Cross Cultural Communication
Cross Cultural Communication
A country that was annexed by another country is sure to have exchanged or been impacted culturally and in many other aspects. An excellent example of this could be the British India. India was ruled over by Britishers for almost 350 years. Therefore, many traits and systems in India today are derived from the time they were under the British rule. One of the most vivid illustrations of this is the schooling system and English as a medium language for teaching and learning. The number of English speakers in India is more than 125 million people (“Indiaspeaks,” 2010).
Analyzing from the graph of Hofstede’s cross cultural dimensions of India and England, it is clear that both countries rank closely in two dimensions which are Masculinity and Uncertainty Avoidance. In terms of masculinity, both countries especially India, rank very closely to the neutral point. India scored 56 and United Kingdom scored 66. Even though India scored very close to the mid range, it actually is a very masculine country specially in terms of displaying success and power (“India,” n.d.). However, India is also a country with ancient spiritual history which involves richness of culture and traditions that were shaped by its main religion i.e., Hinduism. This often reigns in people from indulging in Masculine displays to the extent that they might be inclined to (“India,” n.d.). As for Britain, it is considered a masculine culture. Nevertheless, there is confusion among foreigners as to how can English people value modesty and understatement and at the same time be highly success driven (“United Kingdom,” n.d.).
India scored 40 on Uncertainty Avoidance which means that the country has a medium low preference for avoiding uncertainty. It is due to the perception that nothing has to be perfect nor has to go exactly as planned. Indians have very high tolerance for the unexpected and is welcomed as a break from monotony (“India,” n.d.). They believe in the
A country that was annexed by another country is sure to have exchanged or been impacted culturally and in many other aspects. An excellent example of this could be the British India. India was ruled over by Britishers for almost 350 years. Therefore, many traits and systems in India today are derived from the time they were under the British rule. One of the most vivid illustrations of this is the schooling system and English as a medium language for teaching and learning. The number of English speakers in India is more than 125 million people (“Indiaspeaks,” 2010).
Analyzing from the graph of Hofstede’s cross cultural dimensions of India and England, it is clear that both countries rank closely in two dimensions which are Masculinity and Uncertainty Avoidance. In terms of masculinity, both countries especially India, rank very closely to the neutral point. India scored 56 and United Kingdom scored 66. Even though India scored very close to the mid range, it actually is a very masculine country specially in terms of displaying success and power (“India,” n.d.). However, India is also a country with ancient spiritual history which involves richness of culture and traditions that were shaped by its main religion i.e., Hinduism. This often reigns in people from indulging in Masculine displays to the extent that they might be inclined to (“India,” n.d.). As for Britain, it is considered a masculine culture. Nevertheless, there is confusion among foreigners as to how can English people value modesty and understatement and at the same time be highly success driven (“United Kingdom,” n.d.).
India scored 40 on Uncertainty Avoidance which means that the country has a medium low preference for avoiding uncertainty. It is due to the perception that nothing has to be perfect nor has to go exactly as planned. Indians have very high tolerance for the unexpected and is welcomed as a break from monotony (“India,” n.d.). They believe in the