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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTIONS

A. Background

Many people who go abroad encounter features in their host culture that they
may find disturbing.reaction to these alien aspects of the new culture can dampen the
entire experience in the country,resulting in various kinds of negative reactions.To
adapt positively and effective.

The fundamental intention of cross cultural training is to equip the learners


with the appropriate skills to attain cross cultural understanding.

The different types of appreciation are cross cultural knowledge, cross cultural
awareness, cross cultural sensitivity and cross cultural competence. Although all the
terms may appear similar in meaning, subtle differences exist between them.

B. Problem Formulations

1. What is culture?

2. What is the beneficial of Cross Cultural Understanding?

3. What is Language as Inter-Cultural Communication?

4. What is Culture Shock?

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CHAPTER II

DISCUSSION

A. Definition of Culture

Culture comes from the Sanskrit language that is buddhayah, which is the
plural form of buddhi (budia or reason); interpreted as matters relating to reason, and
human reason. Another form of the word culture is culture derived from English,
culture and Latin culture. (Wikipedia)

According to Lintion, defines culture, “as a way of life of it’s members, the
collection of ideas and habits which they learn, share and transmit from generation to
generation”.

According to Koentjaraningrat (2000) culture with the basic word culture


comes from the Sanskrit buddhayah language, which is the plural form of buddhi
which means "mind" or "reason". Thus Koentjaraningrat defines culture as "power"
in the form of creativity, intention and taste. Furthermore, culture itself is the result
of copyright, intention, and taste. So culture or abbreviated culture, according to
Koentjaraningrat is a whole system of ideas, actions and results of human work in the
context of community life that belongs to human self by learning. Furthermore
Koentjaraningrat distinguishes the existence of three forms of culture, namely:

(1) The form of culture as a complex of ideas, ideas, values, norms, rules and so on.

(2) The form of culture as a complex of activities and patterned actions from humans
in a society.

(3) The form of culture as objects created by humans.

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Hawkins (in Liliweri, 2004) also said that culture is a complex that includes
knowledge, beliefs, arts, morals, customs and other abilities and habits possessed by
humans as part of society.

In culture there are concepts of identity and ethnicity which are the result of
social construction. With this social construction certain labels or identities are
created, which symbolize the origin, culture and characteristics of certain groups.
The importance of this identity for an ethnic and ethnic group, because it is a
continuity of the past and future. Therefore, almost all cultural identities, in terms of
identity related to brotherhood, race, or ethnicity, are built in contexts that confront
each other.

In subsequent developments, culture is not only focused on traditional


customs. But it also enters the stage of popular culture. According to O'Brien and
Szeman (in Danesi, 2004) popular culture is culture that exists because a group of
people create or do it for themselves. Because this new thing has been widely
accepted by the public, popular culture has emerged. Furthermore, according to
Kundera (in Danesi, 2012) popular culture is something that intuitively appeals to us,
because it doesn't matter how much we denigrate it, but it is an integral part of the
human condition.

In a culture we can find so many things that are called the features of Culture.
The Feature of Cultures are :

1. Behaviors.

2. Habit

3. Customs

4. Communication

5. Belief.

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6. Moral Value

7. Tradition

8. Attitude

Culture has an important role in the current era of globalization, but culture
has obstacles that can complicate negotiation and communication between cultures.
The following are barriers in understanding other cultures, namely:

1) Northouse ethnocentrism, suggests that ethnocentrism is the tendency for


individuals to place their own groups in an organization. People tend to give more
priority and trust than people or groups who have different (ethnic, racial, or cultural).

2) Northouse prejudice, suggests that prejudice is an attitude, belief, or emotion that


an individual has about another individual or group based on invalid or unfounded
data.

In conclusion, the understanding of culture itself is the result of a sense and


intention that is continuous from human thought itself which has been passed down to
become a kind of life view of a society or nation itself, that is, something passed
down through generations and became the basis for its owner , so that each person or
society must have its own culture, and culture is also part of a civilization.

