural Communication: AnAdvanced Resource Book. London: Routledge.

11. Nisbett, R. (2003). The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners ThinkDifferently…and Why. New York: Free Press

12. Wierzbicka, A. (1997). Understanding Cultures Through Their Key Words. New York: Oxford University Press.

13. Wierzbicka, A. (2003). Cross-cultural Pragmatics: The Semantics of HumanInteraction. New York: Mouton de Gruyter.

14. Wierzbicka, A. (2006). English: Meaning and Culture. New York: Oxford UniversityPress.

5. Special Equipment and Software Support (if required)

In order to complete the course students must have access to a computer with a steady internetconnection and have the required software (e.g., Adobe Reader or Flash)

Appendix 1

S ugge s ted topics for presentations for ongoing monitoring

1. Do Cultures Change over Time?

Comment on the following using Big “C” versus Little “c” Culture Themes:

Cultures change daily.

Cultures remain the same over centuries.

Support your ideas with examples.

2. Describe a culture

Choose a country you’ve been to or you know much about. Describe its culture using Big“C” versus Little “c” Culture Themes.

3. Edward Hall’s High- and Low-context cultures

- Do you believe Hall is correct in his assumptions? If so, what examples can you givethat demonstrate high- and low-context cultures?

- How would context help explain instances of miscommunication between North Americans and Japanese?

4. Monochronic vs. polychronic cultures.

https://www.multitran.ru/c/m.exe?t=6262710_1_2

What are the attitudes towards the use of time in the Russian culture?

5. Hofstede: Cultures and Organizations - Software of the Mind

Choose a country you know much about or you are interested in from Hofstede’s list of 50countries and analyze it according to a four-dimensional model of differences among nationalcultures. Use the country’s score on each of the four dimensions. Give examples to prove yourpoint.

6. Hofstede: Dimension 5

Analyze Hofstede’s Dimension 5— Confucian Dynamism/Long-Term Orientation (LTO) that measures long-term or short-term orientation. Was its addition necessary? What does it add to the general picture of cultural differences?

7. Hofstede’s Dimensions: Website analysis

Describe a website of a university or a famous company. What cultural values arepromoted through the website, based on the Hofstede values? How is this website viewed interms of your own cultural conditioning? What impresses you most about the website? Whatother cultural insights can you gain by reviewing this website?

8. Language and Thought

Which came first, language or thought?

Was it the cultural features which then gave rise to the language needed to express them? OR Did the language itself condition how people thought about their society?

9. Language and Culture

Express your opinion about Sapir-Whorf Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis. Do you agreethat:

- The language of a particular culture directly influences the way how people think

- Direct translation between two languages is not always possible?


Analyze semantic differences between the notions “Vlast”, “Power” and “Authority” in theRussian and Anglophone cultures. Demonstrate how the words are used in their respectivelanguages including idioms and set expressions.


Analyze semantic differences between the notions “Душа” and “Soul” in the Russian andAnglophone cultures. Demonstrate how the words are used in their respective languagesincluding idioms and set expressions.

12. Communication style

Analyze your personal communication style according to cross-cultural differences youlearned about during this course. Use Hall’s and Hofstede’s findings.

Appendix 2

Approximate list of questions for final assessment

1. Introduction to the topic of cross-cultural communication. Typology of cultures.

What is cultural intelligence? Why is it important?

Define culture. What do people usually mean when they say “culture”?

What is the difference between Tip-of-the-iceberg culture and Bottom-of-the-icebergculture?

Give examples of “Tip-of-the-iceberg” cultural values.

Give examples of “Bottom-of-the-iceberg” cultural values.

What is the difference between “C” and little “c” cultures? Give some examples of both.

2. Edward Hall. High- and Low-context Cultures Theory

Why Edward Hall is considered to be “the founding father” of cross-culturalcommunication?

Why does Edward Hall apply the notion of context in his theory?

Name the basic characteristics of Low-context cultures.

Name the basic characteristic features of High-context cultures.

What do people from Low-context cultures value and expect from others?

What do people from High-context cultures find important and expect in communication?

How time is expressed and used in monochronic cultures?

How time is understood in polychronic cultures?

Describe how people would typically behave in a monochronic culture. Give examples ofsuch cultures.

Describe how people would typically behave in a polychronic culture. Give examples ofsuch cultures.

