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1、文化对国际商务的影响Cultural Impacts on International BusinessContentsAbstract.1Key Words.1I. Introduction.21.1 culture and communication.21.1.1 The basic function of culture. 21.1.2 The ingredients of culture.21.1.3 The elements of communication.31.1.4 The link between culture and communication.41.2 communic
2、ation and cross-cultural communication. 51.2.1 The definition of cross-cultural communication.51.2.2 The link between communication and cross-cultural communication.6II. International business.72.1 The definition of international business.82.2 Main forms of communication in international business.92
3、.3 Cultural differences in international business.11III. The main elements of cultural conflicts.133.1 The definition of cultural conflicts.133.2 The elements of cultural conflicts .13IV. The effect of culture on international business.144.1 The role of cultures in international business144.1.1 The
4、language barrier and its consequences: real and perceived.144.1.2 The relationship between language and culture.154.2 The influence of cultures on international business .15V. Cultural differences in international business negotiations.165.1 The impacts of cultural differences on international busin
5、ess negotiations.185.2 Negotiation manners in international business.19VI. Conclusion.21References.21Cultural Impacts on International Business摘 要: 这篇文章旨在简要地向读者介绍文化冲突的主要因素和它们对国际商务的影响，并从文化的多个方面，比如语言，行为方式，习俗，价值观念和态度，来证明文化冲突对国际商务的影响，从对它们相同点和不同点比较研究和分析的基础上找到一些有效的方法去避免或消除跨文化因素对国际商务产生的负面影响。无论什么时候，不同语言和文化障
6、碍必定是交叉的，当然，这儿还存在一个潜在的交际问题，这将在很大程度上决定一场国际贸易是否成功。价值观是被个人内在化的一种共享的信念或组织标准，态度是建立在这些价值观念基础上对条件的评价。在文化价值方面的差异会影响计划的执行，决定的做出，策略的实施和人员的评价。理解不同行为方式和习俗在国际商务谈判方面非常重要，因为建立在个人参考框架上的说明解释可能会导致完全错误的结论，而在国际商务中要解决文化冲突方面的问题和调节这些文化因素就显得尤为重要。关键词: 文化; 语言; 价值观念; 习俗; 跨文化交际; 国际商务Abstract: This thesis is briefly to try to pr
7、esent before readers the main elements of cultural conflicts and dimensions on international business, such as languages, manners, customs, values and attitudes on the basis of a comparative study and analysis of their differences as well as similarities so as to find out some effective ways to avoi
8、d or mitigate the adverse impacts the cross-cultural elements might produce on international business. Every time a language and cultural barrier must be crossed, there is a potential communication problem, which will largely decide a success or failure of an international transaction; Values are sh
9、ared beliefs or group norms that have been internalized by individuals. Attitudes are evaluations of alternatives based on these values. Differences in cultural values affect the way in which planning is executed, decisions are made, strategy is implemented, and personnel are evaluated; Understandin
10、g manners and customs is especially important in business negotiations, because interpretations based on ones own frame of reference may lead to a totally incorrect conclusion. To solve cultural conflicts and coordinate those cultural elements in conduction of international business seems to be much
11、 more important.Key Words: Culture; languages; values; customs; cross-cultural communication; international businessI. Introduction1.1 Culture and communication1.1.1 The basic function of cultureCulture is a complex, abstract, pervasive matrix of social elements that functions as an all-encompassing
12、 form or pattern for living by laying out a predictable world in which an individual is firmly oriented. Culture enables us to make sense of our surroundings, aiding the transition from the womb to this new life. From the instant of birth, a child is formally and informally taught how to behave. Chi
13、ldren, regardless of their culture, quickly learn how to behave in a manner that is acceptable to adults. Within each culture, therefore, there is no need to expend energy deciding what an event means or how to respond to it. The assumption is that people who share a common culture can usually be co
14、unted on to behave “correctly” and predictably. Hence, culture reduces the chances of surprise by shielding people from the unknown. Try to imagine a single day in your life without access to the guidelines your culture provides. Without the rules that govern your actions, you would soon feel helple
15、ss. From how to greet strangers and how to spend our time, culture provides us with structure. To lack culture is to lack structure. We might even go so far as to say that “our primary mode of biological adaptation is culture, not anatomy”.1.1.2 The ingredients of cultureAlthough scholars may lack a
16、 definitive ingredient list for culture, most agree that any description should include the three categories submitted by Almaney and Alwan (1982: Communicating with Arabs. Waveland). They contend that Culture may be classified by three large categories of elements: artifacts (which include items ra
17、nging from arrowheads to hydrogen bombs, magic charms to antibiotics, torches to electric lights, and chariots to jet planes); concepts (which include such beliefs or value systems as right or wrong, God and man, ethics, and the general meaning of life); and behaviors (which refer to the actual prac
