The fear for insignificance can only be overcome through strong individual and cultural identity over and above measurable achievement. He believes that people need to invest as much time in developing their worldview as their careers.
2 The Dutch manager was shocked because he thought he hadn’t told the team to build it in a certain way, he simply had asked if it could be done! It is just suggestion rather than command. He didn’t think his idea will be performed. It spent a lot of material, resources and cost overruns.
The misunderstandings took place because cultural barriers got in the way. To take full advantage of the opportunities that the global environment offered, both the Dutch and the Indian teams needed to have a better understanding of the culturally based expectations of each group. In addition, timely communication is also necessary.
3 Advances in information technology are bringing about changes in contemporary当代 society that pose new situations requiring intercultural communication expertise. Modern technology has been integrated into all aspects of people life. Media technology plays an important role in modern society whether it is political, economical or cultural.
Media technology is being used to improve cohesion among previously disparate groups and individuals. Technology has enabled ordinary individuals to cheaply and quickly organize themselves around a common interest or idea. Everything has two sides. Modern technology brings us benefits while also brings disadvantage. If we don’t face-to-face to communicate, misunderstanding and information transmission errors will come.
全球化本质上是国际层面上的融合。很多情况下，全球化是经济的融合，由商业活动和贸易协定所推动。在其他情况下，全球化也可以是意识形态的融合，是不同思想和观点在国家和地区之间的交流。但是无论是哪种情况，全球化都包含一个最重要的因素，即交际。有效的交际为个人提供所需信息，使他们能够作为消费者、工人和公民参与今天的全球化社会的活动。只有通过在全球范围内进行有效的信息共享，才能使诸如从国际贸易政策到MP3文件传播的活动真正具有国际的本质。
在这样的交际框架下，使用权的概念尤其重要。也就是说，只有对重要信息具有使用权，人们才可以有效地加入到今天有关商品、服务和思想的全球市场中来。反过来，使用权经常依赖于提出和交流思想所用到得媒体和技术。事实上，就全球化而言，信息使用所必需的媒体通常是电子媒体或网络媒体。这些媒体之所以重要，就在于它们的快速性和直接性。它们使得个人可以在全球范围内发现并交流信息。比如说，电子邮件可以让一个身处波士顿的人与住在北京的某个人快速便捷的进行信息交流，就像这个人在同街对面的某个邻居进行交流一样。
1 There is a big difference between Chinese and American concerning who is the decision-maker of the work. The Chinese usually work to complete the task according to what their boss or supervisor requires, while Americans, on the contrary, finish their jobs according to what they suppose is right. In this case, Li Hua completed his report within 16 days, faster compared with the actually 20 days, but later than it was agreed on. So the American supervisor got angry, which caused Li Hua’s resignation.
If I were Li Hua, I would tell the American supervisor the fact that I really had made great efforts to finish the report in 16 days though later than 15 days but faster than 20 days that is said earlier. Then, if the supervisor still felt angry and were not flexible, I would resign just as Li Hua had done.
2 Jim comes from American where personal competence 能力in dealing with matters is emphasized in spite of high focus on teamwork. On the other hand, American people are highly practical and realistic, they would think the earlier the problem can be discovered the better solutions can be sought.
For Jim, he is supposed to build a good intercultural communication, but what he should do first is to know Korean culture well. So from Jim himself it is much better to know Korean culture especially their strategy of saving face and losing face. After understanding each other, conflict is avoided.
3 Smiling in China means not only that someone is happy but also that he or she is sorry. He apologized with a smile to show respect for his manager and by smiling he tried to be on friendly terms with him. But for Peter, this smile does not mean the same thing. He regarded the smile not as a sorry but as smirking傻笑, a sign of disrespect. Then it is understandable that Peter refused Chen Jie’s sorry.
In fact, this story comes from cultural misunderstanding between Chen Jie and Peter. An American thinks that a westerner in Chen Jie’s situation would probably keep eyes lowered when making an apology. Chen Jie is supposed to know that the sorry he made is not to his Chinese natives but to an American. What he should do is to lower his eyes while making the apology and look at Peter in the eye while assuring him, without wearing any smile on his face in both cases. By doing so Peter will truly believe that the sorry he made came from his honesty and sincerity.
“文化”和“文明”两个词在许多语言中的使用一直混淆不清。《韦氏完整版大词典》对这两个词的定义也是相互解释的：“文化”即是文明中的一个特别的进步阶段或者状态；“文明”则是社会文化的进步。虽然“文明”一词有时仅指“先进的”或者“高级的”的文化，但是在普通以及书面英语里，一直是倾向于把这两个词当作近义词。总体上，这种倾向也反映在作为社会科学中的文学中。戈登威泽1922年写的人类学导论，书名就是《早期文明》。书中有关“文化”的全部引用索引都被归入“文明”一词之下。有些作者反复地使用“文化或者文明”或“文明或者文化”这些措辞。萨姆纳与凯勒也遵循这种惯例，不过，两人至少在一个地方曾明确表示，二者在概念上仍略有差异：我们所称作的文明就是社会调整，它构成了比先前文化更为复杂的聚合体。
4 The Chinese have strong beliefs about good luck or bad luck associated with particular numbers. Four is the most negative number, since its sound is the same as the word death. Mr. and Mrs. Lin are obviously Chinese who are fully aware of the negative meaning of four. So, Mr. and Mrs. Lin want to change the numbers in the address of their house.
