LESSON 2

• Communication Contexts


  The personal, physical, social, psychological and cultural circumstances, among others in which communication occurs
• Personal Context


  The background of both the sender and the receiver of the message, including their education, religion, socioeconomic status, marital status, and beliefs that greatly influence what and how they communicate
• Physical Context


  The environment where communication takes place, involving tangible factors which can be easily perceived by the senses, such as temperature, humidity, odor, lighting, and noise level
• Virtual Environment


  Where communication occurs (e.g., email, Skype, Facebook, Messenger, etc.), consequently influencing the way messages are sent, received and perceived
• Social Context


  The kind of relationship that exists between the sender and the receiver
• Psychological Context


  The emotions and feelings of the participants in the communication process, involving their opinions, judgments, prejudices, attitudes and perception towards each other
• Cultural Context


  The sets of beliefs, value systems, guiding principles, and assumptions based on one's race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, identity and religion within which communication happens
• Culture


  • a set of unique and shared beliefs, values, and norms
• Cultural Dimensions in Communication


  Dimensions that affect communication, as adapted by Verderber et al. (2015) from the early works of Edward T. Hall, and more recently, by Gerard Hendrik (Geert) Hofstede
• Individualism vs Collectivism


  Individualistic culture puts premium on the self and personal fulfillment, while collectivist culture values teamwork and collaboration
• Low-context vs High-context Culture


  Low-context culture views explicit words as way to convey messages, while high-context culture uses subtle non-verbal behaviors and implicit information to convey meaning
• Monochronic vs Polychronic Culture


  Monochronic advocates punctuality, timely completion of tasks, and one accomplishment of task at a time. Polychronic culture has a more fluid and flexible concept of time.
• Uncertainty Avoidance


  The need to foresee what is going to happen in the future and to prepare for it
• Low-context culture


  Views explicit words as way to convey messages
• High-context culture


  Uses subtle non-verbal behaviors and implicit information to convey meaning
• Chronemics


  • Pertains to the concept of time among cultures
  • Includes monochronic and polychronic cultures
• Monochronic culture


  Advocates punctuality, timely task completion, and one task at a time
• Polychronic culture


  Has a more fluid and flexible concept of time
• Uncertainty avoidance


  The need to foresee what is going to happen
• Low-uncertainty avoidance culture


  • Tolerant of unpredictable and uncontrollable situations
  • Maintains few rules and allows for spontaneity of responses
• High-uncertainty avoidance culture


  Values precision and always attempts to anticipate risks to possibly reduce them
• Power distance


  The extent to how the equality or inequality of power is expected or accepted
• Low-power distance culture


  • Values equal distribution of power
  • Observed in cultures of Austria, Finland, Denmark, Norway and USA
  • Power exists but people value democracy and egalitarian behavior
• High-power distance culture


  • Recognizes that unequal distribution of power is normal
  • Evident in countries in the Middle East, Malaysia, Guatemala, Venezuela and Singapore
• Gender-masculinity or femininity


  • Masculine cultures advocate strict adherence to conventional gender roles and behaviors
  • Feminine cultures are based on the premise that men and women assume varieties of roles and are both valued regardless of their sex and gender
• Long-term or short-term orientation


  Refers to how patience is valued in waiting for the outcomes of actions
• Short-term orientation culture


  • Characterized by being very performance-driven
  • Emphasizes quick results, efficient revenue generation
  • Values rewards in the here and now
• Long-term orientation culture


  • More laid back and has more patience in waiting for the outcomes of an action
  • Values perseverance towards the achievement of goals
• Competent intercultural communicator


  Interprets and shares meanings with individuals from different cultures with accuracy, respect and a high level of sensitivity
• • Ignorance of cultural nuances and differences can be costly
  • Recognizing and responding to differences among cultures allows for more meaningful relationships
  • Not everyone from a particular culture exhibits the same characteristics and communication traits