18、tice of concepts or beliefs).These authors provide an excellent example of how these aspects might be reflected within a culture: “whereas money is considered an artifact, the value placed upon it is a concept, but the actual spending and saving of money is behavior,”Other inventories provide additi
19、onal listings of the content of culture. Some of these additional ingredients of particular interest to intercultural communication include cultural history, cultural personality, material culture, role relationships, art, language, cultural stability, cultural beliefs, ethnocentrism, non-verbal beh
20、avior, spatial relations, time, recognition and thought patterns.1.1.3 The elements of communicationIn international business, as in most other areas of life, the best idea in the world can fail if it is not communicated effectively.Communication is both situational (organizational) and personal (st
21、ylistic). Successful business communication depends on answering a few crucial questions: have you mastered and organized all the relevant information? Have you taken into account the personal and organizational context? Have you defined a clear, achievable goal? Have you considered the needs of you
22、r audiences? Have you expressed yourself as clearly, vividly, and forcefully as possible? Have you chosen the right communication channels?Managers send messages through writing, speaking, actions, gestures, electronic media, graphics, grapevine, and force of personality. Good business people devote
23、 tremendous attention to shaping their message and deciding how to deliver it. Experienced managers insist that success depends largely on effective communication.A communicator, or source, sends a message to a receiver, or audience, provoking a response. Building on this model, which originates far
24、 back in the history of communication research, we suggest seven categories that will help you define and analyze any business communication situation.1. Source: who is initiating action, and why should she or he be believed?2. Audience: what will move them to support you? Is their attitude toward y
25、our proposal positive, neutral, or negative? Are there any hidden audiences you havent considered?3. Goal: what result do you seek? Weigh it against the costs of achieving it. Can it stand on its own merits? Does it conflict with other goals of equal or greater importance? How, in short, will you me
26、asure success?4. Context: communication occurs in a specific environment. It can involve an effort to reach one person, or to reach millions. It can mean working within the norms of a particular corporate culture, its history, its competitive situation- or challenging those norms. Before you plan yo
27、ur communication strategy, be sure you know the territory.5. Message: what message will achieve your goal with these particular audiences? Consider how much information they need, what doubts theyre likely to have, how your proposal will benefit them, how to make your message convincing and memorabl
28、e.6. Media: which medium will convey your message most effectively to each significant audience? Should you speak, write, call, send e-mail, meet, fax, produce videotape, or hold a press conference? Sending a memo to an office mate, for example, may express an unwillingness to talk face to face.7. F
29、eedback: communication is not an act, but a process. A message provokes a response, which requires another message. The business communicator doesnt shoot an arrow at a target, but sets a process in motion designed to achieve a considered result. This means polling your audience at every stage of th
30、e communication and, more importantly, giving them an opportunity to respond. In that way you know what they think and can tailor your message accordingly.Even a brief consideration of these seven analytical tools will reveal that any business communication task is really a management task. Many com
31、munication situations happen spontaneously to a manager rather than occur as planned events. Some of your key topics and goals may not be listed on any overt agenda. How can these realities be turned into an advantage? Considering the source, audience, goal, context, message, media, and feedback pro
32、vides you with an economical framework for introspection in any business situation, whether youre planning a broad strategy or devising a particular communication effort.1.1.4 The link between culture and communication.It has been said that without a culture we cannot see anything, but with a cultur
33、e we are forever blind. In other words, each of us is born into a culture that teaches us a number of shared meanings and expectations. We usually learn our own cultures ways of doing, speaking, and thinking so well that it becomes difficult to think, feel, and act as people in other cultures do.The
34、 basic building blocks of communication is that although words communicate meaning, as we have seen, the meanings of words are much influenced by culture. Meaning is in the person, not in the word, and each person is the product of a particular culture that passes on shared and appropriate meanings.
