Barriers to Effective Intercultural Communication and Multicultural Communication Guidelines: Case Study of Australia and China

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Intercultural Communication

“Intercultural communication refers to an interpretive, symbolic, contextual and transactional process in which people belonging from different cultures create shared meanings” (Kolinko, 2019). However, each of the cultures has its way of interpretation of information or message. The style of communication is also different from one culture to the other. In communication, the differences between cultures are related mostly to verbal and nonverbal codes, cultural patterns, standards and roles of relationships, and social perceptions.

According to Cappellini (2015), intercultural communication refers to studying and understanding how people from various cultural backgrounds communicate with one another. The basic objective is to produce a guideline on the basis of which can better communicate. In intercultural communication, the studies usually start from the differences between various cultural groups then studying the interaction between such groups. Culture and communication are significant parts of intercultural communication. This is the reason for the term ‘intercultural communication’ to be understood clearly, it is imperative to understand the meaning of the terms ‘culture’ and ‘communication’ as well.

Communication- an Intercultural Communication part

A process of conveying messages from one to another is referred to as Communication. Canals (2012) defined “The process of communication is a chain made up of links which are identifiable. In the process, links include-

Process of Communication (Harro-Loit, Vihalemm, and Ugur, 2011)

In the communication process, there are 8 steps starting from the sender’s idea and ends with the receiver’s feedback. At the initial step, the sender will develop an idea that has to be sent known as the planning step, where the sender plans the communication topic. Then comes encoding, which refers to converting the idea into a perceivable form. After encoding in various ways, the message can be presented i.e. written, nonverbal or oral. Further, the sender will choose a channel or medium for transmitting the message to the receiver. This step is transmitting the message and the duty of the sender also ends at this step. Next, the message is received by the receiver and gets decoded. For the communication to be effective, at this level, it is very significant for both genders as well as receiver to have a common interest or understanding. Lastly, feedback is the final step. This step is important for communication as it makes sure that the receiver has understood correctly the message.

Culture- a part of Intercultural Communication

Bisiada (2015) stated that “It is due to the loss contact between cultures than within them that culture differs from one another’. Mostly, it is viewed as a system of beliefs, practices, and values enabling people from the same cultural background in order to solve a common problem. Further Maureen chooses to introduce onion diagram of Hofstede’s’ (2005), examining culture in various aspects. As per the diagram, culture itself manifests in several ways-

Symbols: It consists of gestures, language, objects or images carrying a specific meaning, recognized by people from the same cultural background.
Heroes: They can be imaginary or real persons, highly respected in culture, and also can serve as a standard for social behaviors.
Rituals: It refers to activities, which are considered to be important in society, such as religious activities, greetings, showing respects for others.
Values: The core of ‘culture’ is developed by values, reflecting the deepest level of culture. Values refer to tendencies or preferences of feelings of people’s toward certain matters. It is among the things people learning at an early age in life.

Differences in Culture of Australia & China & Impact on Business (Zhang, 2010) (Caust, 2010) (Kende, 2016)

There are various parameters of differences in the culture of Australia in China, however, some of them are described as such-

· National Identity

China: Between identity expression and attitudes to history and also the inconsistencies across artistic movement is searched in time in a lot of fashionable art of China that juxtaposes the inconsistencies. From 1644 to 1912, China was dominated by the minority that obligatory its culture of the minority on the dynasty majority, this ruling minority was Manchu dynasty. The phratry was prescriptive that the dynasty men were propelled to wear their hair within the form of the favored geographical region of beardless at the front and at the rear ponytail lest they are dead. Even in goldfields of Australia, Han men continued to wear the Mancu vogue.
Australia: Australians, in mythology have celebrated breakers of a rule. Partly, this could be attributed to eighty years of transportation of Convict within the nineteenth century manufacturing a culture that had a notion that rules were created to be broken. within the twentieth century, that icon made from culture out of the likes of swimming legend Dawn Fraser and different larrikins (ruler breakers). In conflict with the identity of a larrikin, the governments of Australia till the Seventies prescribed a British identity up. British identity’s loss has resulted in Australia encountering some turmoil as several Australians with the ancestry of the British not have a way of WHO they’re and once they came from.

