FUNDAMENTALS OF BUSINESS

COMMUNICATION
COURSE
WEEK 9:
Cultural Perceptions of Communication in
Organizations:
Low Context and High Context
Forms of Verbal Interaction,
Written Communication Insights
MSc. MILAGROS HARO
 FUNDAMENTALS OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION COURSE

• Logic & • Presentations

• Communication Reasoning • Communicating • Quiz
Foundations to Inform • Reference • Annotated
• Establishing the • APA Rules
• Business • Communicating Bibliography
Purpose of Your • Displaying Examples
Communication to persuade • Motivations for
Communication Results • Annotated International
Standards • Indirect vs. • Introduction,
• Crediting Bibliography Expansion,
• Critical Thinking Direct Approach Body and
Sources
Conclusions

• How Are • Formal

• Social Contexts:
Communication Presentation
High & Low
• Relationship & Collaboration • Consultative 2
Context • Beware of
Building – Cultures Different in a
Unintended
Presentation
MIDTERM Culture insights Virtual • What Does Your
• Forms of Verbal Audiences
• Global Environment? Audience Need?
EXAM Communication • Design for Small
Business • You Are What • Use Your Story
• Written Screens
Etiquette You Write. Be as a Framing
Communication
Clear, Concise, Device
Insights
and Compelling

• Make It • Signs, Signs,

Memorable: Everywhere
How Sticky Are There’s Signs:
You? Semiotics as
• SLIDE DESIGN Communication
• Presentation ≠ • Quantitative
Lecture Data
• We Eat First Visualizations
with the Eyes • Industry reports
Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro
 Cultural Perceptions of Communication in Organizations:
Low Context and High Context

Cultures have different perspectives regarding how to communicate.

That doesn't necessarily mean words or phrases but the format or structure to that communication.
Some are specific and pointed while others believe there is an inherent understanding present.
We will discuss this issue in this lesson

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro

 HIGH AND LOW CONTEXT CULTURES
Are two classifications of culture as it relates to views of communication.

There is an aspect assigned to cultures that deals primarily with how we view communicating with others. This
aspect is called low or high context (depending on the culture). What that means is cultures, based on how they
view interacting, will communicate in different ways. Indeed, they may even view the person with whom they are
interacting with a perceived bias based on the culture they come from.
Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro
 LOW-CONTEXT CULTURE
Anthropologist Edward T. Hall was the
first to discuss and define a low and high
context culture. In his 1976 book
titled Beyond Culture, Hall described a
low-context culture:

“A culture that communicates

information in a direct manner that
relies mainly on words.”

Low-context cultures do not rely on

contextual elements (i.e., the speaker's
tone of voice or body language) to
communicate information.
They take a more direct and explicit
approach. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 5

 LOW-CONTEXT
• This is a culture where issues are fully detailed
and spelled out in communication.
• Messages are specific, explicit, direct and
concise.
• Members of this culture have many relationships
that last for a short amount of time or exist for a
specific reason (Tasks are more important than
relationships).
• There is a great deal of focus and importance put
on what is said. 6
• The cultural rules and norms need to be spelled
out so that people who are not familiar with the
culture know what the expectations are.
• Words are more important than body language.
• Primary method of learning is by following other
people's explicit directions and explanations
• Examples of low-context cultures are Australia,
Germany, England, the U.S., and Switzerland.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro

 Individualism in Low-Context Cultures
• Low-context cultures
are individualistic. This means that
individual achievements are valued
higher than group
accomplishments.

• Members of low-context cultures

are independent of one another and
are expected to look out for
themselves, except for family.

• Privacy and having personal space is

also valued.

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 Low-Context Situations
We have all been placed in situations that
are considered low-context.

For example, if you have ever been to an

airport and ridden a plane, then you have
experience with a low-context culture.

There are explicit rules as to what forms of

identification you need to get on the plane,
how much your luggage can weigh, what kind
of screenings you must go through before you
get on the plane, etc.

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 HIGH-CONTEXT CULTURE
Low-context culture contrasts with
a high-context culture, which relies
heavily on implicit messages and
contextual cues (i.e., the situation and
the speaker's tone of voice) to relay
information being communicated.

Members of high-context cultures

usually have close relationships that
last for an extended period.

As a result of these years of interacting

with one another, the members know
what the rules are, how to think, and
how to behave, so the rules do not
have to be explicitly stated. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 9

 HIGH-CONTEXT
• This is a culture that makes a lot of assumptions
about communications, views, and knowledge.
• In this culture, there is more of a quiet
understanding of what is going on and less is said
about it, as in the end we should be just
'understood’.
• The situation, people, and non-verbal elements are
more important than the actual words that are
communicated.
• Primarily use non-verbal methods to relay
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meaningful information in conversations, such as
facial expressions, eye movement, and tone of
voice.
• People are comfortable standing close to each
other.
• Trust must be developed before business
transactions can begin.
• Members of the culture place emphasis on
interpersonal relationships.
• Examples of high-context cultures are Brazil,
China, France, Greece, and Japan.
Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro
 Ingroups of High-Context Cultures
• High-context cultures are collectivist cultures.
This means that the members' identity is heavily
rooted in groups, i.e., families and work units.

• High-context cultures also value group harmony

above individual achievement. As such, high-
context cultures tend to cater to the development
and promotion of ingroups, which are groups that
we belong to and are loyal to, including families,
cultures, and religious congregations.

