Cultural attitudes in business

Various communication practices with foreigners show that even profound knowledge of foreign language can't exclude misunderstanding and the conflicts with language speakers. Successful contacts with representatives of various cultures are impossible without knowing culture specifics and practical skills in cross - cultural communication.

The aspiration to understand foreign cultures as well as their representatives, to understand cultural distinctions and similarities exists as much time  as there is a cultural and ethnic diversity among humang beings. Problems of cross-cultural communication in education sphere began to draw experts and scientists attention only in the last decades. Therefore it seems advisable to us learning of foreign language by the learners in the context of dialogue of cultures where there is a room for comparison and learning differences between cultures and languages.

Culture can be seen as a system of shared beliefs, values, customs, and behaviours prevalent in a society and that are transmitted from generation to generation (Bates @Plogs 1990 [81, p.156]). Geert Hofstede [82, p.189], the management scientist, described these elements of culture as the software of the mind, «the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes members of one category of people from another». The values in the culture are inforced by a set of norms which lay down rules of behavior. These rules are always supplemented by a set of sanctions to ensure that the norms are respected. Culture comprises a whole variety of different aspects, including religion, language, non-verbal communication. Diet, dress, and institutions to ensure that the values and beliefs are transmitted from one generation to another.

Cultural attitudes can have important implications for business. According to Hofstede’s research the norms and values embedded in national culture are a very powerful influence on the workplace and  different approaches would be necessary when managing people from different cultural backgrounds. The workplace can only change people’s values to a limited extent. The message for multinational companies was that they would be unwise to assume that an organizational culture  that was successful in the cultural context , for example of the USA, would be equally successful  in a completely different  cultural context in, say, China.

Research has revealed fundamental cultural differences between East or West that have important implications for Western executives trying to do business in the East. Psychologists have shown that Eastern and Western cultures can vary significantly in terms of perception, logic, and how they see the world around them. Apparently, Westerners focus more on detail, while Easterners tend to look at things in the round.

Researchers attribute this to different social environments. In East Asia, social environments are more complex, collective, and constrained. As a result, Easterners need to pay attention to the social context if they are to operate effectively. On the other hand, Western societies prize individual freedom and there is not the same need to pay heed to the social environment. With their focus on the individual, westerners tend to view events as the result of specific agents, while those raised in the East set the events  in a broader context.

Cultural differences influence the way firms in the East and West do business. For example, when an applicant for a job appears uneasy, Westerners are likely to see that as undesirable characteristic of the interviewee which makes them unsuitable for stressful jobs. In the East they will tend to view the uneasiness in the context of a stressful situation, the interview and thus be less likely to attribute it to the character of the applicant. Similarly, North Americans, when posing a question, expect a trustworthy person to respond immediately, with any delay inspiring mistrust. In contrast, the Japanese view more favorably individuals who take time to ponder before giving a reply. Attitudes towards contracts also vary. Once a contract is signed, westerners regard them as agreements set in stone while Easterners, such as the Japanese , take a more flexible view.  They are quite happy to renegotiate if circumstances change. They look at the situation of their customers or suppliers in the round and may renegotiate in order to maintain a long-term relationship.  In the East there is a desire for consensus and harmony. Westerners sometimes perceive Japanese managers as incompetent or indecisive because, in pursuit of consensus, they continually consult their team and are usually reluctant to challenge the decisions made by others (Nisbett [83, p.470]).

Differences in approach can also be seen in negotiations. Westerners expect to focus on contentious issues and try to achieve the most beneficial outcomes for themselves. In contrast, the Japanese prefer to discuss areas of agreement, with the expectations that harmony will lead to the resolution of details. Such differences can lead to bad feeling in negotiations

Business has to take cultural differences into consideration when considering entry to foreign markets through exports, joint ventures, or through take over or Greenfield investment whereas large differences may cause major difficulties due to misunderstandings and conflict where social groups do not want to give up valued elements of their culture (Oudenhoven and Van der Zee [84, p. 681]).

In the globalized world the educational system should train students to cooperate and communicate with people of various nationalities, races, religions, however keeping their national identity and nativeness. In other words students should be trained for life in multicultural context.