· Religion:

China: The religion of China was not monotheistic, along these lines, they were increasingly open to the majority of perspectives and is likely to be complemented by the idea of philosophy. The Dynasty of Xia had a type of creature venerate. This was trailed by hereditary love in the Shang. The philosophical idea as Confucianism developed in the Zhou administration and this went about as a sort of religion. Likewise in the Dynasty of Zhou, there rose an origination of paradise and a conviction that paradise would compensate an equitable ruler and rebuff an uncalled for the ruler. It is known as the Mandate of Heaven and got evoked when one line ousted another.
Australia: In Australia, Christianity is the prevailing religion yet Australian Christianity doesn’t appear to have indistinguishable political yearnings or political cash from it does in numerous nations.

· Social activism

China: In China, the death of associate degree freelance communications trade prevents the general public from having the ability to initiate amendment in response to issues. This hinders the remedying of issues in 3 main ways in which. Firstly, if a senior party member doesn’t contemplate one thing to be an issue, then no solutions are devised. Secondly, if drawback is known, solutions could be devised by an ‘expert’ that contemplates one perspective instead of a variety of views that consider multiple stakeholders. Finally, as a result of the identification of an issue comes from the highest, the community has less possession over the matter and therefore the solutions. Consequently, an energetic participant isn’t the community in invigorating the devised solutions values are modified and are embraced.
Australia: In China, the absence of an autonomous correspondences industry keeps people in general from having the option to start change because of issues. This ruins the curing of issues in three fundamental ways. Initially, in case of a senior Communist Party part doesn’t believe something to be an issue, at that point no arrangements are formulated. Furthermore, if the issue is recognized, arrangements may be concocted by a ‘specialist’ that thinks of one as the viewpoint as opposed to a scope of points of view that think about different partners. At long last, considering the fact that the recognizable proof of an issue originates from the top, the network has less responsibility for the issue and the arrangements. As an outcome, the network isn’t a functioning member in guaranteeing the concocted arrangements are grasped and values are changed.

· Multi-Culturalism

China: Albeit both Australians and Chinese characterize their particular nations as multicultural, it means something other than what’s expected in each. In China, multiculturalism alludes to the 56 unique gatherings that have particular societies moored in an area. These gatherings may talk various dialects, wear diverse garments, and be of various racial gatherings. The social trustworthiness of the ethnic gatherings is upheld by the local government; in any case, the ethnic gatherings are necessary for learning Mandarin Chinese as a typical language.
Australia: Multiculturalism, in Australia, refers to a type of social apartheid. Presently it essentially implies heaps of individuals with various hued faces living respectively.

Barriers to Effective Intercultural Communication & Overcoming them

There are various barriers to effective intercultural communication, however, some of the most common barriers are as follows-

Language Differences: As defined by Eginli (2016), differences in language are an obvious intercultural communication barrier. Even if one has studied the language or there is an availability of the interpreter, different accents, dialects, and slang can create problems.
Context Level: Most of the cultures where English is spoken are low-context. This refers to the fact that a message is put into explicit words. In such cultures, saying ‘no’ considered honest or straightforward. Cultures of high-context, such as Japan, the people expect the listener to pick up more meaning from the situation in general.
Body Language: Sometimes people take offense across cultures because of differences in body language. Example: an entrepreneur from Latin America might stand closer to his client than someone from North America would. This is likely to make the North American feel crowded and want to step back. Cultural Competence Program.
Emotions & Feelings: The differences in communication and culture styles can even create fear. As an outcome of this anxiety, from different cultures, people may pull back and overlook to communicate at all.
Time Value: The cultural view of time influences how it perceives deadlines. Not all cultures consider time in the linear fashion of North American. In the United States, punctuality is imperative, but cultures of Latin and Middle Eastern emphasizes value on relationships.
Stereotypes and Prejudices: “Stereotypes from other cultures can create problems in communication and give offense” (Baraldi and Luppi, 2015). A belief or Ethnocentrism, that one’s own culture is better than others, can lead to a feeling of superiority toward other groups and not well treating them.