3. Cultural dimensions theory by prof. Geert Hofstede

Who is Geert Hofstede? What do you remember about him?

What is Geert Hofstede’s contribution to cross cultural studies?

Explain the meaning of Hofstede’s Dimension 1—Power distance. Give examples ofcountries with high and low scores.

Explain the meaning of Hofstede’s Dimension 2—collectivism vs. individualism. Giveexamples of countries with high and low scores.

Explain the meaning of Hofstede’s Dimension 3—Femininity vs. Masculinity. Giveexamples of countries with high and low scores.

Explain the meaning of Hofstede’s Dimension 4— Uncertainty Avoidance. Give examplesof countries with high and low scores.

Give examples of differences for high and low score countries for Dimension 1 (PowerDistance) in any sphere of life (education, family, business, behavior, etc.)

Give examples of differences for high and low score countries for Dimension 2(Collectivism vs. Individualism) in any sphere of life (education, family, business, behavior, etc.)

Give examples of differences for high and low score countries for Dimension 3 (Femininityvs. Masculinity) in any sphere of life (education, family, business, behavior, etc.)

Give examples of differences for high and low score countries for Dimension 4(Uncertainty Avoidance) in any sphere of life (education, family, business, behavior, etc.)

4. Richard D. Lewis Model of Cross-Cultural Communication

Who is Richard Lewis? What do you remember about him?

What are the main categories Richard Lewis divided the world into?

Describe the common traits of Linear-Active cultures (address any of the spheres of life: the use of space and time, listening habits, types of leadership, organization of society andbusiness, etc.). Name some typical countries.

Describe the basic features of Multi-Active cultures (address any of the spheres of life: theuse of space and time, listening habits, types of leadership, organization of society andbusiness, etc.). Name some typical countries.

Describe the common characteristics of and Reactive cultures (address any of the spheres of life: the use of space and time, listening habits, types of leadership, organization of societyand business, etc.). Name some typical countries.

What is the best way to interact with Linear-Active people?

What is the best way to interact with Multi-Active people?

What is the best way to interact with Reactive people?

5. Cognitive aspects of cross-cultural communication

How can culture influence cognition?

Can culture influence such basic aspects of perception as the length of a line?

What is the difference in thinking between Westerners and Asians?

What is the difference between analytic thinking and holistic thinking?

What are the distinguishing features of analytic thinking? Give examples of cultures whereit is popular.

What are the distinguishing features of holistic thinking? Give examples of cultures whereit is popular.

How may context affect assessments of information?

6. Linguistic aspects of cross-cultural communication

Sapir and Whorf studied Native American languages. Why?

Give examples of how vocabulary might affect cognition

Give examples of how semantics might affect cognition

Give examples of how grammar might affect cognition

Give examples of untranslatable culture specific Russian and English words

If a particular English word can be matched in meaning with a Russian word, but thefrequencies of usage are different, what does it indicate?

Give examples of different word frequencies in Russian and English

7. Psychological and social aspects of cross-cultural communication

Explain the notion “national character”.

The notion “national mentality” and its manifestations in popular culture.

How can national identity reflect national history?

Give examples of mutual influence and interdependence of a national character and religion

What is cultural profiling?

8. Non-verbal communication

What is the role of nonverbal communication in decoding information?

Give examples when nonverbal and verbal communications do not match.

Name the main types of nonverbal communication.

What non-verbal means are included into paralinguistics?

Give examples of cultural differences in non-verbal communication

9. Intercultural barriers and conflicts

Define ethnocentrism. Give examples of its positive and negative forms.

What is stereotyping about other countries? Give examples of existing racial and ethnicstereotypes.

What do you know about Face-negotiation theory?

Characterize three types of “face”.

What are the main communication strategies used in intercultural conflicts?

What are the basic facework strategies people use in communication?

Name specific characteristics of individualistic and collectivistic approaches to conflictresolution.

Describe specific characteristics of outcome-oriented and process-oriented approaches.

How does the technique for positive communication “Bridging Behaviours” work?

10. Corporate culture and communication styles

Select a national communication and negotiating style and analyze it.

Name the main behavioral traits associated with Individualism and Collectivism, and explainhow these traits influence communication.

Analyze the basic features of High-context (HC) and low-context (LC) communication.

What are the basic decision-making styles? Which of them is more typical for the Russiancorporate culture?

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