• Members of ingroups usually share many

characteristics and experiences. There are strong
distinctions made between individuals who are
members of the ingroup and those who are not
members in high-context cultures.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 11

 Relation to Organizational Behavior

When we look at high-context cultures and their communication, especially in the workplace, they typically
think there is more of an understanding than there really is. They are less direct and just assume
there is this common ground present, and that guides how they communicate.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 12

Relation to Organizational Behavior

By contrast, low-context cultures

have a hard time accepting and
dealing with this form of
understanding, which they view as
ambiguous.
They want to be more direct and more
specific, which can be off-putting to
someone from a high-context culture.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 13

 IMPORTANCE

For organizational behavior, given the push for more diversity, it is important a manager understands how to work
with and manage these different cultural types. Think about a team meeting that contains individuals from low-
and high-context cultures. If a manager cannot manage the interaction and ensure both cultures communicate
effectively, the meeting might not result in anything being accomplished.
Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 14
 CONCLUSIONS
• It is important to note that no culture is
completely high-context or low-context,
since all societies contain at least some
parts that are both high and low.

• For example, while the United States is a

low-context culture, family gatherings
(which are common in American culture)
tend to be high-context.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 15

 “
Let’s review
• Provide one example of a low-
context culture situation and
another one for a high-context
culture situation, list the
characteristics in both
examples.

• Compare your answers

• Discuss

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 16

VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Today's lesson will provide some strategies for navigating
our verbal messages during communication:

1. Avoid an intensionally-oriented communication.

2. Avoid allness with talking to others.
3. Avoid using extremes

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 17

 Intensional vs. Extensional Orientation

• The first tip for having pleasant verbal

exchanges is to avoid falling into the trap
of intensional orientation. Saying someone
is oriented intentionally means they make
judgments based on preconceived notions
or stereotypes.

• For example, let's say a worker must talk to

the president of his company, he's never
officially met her, but everyone tells him she
is harsh and demanding. If this worker
chooses an intensional approach to their
conversation, he'll probably end up
interpreting her words in a negative manner.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 18

 Extensional Orientation
To have a better chance at a positive
interaction, our worker guy should
employ an extensional orientation to
their talk.

Opposite of the intensional approach, a

person with an extensional orientation
bases opinions and reactions on what is
personally observed and experienced.
Employing this tactic will give our
worker, and all of us, a much greater
shot at a positive verbal exchange.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 19

 Avoid Allness
Allness takes on many forms.
For instance, we're practicing allness when
we assume, we know all there is to know
about a subject.

If we say things like, 'I'm telling you, I've

read everything there is to know about
this and I'm RIGHT,' we're guilty of allness.

Communication killing phrases like, 'I've said

all I'm going to say about this,' or, 'I've listened
to ALL I'm going to listen to,' are hallmark
allness phrases.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 20

 Facts vs. Inferences
When verbally communicating
with others, we also need to make
a distinction between facts and
our own inferences, or
conclusions based on
observations.

To explain, suppose you're having a

conversation with a friend and they
are giving you nothing but short
answers and agitated tones.
From this you infer your friend is mad
at you, so you end the conversation
quickly and go on your way annoyed.
Later on, the same friend calls to tell
you he was beginning a horrible
migraine during your last
conversation together.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 21

 Avoid using extremes

The last guideline for verbal messaging is

to avoid using extremes. In life, most
things are not all good or all bad. Yet in
our conversations, we often characterize
things as such.

For example, has anyone ever said to you, 22

'That's the worst thing anyone's ever said
to me!' Turning the spotlight around,
have you ever said something like: 'This
has been the biggest waste of my time!'
Or, 'That's the dumbest thing you've ever
said!'

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro

 “
ACTIVITY : WORK IN
GROUPS

Make some recommendations

to avoid:
➢ Intensionally-oriented
communication.
➢ Allness
➢ Extremes

Discuss and share to the class

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 23

 WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
We'll discuss what written communication is and some advantages and disadvantages of using it.
We'll also discuss the skills you'll need to become an effective writer.

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 24

 TYPES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
There are two main types of communication: oral and written.
Written communication involves any type of message that makes use of the written word.
Written communication is the most important and the most effective of any mode of
business communication.

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TYPES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
Some of the various forms of written communications that
are used internally for business operations include:

•Memos
•Reports
•Bulletins INTERNAL
•Job descriptions COMMUNICATION
•Employee manuals
FOR
•Emails
•Instant messages
BUSINESS

Fundamentals of Business Communication - Professor Milagros Haro 26

 TYPES OF WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

Examples of written communications generally used with

clients or other businesses include:

•Email
•Internet websites
•Letters
•Proposals CLIENTS
•Telegrams
OR
•Faxes
•Postcards
BUSINESSES
•Contracts
•Advertisements
•Brochures
•News releases

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Advantages of Written Communication

Some advantages of written communication are:

• No need for personal contact - you can tell an

employee he or she must work overtime through an
email instead of face-to-face.
• Saves money - you can send an email instead of calling
long distance.
• Written proof - provides written proof in case of a
dispute.

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Disadvantages of Written Communication

Some disadvantages of written communication are:

• Delay in communication - it may take a while to

get to the intended recipient.
• Lack of secrecy - once it's on paper, anyone can
read it.
• Costly - if the sender and receiver are sitting next
to each other, you still must spend money on
paper or Internet service.

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Effective Written Communication Skills
Effective written communication should be:
• Complete - include all the necessary information.
• Clarified - the reason of the correspondence
should be clear, direct, and straightforward. The
message should be clear so that the reader
doesn't get confused.
• Correct - all facts and dates should be correct.
Also, use your spelling and grammar check
options.
• Concise - use as few words as possible to convey
your message, avoid repetition, and leave out
unnecessary information.
• Courteous - to build effective rapport, always be
polite, respectful, and culturally sensitive.

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 “

THANK YOU

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