As far as overcoming the barriers to intercultural communication is concerned, the following tips can be practiced-

a. Introduction of employees with one another who will be together working in a non-threatening environment, enabling a good long term working relationship.
b. Learning about the language of the other person’s culture, norms, and rules for behavior that could be acceptable would aid in preparing the personnel in dealing with situations as they arise.
c. Conducting activities for demonstrating how dependent people are on language.
d. Providing techniques, tips, and workshops for effectively communicating in an environment of cross-cultural work.
e. Coaching employees for mediating concerned conflicts of cultural misunderstandings. Providing opportunities for personnel for responding to situations from different viewpoints other than one’s own. This calls for being empathetic.

Multicultural Communication Guidelines

In addition to this, it is also advisable to follow Multicultural Communication Guidelines, which depicts the following-

Understanding one’s own culture: Improving communication with people around by accelerating awareness of own culture together with its subsequent influences on the values, beliefs and behavioral patterns. Recognizing that one’s own experiences and cultural background shape our thinking pattern, what we value, and how we communicate.
Identifying & adapting to differences in language: Sivle and Aamodt (2019) states that if communication is made with people from different culture, learning how the languages i.e. both nonverbal and verbal, culture differ from one’s own. Observing and learning the sense of signal of nonverbal communication for conversing such as social distance, facial expressions, and gestures of the hand. Avoiding nonverbal signals might be offensive.
Having an open mind and showing respect to the diversity: Learning about beliefs, customs, and cultures of others regardless of judging their one’s own unexamined biases and cultural identity. However, saying this does not mean that one change their notions or insult their very own culture, rather it is about recognizing that values of culture affect behaviors as well as notions and understanding how it is interpreted by others nonverbal and verbal language aids communication of a person for receiving the response (THE INFLUENCE OF AGING ATTITUDES ON VIEWS OF ONE’S OWN AGING: AGE, CULTURE, AND DOMAIN EFFECTS, 2015).

References

Baraldi, C. and Luppi, L. (2015). Ways of overcoming linguistic barriers in healthcare intercultural communication. Language and Intercultural Communication, 15(4), pp.581-599.
Bisiada, M. (2015). Metaphor and intercultural communication. Language and Intercultural Communication, 15(4), pp.616-621.
Canals, E. (2012). Intercultural Communication: A Critical Introduction. Language and Intercultural Communication, 12(2), pp.167-169.
Cappellini, M. (2015). Introducing language and intercultural communication. Language and Intercultural Communication, 15(1), pp.184-186.
Caust, J. (2010). Arts and Business: The Impact of Business Models on the Activities of Major Performing Arts Organisations in Australia. Media International Australia, 135(1), pp.32-44.
Eginli, A. (2016). FROM THE INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION BARRIERS TO THE INTERCULTURAL ADAPTATION: INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION EXPERIENCES. IJASOS- International E-journal of Advances in Social Sciences, 2(4), p.32.
Harro-Loit, H., Vihalemm, T. and Ugur, K. (2011). Cultural Experience as a (Critical) Factor in Crisis Communication Planning. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 20(1), pp.26-38.
Kende, A. (2016). Separating Social Science Research on Activism from Social Science as Activism. Journal of Social Issues, 72(2), pp.399-412.
Kolinko, M. (2019). Intercultural Communication: from Distinction to Inclusion. Intercultural Communication, 1(6), pp.189-212.
Sivle, A. and Aamodt, T. (2019). A dialogue-based weather forecast: adapting language to end-users to improve communication. Weather.
THE INFLUENCE OF AGING ATTITUDES ON VIEWS OF ONE’S OWN AGING: AGE, CULTURE, AND DOMAIN EFFECTS. (2015). The Gerontologist, 55(Suppl_2), pp.857-857.
Zhang, X. (2010). Reflections on Cultural Differences between American and China on Translation. Asian Social Science, 6(12).

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