The Cross Cultural Communication Process
Cross Cultural Communication Process
Communication is the act of transmitting messages, including information about the nature of the relationship, to another person who interprets these messages and gives them the meaning. Both the sender and the receiver of the message play an active role in the process. Successful communication requires not only that the message is transmitted but also understood. For this understanding to occur, the sender and receiver must share a vast amount of common information called grounding. This grounding information is constantly updated in the communication process. People who have extensive common information can communicate effectively without much distortion.
Cross-cultural communication is more demanding than communicating in a single culture because culturally different individuals have less common information. They have less grounding because of the differences in their field of experiences. Cultural field refers to the culturally based elements of a person’s background (education, values, and attitudes) that influence communication. The effectiveness of communication depends on the lack of distortion, which can occur at any stage of the communication process.
First, the encoded message can be affected by the communication skills and knowledge of the sender and by the associated cultural field. We are not able to communicate what we do not know, and our ability to encode accurately is determined by our skill in the chosen channel (speaking or writing). Like all behaviour, much communication behaviour is scripted and proceeds in a routine manner consistent with the cultural field.
Second, the symbols individuals use to express an idea vary with the cultural field. This includes not only the language used but also the aspects of communication that transcend language, such as communication style, conventions, and practices. We might think that people choose a different communication channel depending on the goal of
Communication is the act of transmitting messages, including information about the nature of the relationship, to another person who interprets these messages and gives them the meaning. Both the sender and the receiver of the message play an active role in the process. Successful communication requires not only that the message is transmitted but also understood. For this understanding to occur, the sender and receiver must share a vast amount of common information called grounding. This grounding information is constantly updated in the communication process. People who have extensive common information can communicate effectively without much distortion.
Cross-cultural communication is more demanding than communicating in a single culture because culturally different individuals have less common information. They have less grounding because of the differences in their field of experiences. Cultural field refers to the culturally based elements of a person’s background (education, values, and attitudes) that influence communication. The effectiveness of communication depends on the lack of distortion, which can occur at any stage of the communication process.
First, the encoded message can be affected by the communication skills and knowledge of the sender and by the associated cultural field. We are not able to communicate what we do not know, and our ability to encode accurately is determined by our skill in the chosen channel (speaking or writing). Like all behaviour, much communication behaviour is scripted and proceeds in a routine manner consistent with the cultural field.
Second, the symbols individuals use to express an idea vary with the cultural field. This includes not only the language used but also the aspects of communication that transcend language, such as communication style, conventions, and practices. We might think that people choose a different communication channel depending on the goal of