Sometimes the number has negative connotations内涵; for example, seven is related to the notion that ghosts return seven days after death. Positive meanings are associated with other numbers: one for guaranteed; two for easy; three for life; six for happiness; eight for prosperity; nine for long life.
5 Evelyn was unaware that her daughter-in-law was observing common Asian postpartum产后的 behavior: the new mom goes to bed for a month while everyone pampers纵容，宠 her. Family members, and sometimes neighbors, take over cooking and cleaning; when the baby needs to be fed, they bring a freshly change infant to the mother.
In China, this practice is called zuo yuezi (sitting through the month). The woman must stay in bed behind closed windows, cover her head, and take many precautions预防措施 to insure that she does not damage her ability to produce breast milk. 6 The case illustrates a cross-cultural misunderstanding of a very subtle aspect of culture. How close an individual can get to another while talking is, to a large extent, dictated by one’s culture. It is said that most middle-class North Americans choose a normal conversational distance of no closer than twenty-two inches from each other’s mouth. However, for people of certain South American and Caribbean cultures, the distance is approximately fifteen inches, while still other cultures (in the Middle East) maintain a distance of nine to ten inches.
The problem that occurred between the Latin American and the New York policeman was that their respective cultures had different ideas about spatial空间 distancing. The Latin American was attempting to establish what for him was a comfortable conversational distance. Unfortunately, the policeman felt threatened because his personal space, as defined by his culture, was being violated. Had either of them understood this cultural behavior difference, the breakdown in communication and the arrest could have been avoided.
既然有些跨文化交际的技能是所有文化普遍使用的，我们就可以有效地运用客位的(文化通用的)方法。但要制作一个具体文化的范式，我们也需要运用主位的方法。因此，为了准确描述文化差异，我们需要深入地调查我们打算与之交际的文化。理想情况下，通过主位的方法，不断提高差异意识，应该会产生我们与他人不同的观念，而不总是他人与我们不同的观念。培养人们对差异存在的敏感性是熟练进行跨文化交际的第一步。跨文化交际能力和具体文化交际能力应该被看作是两个独立的概念，二者同时起作用，共同促进特定跨文化交往的成功。 为了获得对一个文化的最大认识而从该文化内部进行研究时，我们应该警惕任何文化差异，这些差异很有可能造成交际问题，但可能与任何外部范畴都不相符。我们要记住：文化不是静止的，而是活跃的，是不断发展和演化的。理想情况是，我们要学会在遇到任何不熟悉或冒犯性的语言或非语言行为时，不要匆忙做出判断，而要问问自己，“这么做有什么用，或者这样的行为是如何起源于文化的？”或者偶尔可以问问，“这个讨厌的行为真的是他或她本人的真实体现吗？”
1 He thought that it was Professor Stevens’ personal relation with Ms. Morin that helped to convince her to change her mind about his project. Ms. Morin agreed with Professor Stevens because he presented his suggestions in a calm, rational approach rather than originally thought. So Guangrui consider Professor Stevens a powerful man.
The meanings of “I know her” in Chinese means there is personal relationship with each other. In American, it just means somebody has some understanding to the other.
2 Given the fact that they were colleagues who trusted each other, Kevin would have no sense that Lan Lan would feel the need to keep the door open to protect her reputation. Nor would he think that anyone else had the right to be able to see the two of them talking. So he closes the door.
For a very long time in China, tradition has it that it is not appropriate for a man and a woman to be alone together in the same room. Thus Lan Lan deliberately left the door ajar when she went into Kevin’s room.
3 The idea of privacy is rather new in China, while people still have fresh memory of the time when they had little personal space. There have been times when consumer goods were in very short supply and people in line had to stand very close to one another to prevent others from cutting into the line. As a result, people have got used to standing close to the one before them, even when it comes to banking.
Some Western Europeans, like more space. They lined up in the shop to have a certain distance between each other, especially in front of the ATM. They don't like crowded, in that case, will make them feel uncomfortable.
价值观是所有文化的另一个特点。对不同民族来说，价值观对于保持文化整体性是至关重要的，因为它们代表了对于延续人们生活方式来说最基本的品质。价值观和文化之间的联系非常密切，很难在不涉及一方的前提下去谈论另一方。正如麦休尼斯所指出的，价值观从文化上定义了愿望、善良和美好的标准，这些标准形成了社会生活的广义指导原则。在关于文化价值观的任何讨论中，关键词都是指导原则。换言之，价值观帮助确立了人们应该怎样行为表现的原则。根据文化差异程度的不同，人们可以预期跨文化交际的参与者在相似的环境下可能会预见到、表现出不同的行为。例如，尽管所有文化都重视长者，不同文化中重视的程度却是很不相同。在韩国和美洲印第安文化中，人们高度尊敬甚至崇敬长者，进而向他们寻求建议，进行咨询。当然，与之形成鲜明对比的是美国文化，青年是重视的焦点。
因篇幅问题不能全部显示，请点此查看更多更全内容