35、 Thus, if we want to learn to communicate well in a foreign language, we must understand the culture that gives that language meaning. In other words, culture and communication are inseparably linked: you cant have one without the other. Culture gives meaning and provides the context for communicati
36、on, and the ability to communicate allows us to act out our cultural values and to share our language and our culture.Developing cross-cultural awareness: developing cross-cultural awareness usually goes along with learning a new language and being exposed to a new culture; such exposure reveals bot
37、h cultural similarities and differences. And sometimes it is the similarities between cultures that surprise us as much as the differences. Once a little four-year-old American traveling in China was overheard exclaiming, “Look, mommy, that little boy is eating ice cream, too.” Cross-cultural awaren
38、ess is the ability to understand cultures- your own and others- by means of objective, non-judgmental comparisons. It is an appreciation for, an understanding of, cultural pluralism- the ability to get rid of our ethnocentric tendencies and to accept another culture on its own terms.Studying a secon
39、d language without learning the culture is like learning how to drive a car by studying a drivers manual and never getting behind a steering wheel. We study a foreign language in order not to communicate with people who have leaned their native language in a classroom, but in natural, everyday inter
40、actions with people and situations in their culture. They have learned the intentions behind words and phrases mostly without consciously thinking about them; it has been part of their culture and they have taken it for granted. We, however, as adults learning a second language, must make a consciou
41、s effort to examine the cultural context of the language we want to learn.It is impossible to be entirely objective when we observe another culture. Having been brought up within the context of a particular culture, we have been influenced and shaped by its values, even if we cannot articulate them.
42、 Although it should be ones goal to observe another culture with pure objectivity, this is very hard to do. We must remember that in comparing culture, “different” does not mean “bad” or “inferior”- it just means “different”.It is important to remember that although many moments of discomfort occur
43、when we are interacting with people from other cultures, no one culture is inherently better or worse than any other. Each culture has its own set of values, norms, and ways of doing things that are considered “right” for it. That one cultures way of doing things is right for its people does not nec
44、essarily mean it is “right” for everybody, and herein lays the potential conflict in cross cultural encounters.Becoming more aware of the influence of cultural values has many positive consequences. It leads to better understanding of us and of others. We become more tolerant and less defensive, and
45、 we can enjoy cultural difference as well as the similarities. After all, variety is the spice of life!1.2 Communication and cross-cultural communication1.2.1 The definition of cross-cultural communicationIt doesnt matter if this is your first communication course or not. Youve probably heard many d
46、ifferent definitions of the word “cross-cultural communication”. In this paper, you will learn how that communication itself is a cultural element by studying different models of communication. Youll learn about the different ways communication and culture are studied and about the skills required t
47、o become more effective in intercultural communication.Because cross-cultural communication is an element of culture, it has often been said that communication and culture are inseparable. As Afred G. Smith (1966: Communication and Culture: Reading in the Codes of Human Interaction. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston) wrote in his preface to Communication and Culture, cross-cultural communication is a code we learn and share, and learning and sharing require communication. Communication requires coding symbols that must be learned and shared. Godwin C. Chu (1977:
