Communicating in a World of Diversity

This is all about understanding opportunities and challanges in communication!
- diversity: all characteristics and expierences that define individuals
- intercultural communication: sending and recieving message between people whose cultural backgrounds could lead them to interpret verbal and nonverbal signs differently.

The following is a link to a video that shows how diversity impacts business today:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ui4kjsWH-78

- The opportunities in a global marketpalce include:
--- local markets are open to worldwide competition and business
--- most companies rely on exports for businesses = communication with other cultures

- Advantages of a Diverse Workforce
--- Broad range of views and ideas
--- better understanding of diverse, fragmented markets
--- more talent from which to recruit from
--- diversity is a given for most companies

- Challanges of intercultural communication
---can effect how business messages are recieved, conceived, composed, deliveres, and interpreted
---cultural and communication can go hand in hand including: language, non-verbal signals, word meanings, time and space issues, and rules of human relationships
- Enhancing your sensitivity to clture and diversity
--- Communication is largly automatic when relating to your own culture
- Understanding the concept of culture
---culture is a shared sysem of symbols, beliefs, attitudes, values, expectations, and norms for your behavior
--- influences your priorities, helps define what is apropriate in the situation, and establishes the rules of behavior
--- learned directly and indirectly
--- offer views on life that are coherent (logical) and complete (answers life's big questions)

-Overcoming ethnocentrism and stereotyping:
--- ethnocentrism: tendency to judge other groups according to standards, behaviors, and customs of one's own group
---stereotyping: assigning a wide range of generalized attributes to an individual on the basis of membership in a particular group
---cultural pluralism: acceptance of multiple cultures on their own terms
--- to aviod ethnocentrism and stereotyping:
-----1. avoid assumptions
-----2. avoid judgements
-----3. acknowledge distinctions

- Recognizing Variations in a diverse world
--- 8 types of Cultural Differences
1. Contextual differences
> cultural context: pattern of physical cues, environmental stimuli, and implicit understanding btwn members of the same culture
> high context: rely heavily on non-verbal acts and environmental setting convey meaning view adherence to laws as being flexible
> low context: rely on explicit verbal communication. Value written agreements and interpret laws strictly
2. Legal and ethical differences
>honestly and respect are important to all cultures in ethical communication
> basic principles:
> 1. Actively seek mutual ground
> 2. Send and recieve messages without judgement
> 3. Send messages that are honest
>4. show respect for culture differences
3. Social Differences
> formal rules are defines but informal rules are learned
> Social differences can be:
>>>attitudes toward work and success
>>>roles and status
>>>concepts of time
>>>use of manners
>>>future orientation
>>>openness and individualness
4. Nonverbal differences
> vary from culture to culture
>people's nonverbal nehavior can include greetings, personal space, toughing, facial expressions, eye contact, posture, and formality
5. Age Differences
> culture's view on youth and aging effects how people communicate
>society's that value are and seniority: earns respect and increasing freedom and power
6. Gender differences
> in mostly all sultures, men and women have differnnt communication styles
> men emphasize content
> women emphasize relationship maintenance
7. Relationship Differences
> may be a dominent force for many cultures
> law requires employers to accommodate employees' religious beliefs- reasonably
8. Ability differences
> imporant aspect of diversity in the culture
>assistive tech help employers create inclusive workplaces and benefit from contributions of people with impairments

- Adapting to other business cultures
--- 4 guidelines to help communication
-----1. be aware of your own biases
-----2. ignore the "Golden Rule"
-----3. exercize tolerence, flexability, and respect
-----4. be patient and remian with a sense of humor

The following is a website that tells us the differences in manycultures and their communications:
http://www.eruptingmind.com/communication-gestures-vary-different-cultures/

-Adapting to U.S. business cultures
---U.S. values individualism, equality, privacy and personal space, time and schudules, religion, and communication style
- Improving intercultural communication skills
--- communicating inerculturally requires many skills
--- study other cultures and languages respect communicaion styles, write and speak clearly, listen carefully

- Studying other Cultures
--- may require changing communication habits
--- if you know about the culture of other's is a sign of respect
--- info can be found all over

- Studying other Languages
---although English is the most used language in communication, not everyone understands or speaks it
--- learn comparison phrases in other languages

- Respecting Preferences for Communication Style
--- can include a level of directness, degree of formality, preferences for written verses spoken communication

- Writing Clearly
--- clarity and simplicity are essential when communication with those who don't speak your language
--- recommendations: simply and clear language, be breif, use transitional elements, address international correspondence property, cite numbers and dates carefully, avoid slang, idiomatic phrases, and business jargon and avoid humor and other references

- SPeaking and listening carefully
--- languages differ in tone, pitch, speed, and volume
--- processing of everyday conversations can be difficult
--- key points: speak clearly and get pleanty of feeedback
--- listening-> accept what you hear without judgement and let people finish what they say.

- Using interpreters, Translators, and Translation Software
--- use a professional translator (written) or interpreter (oral) for business communications
--- Machine translation: any form of computerized intelligence used to translate one language to another

-Helping others adapt to you culture
--- create a more productive work place and help learn the cultures of others
--- the more help you can provide the greater the communication and the better business.

Interesting Sites:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hr022
This website is almost a handbook as to how one should communicate in the business world as well as how diversity problems can be overcome.