Chapter 2 Basic mechanisms: SRC, attribution
2.1 SRC, the Self Reference Criterion
When you need to decide which course of action is appropriate in a given situation,
you will rely on a set of norms, a frame of reference that will guide your decisions. A
frame of reference can be seen as a set of expectations. It is supported with your
own Self Reference Criterion (SRC): people will not look past their own norms.
If people are not open to the possibility of observing that things are different this can
result in problems in intercultural situations.
2.2 Attribution
Attribution in this book means: attributing a meaning, ascribing an interpretation to
what people around you say and do.
Even in your own culture, we sometimes make attribution mistakes: we ascribe a
meaning to the other person’s words or deeds that does not correspond to the
intended meaning.
The danger of attribution mistakes is much higher between individuals who are more
different from each other, such as individuals belonging to different cultures and if
they rely on their own SRC. No one is immune against attribution mistakes, we can
lower the risk of making attribution errors by knowing and understanding how the
interpretative frameworks in other cultures differ from our own, and become aware of
what is considered normal, unmarked behavior in other cultures.
2.3 Reversibility and transitivity of attributions
Attribution erroros are reversible: Person A would get a mistaken impression of
person B, while B may get the reverse mistaken impression of A.
Attribution errors are also transitive: which impression will the Westerner get from the
Japanese, who is standing so far from him, avoids eye contact and is speaking so
softly? The same as the Arab will get from the Westerner, i.e. cold and aloof. And
conversely, the Japanese will feel that the Westerner is pushy and loud, just what
the Westerner was thinking of the Arab.
Chapter 3 Time
Time is not a physical feature of an objective world but a psychological construct in
our mind. Think of spending an hour in a wairing room or dining with your friends, it
doesn’t feel as the same length of time.
Experiencing time is an extremely basic human cognitive mechanism, yet at the
same time it is culture-specific.
At the same time, normative temporal awareness (= what is considered the normal
length of a conversation or a speech, for instance) is acquired through socialization
and is culture-specific.
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,The time dimension as it relates to human beings range from what we might call
‘microscopic’ (seconds, minutes) to ‘macroscopic’ (weeks, months, years, centuries)
3.1 Temporal structure of a conversation
There are 3 mechanisms that play a role in conversational structure:
backchannelling, turn-taking and tolerance of silence.
3.1.1 Backchannelling
Backchannelling refers to the feedback signals the listener provides to the speaker in
a conversation in order to communicate that he (the listener) is listening and
basically understands what the speaker is saying.
It is universal. It exists in every culture. It can be done through nodding your head,
saying ‘mm’or ‘yes’etc.
The frequency with which people emit these signals is culture-specific, as well as the
way in which backchennelling is carried out.
It is not learned consciously, nor are people in a given culture aware of their own
behavior in this respect. The choice of frequency in any given culture is arbitrary and
seemingly trival, this can all lead to miscommunications
3.1.2 Turn taking
Turn-taking mechanisms are largely unconscious. It is only seldom called for
explicitly.
There are 2 basic options for person B to take his turn:
- Person B may wait for a moment of silence in A’s discourse to take turns
(that does not necessarily mean that A was really finished talking)
- Person B may interrupt A in the middle of a word or sentence
The role of non-cultural factors such as language proficiency and technical expertise
also play a role in the frequency with which participants take turns.
3.1.3 Tolerance of silence
The tolerance of silence in a conversation is culture specific.
In Western countries the amount of silence that is tolerated is small, they will fill up
the silence with ‘uuh’ if they don’t know the answer.
When talking to someone that doesn’t respond directly the Westerners will fill this
period of silence. The other person can feel that he is arrogant and doesn’t allow me
to tink and reply wile the Westerner will thing that the other person is dumb and
unable to answer the question.
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,There is also something as communication apprehension, a certain fear to speak in
public, meetings or face-to face. This will differ per culture as well
3.2 Punctuality
In some cultures there may be a time lag(tijdsverschil) between the stated time and
the time an event is really to start or take place.
The temporal framework is rarely made explicit in a specific culture.
The way a event is structured can also differ per culture, think of a dinner party.
There are 3 basic subparts:
1. Pre dinner talk and drinks
2. The dinner itself
3. After-dinner conversation and drinks
The average duration of each of the subparts varies depending on the culture and
some subparts may be absent.
The time differences have no mathematical precision and situation factors play a
major role. You have to beaware of sterotypes.
3.3 Temporal structure of a negotiation
The process of business negotiations can be decomposed in to 4 basic
subcomponents:
The importance and duration of each of the subparts are depending on the culture
1. Getting acquinted with the other party
The way this happens and the duration is depending on the culture.
Latin American, Asian(guanxi= networks/web in china) and African
countries:
building trust is essential I a business relation and may take a long time.
Sometimes being acquainted with the other is more important than rules
and regulations in getting things done.
American and dutch:
A few sentences as ‘did you have a nice flight?’ and they start discussing
business.
2. Negotiating and consulting
There are (at least) two basic ways to structure the timing of the
negotiation process:
Zooming in: start with the general idea and then gradually move
toward closer detail (Japanese and chinese culture)
Face-saving and harmony are important
Zooming out: start with the details and work your way up to the
general agreement (Western culture)
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, These two are incompatible, and the different views on how to start the
negotiation process may cause irritation and frustration between Japanese
and Western negotiators.
The (long) time Japanese take to decide is caused by a combination of at
least 4 factors:
- Japanese negotiating style: spiraling around the issue rather than going to
the core problem in a straight line, because of the need for saving face and
preserving harmony
- The emphasis on process as against result: in japan, doing things ‘the
right way’ is as important as achieving results and subsequent evaluation
may focus more on the process than on the results that were obtained, such
as achieving targets or goals
- The consultation process: in Japanese companies is more extensive than
in the West.
A new proposal will be discussed at many levels of the
hierarchy in the company, and gradually a consensus will be
built where everyone’s opinion is considered and if possible
taken into account.
When a manager formulates a proposition, this will be
discussed informally, often after work and everybody’s concerns
should be taken into consideration in order to produce a
document (ringi-sho) that everyone has to sign which reflects a
decision to be taken.
This processes stats at he bottom of the decision-making
hierarchy.
- Japanese perfectionism and the process of incremental improvements
(kaizen)
3. Deciding
In cultures or groups where trust is high: a handschake or an oral
promise
A written contract does not have the same value in other cultures as in
the West
Arab world and asisa: a contract may be seen as marking the end
of the first stage in business dealings, not the final agreement. If
the situation changes it is expected that (parts of) the contract can
be modified or renegotiated
Japan: contracts are more informal than and the agreement
between the negotiating parties is based on ‘goodwill’
4. Implementing the decision
Western culture: must start as soon as possible and must be
completed speedily
Japan: can take place at the speed of light once the decision is
reached
Latin cultures and Arab countries: deadlines are not taken as
literally as in the West, but eventually, the work will be completed.
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