Intercultural communication issue Essay

Intercultural Communication Issue: Electronic Mail Meanings reside in people, not in words (Littlejohn, 2001, 39). This basic precept of language can be deemed a positive axiom for successful communication. Whenever possible, both parties should seek a common code and/or attempt to understand cultural differences in coding systems. Admittedly, it is difficult to arrive at a common code if a person and his communication partner speak different languages. The English language contains countless subcodes. Even nonverbal cues shift from culture to culture. Much like in the case of this electronic message sent by a hypothetical boss to a representative of a department flocked with Hongkong-based Chinese nationals: â€Å"I wanted to welcome you ASAP to our little family here in the States. It’s high time we shook hands in person and not just across the sea. I’m pleased as punch about getting to know you all, and I for one will do my level best to sell you on America. † The statement above is a blend of American vernacular and idiomatic expression. It appears to be a simple salutatory message that turns embedded in unnecessary verbosity. This communication style takes risks in seeking suitable interpretation on the part of the message recipients. The words or phrases ASAP, across the sea, punch, and sell for Americans are easy to understand and can even cause no outstanding remarks from them. But to use these words in a message meant for relatively new employees with a relatively different linguistic background, startling and even violent reactions might be elicited. In fairness to Hongkongers, they are officially bilingual between Chinese and English. After the transfer of sovereignty from the United Kingdom to the People’s Republic of China in 1997, both Chinese and English remained the official language of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. English is the major working language in Hong Kong, and is widely used in commercial activities and legal matters (Flores, et al. , 1991, 246). However, this gift of bilingualism may likewise yield confusion, as British idioms are different from Americans’. Moreover, code-switching between Cantonese and English may not help them fathom best the message above. Some purist scholars consider Cantonese speakers who incorporate too much English are even dubbed language-handicapped (Flores, et al. , 1991, 245). And because the message was delivered through a virtual channel, the importance of nonverbal aspect of the communication is overlooked. This could have done the job of exhibiting the context most especially should the weight of the message comes to such portions as punch or sell you. The boss should have noted that communication is defined more by behavior than the communication event itself (Kale and Luke, 1991, 7). Nonverbal behaviors also shift from culture to culture and bilingualism may provide little help if the communicators had not developed code sensitivity toward the culture-specific message systems. With simplicity, neutrality and cordiality in mind, Hence, the message to be conveyed to the migrant employees should more or less look like this: â€Å"Good day! We welcome you once again to Will and Hung Company! May you find your new home over here in the United States as we are as earnest to make this company a place for you to work with satisfaction. † From this takes off a working atmosphere that encourages these new people to feed back in order for them to adjust their behavior to the relatively new environment. The boss must indeed shake their hands in person because it is indeed high time to use nonverbal actions as a way of inspiring them to respond to him in all honesty. He must think for a moment of all the positive attitudes and images he associates with smiling, head nodding, leaning forward, and laughing. ough these behaviors seem very Western, they often produce positive reactions in other cultures. Furthermore, interesting research findings suggest that communication changes encroach on how people relate to one another in organizations. Computer-mediated communications differ from face-to-face and telephone interactions in three important respects: there is a greater sense of anonymity; there is creation of new groups; and there is also susceptibility to computer addiction (Sullivan, 2003). Many executives become less social and less available for face-to-face conversations (Braun, 2002). Adjustment efforts must also manifest on the part of the host culture. Because much of the world speaks English, many of Americans have a tendency to assume we need not learn a foreign language. The very fact that others have made an attempt to learn our language should motivate us to reciprocate. There is more to language than vocabulary, syntax, and dialects. Language is more than a vehicle of communication; it teaches one a culture’s lifestyle, ways of thinking, and different patterns of interacting. References Braun, Patrice. (2002). â€Å"Digital Knowledge Networks: Linking Communities of Practice with Innovation.† Journal of Business Strategies. Flores, B. , Cousin, P. T. & Diaz, E. (1991). Transforming Deficit Myths About Learning, Language, And Culture. Language Arts (pp. 245-246). Littlejohn, Stephen W. (2001). â€Å"Theories of Signs and Language. † Theories of Human Communication (p. 39). Wadsworth Publishing. Kale, J. & Luke, A. (1991). Doing Things With Words: Early Language Socialization. The Literacy Agenda: Issues for the Nineties (p. 7). Victoria: Eleanor Curtain. Sullivan, Daniel. (2003). â€Å"International Business: An Emerging Vision. † Journal of International Business Studies.