LearnEnglish Reading C1 Cultural Behaviour in Business

Nama : Nurfadillah Tul Zannah Siregar
Nim : 0309302079
Jurusan/Sem: PIPS3
Dosen : Maryati Salmiah, S.pd, M.Hum
Reading: C1
Cultural behaviour in business
Reada blog post about doing business in different cultures topractise and improve your
reading skills.
Before reading
Do the preparation task first. Then read the text and do the exercises.
Preparation task
Match the definitions (a–h) with the vocabulary (1–8).
Vocabulary Definitions
1. …… stark a. subtle differences in meaning
2. …… to be conceived as b. to be useful to someone in the future
3. …… to break the ice c. arrogant and self-important
4. …… nuances d. extreme and obvious, often used with ‘difference’ or
5. …… to stand someone in ‘contrast’
good stead e. to be thought of as
6. …… pompous f. boring, uninteresting or ordinary
7. …… to pigeonhole someone g. todo something that helps relieve the tensionand
8. …… mundane get conversation going, especially between people
meeting for the first time
h. to label someoneand put them in arestrictive
category
© 2019 British Council www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

Reading text: Cultural behaviour in business
Much of today’s business is conducted across international borders, and while the majority of
the global business community might share the use of English as a common language, the
nuances and expectations of business communication might differ greatly from culture to
culture. A lack of understanding of the cultural norms and practices of our business
acquaintances can result in unfair judgements, misunderstandings and breakdowns in
communication. Here are three basic areas of differences in the business etiquette around the
world that could help stand you in good stead when you next find yourself working with
someone from a different culture.
A famous Russian proverb states that ‘a smile without reason is a sign of idiocy’ and a so-
called ‘smile of respect’ is seen as insincere and often regarded with suspicion in Russia. Yet
in countries like the United States, Australia and Britain, smiling is often interpreted as a sign
of openness, friendship and respect, and is frequently used to break the ice.
In a piece of research done on smiles across cultures, the researchersfound that smiling
individuals were considered more intelligent than non-smiling people in countries such as
Germany, Switzerland, China and Malaysia. However, in countries like Russia, Japan, South
Korea and Iran, pictures of smiling faces were rated as less intelligent than the non-smiling
ones. Meanwhile, in countries like India, Argentina and the Maldives, smiling was associated
with dishonesty.
Eye contact
An American or British person might be looking their client in the eye toshow that they are
paying full attention to what is being said, but if that client is from Japan or Korea, they might
find the direct eye contact awkward or even disrespectful. In parts of South America and
Africa, prolonged eye contact could also be seen as challenging authority. In the Middle East,
eye contact across genders is considered inappropriate, although eye contact within a
gender could signify honesty and truthfulness.
Having an increased awareness of the possible differences in expectations and behaviour can
help us avoid cases of miscommunication, but it is vital that we also remember that cultural
stereotypes canbe detrimental to building good business relationships. Although national
cultures could play a part in shaping the way we behave and think, we are also largely
influenced by the region we come from, the communities we associate with, our age and
gender, ourcorporate culture andour individual experiences ofthe world. Theknowledge of
the potential differences should therefore be something we keepat the back of our minds,
rather than something that we use to pigeonhole the individuals of an entire nation.

Tasks
Task 1
Circle the correct answer.
1. The British trainee felt that people who want to be addressed as ‘Dr’ must be …
a. hard-working.
b. conceited and self-important.
c. doing a medical degree.
d. from Germany.
2. If you are not sure how to address someone, you should …

a. use the title you see on their business card.
b. make your decision based on cultural stereotypes about their country.
c. address them the way you’d like to be addressed.
d. ask them what they would like you to call them.
3. There might be a misunderstanding if an American smiles at a Russian business associate

because the Russian might think that the American is …
a. being fake.
b. challenging their authority.
c. trying to break the ice.
d. disrespectful.
4. The Japanese, South Koreans and Iranians might interpret a smiling face as being …
a. friendlier.
b. less open.
c. not as intelligent.
d. dishonest.
5. Americans and British people sometimes use eye contact to show that they …
a. like the speaker.
b. are really listening to what is being said.
c. are honest andtruthful.
d. are attending to every need of the speaker.

6. The last paragraph warns the reader not to …
a. engage in international business.
b. let national cultures shape the way we behave and think.
c. let miscommunication damage our business relationships.
d. overgeneralise using our knowledge of cultural stereotypes.
Task 2
Are the sentences true or false?
Answer
1. When doing business internationally, there is a possibility that we might True False
misinterpret what eachother is saying even though we are speaking
the same language.
2. To the German trainee, having a PhD is equivalent to being amedical True False
doctor.
3. Sometimes, the smallest things can trigger a huge emotional response True False
in us, especially when they are things we are not used to.
4. In the research done to the perceptions of smiles, people from True False
different countries were asked to rate photos of smiling faces and non-
smiling faces.
5. Making eyecontact can be interpreted in different ways in different True False
cultures but is almost always a positive thing.
6. The writer recommends keeping possible cultural differences in the True False
forefront of our minds when doing business with people with different
cultures.
Discussion
What practices have you encountered that seemed strange or even inappropriate to you?
Nothing, because greeting someone, smiling, eye contact are things that respect
someone who is again in front of us

ANSWER
Preparation task
1. d
2. e
3. g
4. a
5. b
6. c
7. h
8. f
Task 1
1. b
2. d
3. a
4. c
5. b
6. d
Task 2
1. True
2. False
3. True
4. True
5. False
6. False

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Nama : Nurfadillah Tul Zannah Siregar

© 2019 British Council www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

© 2019 British Council www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

2. If you are not sure how to address someone, you should …

3. There might be a misunderstanding if an American smiles at a Russian business associate

© 2019 British Council www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

© 2019 British Council www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

© 2019 British Council www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

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