Cross-cultural communication: what to expect

Business relies to a large extent on relationships, and relationships require effective communication to be built. Whatever your profession or industry, employers have come to value the ability to communicate effectively with others as much as, if not more than, the technical expertise you need to succeed in your given field.

In today’s globalised world, these relationships often need to be built across cultural boundaries, which can complicate the process more than a lot of people realise. It’s not just about being able to speak the same language as your counterpart, but about developing an awareness of how your speech, body language and behaviour are likely to influence the person you are interacting with. Further still, it’s about being able to adapt your communication style on the basis of cultural norms and attidues, as well as the specific context in which you are operating.

Though flexibility is key in being able to react to different settings, situations and individual traits, there is no doubt that an understanding of how cultures tend to communicate is extremely useful when choosing your starting approach. With this in mind, here are the main cultural characteristics to consider when communicating with 5 key cultural groups, as outlined by Gayle Cotton – cross-cultural communication expert and President of corporate education company Circles of Excellence.

Asian countries: hierarchical and indirect

The Asian communication style is characterised by two main values: respect and honour. These can be clearly identified in speaking patterns and the large emphasis placed on listening, which Asian children are taught gowing up. In practical terms, this means that a majority of Asian people will wait for a sentence to end and let a couple of beats of silence pass before responding.

According to Cotton, this is their way of showing that they are honouring their counterpart by taking the time to reflect on what they have said. Coupled with the fact that Asians reveal very little with their body language and facial expressions, however, it can throw a lot of Western individuals off during negotiations.

In addition, negative feedback, the word "no" and open criticism are considered disrespectful and thus tend to be avoided. "Maybe" is as close to a “no” as you are likely to get.

Hierarchy and authority are also very important in Asian cultures, and meetings that bring together individuals at different hierarchical levels are thus frowned upon.

Latin countries: relationships and small talk

In Latin countries such as Italy and Spain, business is very relationship-focused and there is a lot more room for "feeling" in the sense of subjectivity and gesticulating.

Family tends to be a priority in these countries, and as a result it is acceptable and perhaps even necessary to make meaningful small talk about families and weekend activities. Emotions are also respected and encouraged, makng it more common for individuals to present ideas or decisions from a subjective standpoint with phrases such as "I feel that…".

Authority is still important, however, so while opinions are well-accepted, open disagreement with authority figures can quickly make a room turn silent. The key is being able to present a viewpoint as a personal opinion, rather than as a form of dissent.

USA – Direct talk, direct outcomes

As work culture is very outcome-oriented in the States, says Cotton, personal initiative and independence are key characteristics of the American communication style.

Authority is more evenly shared among figures at different levels, and as a result anyone with decision-making power is expected to speak up. There is a strong focus on the “I” and on being assertive, accepting responsibility without hesitation.

Clarity is also prioritised, which leads to many individuals reiterating their points with the following approach: tell them what you’re going to tell them; tell them; tell them what you told them. Though the end-goal is to avoid confusion, in other cultures this can often be interpreted as condescending.

Finally, feedback is given in a distinct way that aims to surround the negative with multiple positives, making it difficult for some individuals to understand when they are effectively being criticised.

UK: soft criticisms

Though they share the use of the English language, communication in the UK is less direct, more hierarchical and more conservative than in the US.

More specifically, the UK style involves a lot of "downgraders", which are described as being words or phrases that are used to soften criticism when it is expressed. It is not the case, as in many Asian cultures, that criticism or opinions aren’t voiced at all – it’s that they are expressed in a roundabout way that may be difficult for other cultures to grasp. So a boss may tell you to “consider doing things differently” rather than telling you outright that "you’re doing it wrong".

Cotton also points out that there are some notable differences between US and UK English to bear in mind - for example, “to table" a discussions means to address it immediately in the UK and to put it aside in the US. A failure to take these linguistic differences into account can lead to notable misunderstandings, even when the language spoken is the same.

Scandinavia, Germany and the Netherlands: precise and to-the-point

According to Cotton, the Germanic, Scandinavian and Dutch communication styles are very much inspired by the languages themselves, which are precise and direct.

Professionals from these cultures thus tend to be very objective and to communicate in a serious, frank and detailed manner, prioritising facts rather than feelings. This also means that they expert their counterparts to back up arguments with figures and research – not with opinions.

The Dutch stand out by virtue of giving and receiving direct, honest feeback, which is appreciated as a sign of respect.

In Scandinavia, the Law of Jante – which prioritises the collective over the individual – is said to be pervasive and to create an egalitarian approach that can make it difficult for outsiders to understand who is the more senior figure.

This article is based on Gayle Cotton's observations, as portrayed in a recent a BBC feature.