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B. The Benefits of Cross Culture Understanding

Intercultural understanding is a golden bridge towards understanding in


differences. According to Brett (2000) states that culture is a key factor that
influences a process of negotiation and communication. Furthermore, according to
Salacuse (2004), negotiation practices differ from culture to culture. Culture is a key
factor influencing the negotiation process and outcomes, furthermore cultural values
can influence international business negotiations in a significant and unexpected way
from the first stage to the last stage of negotiations (Leung et al, 2005). In order to
achieve the goal of communicating between cultures, it is very important to
understand the cultures of various countries, regions and ethnic groups. Broad cross-
cultural understanding will help negotiators and communicators in conducting
intercultural dialogue. Cross-cultural understanding before conducting cross-cultural
communication will increase the chances of success of the communication goals. A
good cross-cultural understanding will increase the likelihood of success in
negotiations. Something is very easy to understand if one communicator has met
with his communication partner before communication begins and is assumed to have
a pleasant conversation and understand the culture of each individual when
communicating. With this kind of communication pattern, it will facilitate the
achievement of communication goals.

Apart from facilitating cross-cultural communication, by understanding


between cultures, it will be easier for someone to create a strategy to survive in a
plural environment. Someone who survives in various situations are those who want
to learn and accept other people's cultures. With acceptance like this, each person
will be easier to adapt to the surrounding environment. Adaptability is able to be an
intelligent strategy in achieving a life goal in a plural environment.

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C. Language as Inter-Cultural Communication

Language is a communication tool used by humans. At present the awareness


of the importance of the function of language in improving the quality of HR began
to grow in Indonesia. Many people learn foreign languages in order to understand the
culture and character of the nation, apart from there is a purpose to learn other things
in the country's territory. The effort to understand other people's languages is a form
of intercultural communication.

Communication aims to convey ideas, ideas, and feelings. In communication there


are messages or information that is conveyed. However, communication is not
always able to run smoothly so that messages or information cannot be conveyed
properly even this can cause misunderstandings between the two parties.

In conducting intercultural communication, there is an approach to using two types of


culture in communication, namely high culture context and low culture context. The
two types of communication contexts can be explained as follows (Nishimura et al.,
2009):

A. High Context Culture (culture with high context). This culture relies heavily on
non-verbal and subtle cues in communication. What is conveyed is not necessarily
the meaning as revealed. In Javanese culture, things like this are very often used.
People communicate with Sanepa, eye cues, body language, and others.

B. Low Context Culture (culture with low context). This culture is very dependent
on words to convey meaning in communication. What is conveyed, the meaning is
with verbal speech. Therefore, usually people with a culture like this will really pay
attention to what is being said by the speaker.

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D. Culture Shock

Culture shock is a thing that also needs to be considered when someone is


going to communicate or enter a new territory. Culture shock is a condition where a
person is not accustomed to new / local culture. Clash or cultural shock is often an
obstacle for someone in achieving a goal outside the region of his territory. Culture
shock is often considered a natural thing for most people, but it should not be
underestimated because it can lead to depression and stress for some people who
experience it. Culture shock is closely related to circumstances where there is
excessive worry and confusion experienced by people who occupy new and
unfamiliar territory. Usually, people who experience culture shock are those who are
relatively unstable in adapting. Different environmental conditions that are usually
found in the country, such as the home environment, different types of food, campus
atmosphere and lectures, associations with people who are not as expected are known
to be one of the factors causing culture shock symptoms. Culture shock is divided
into 4 stages, namely:

1. The honeymoon phase

In this phase, people who first enter a new area, usually will feel happy when they
arrive in the new area. Usually, everything that is new feels interesting and exciting.

2. The crisis phase

In this phase, the differences in the new area start to feel inappropriate or boring.
Things that do not fit can be in the form of food (difficulty finding food that fits the
tongue and others), language that is difficult to understand, association with new
environments and new habits and begin to be lonely because it is far from relatives
and family. In this phase, clashes often occur as analogous to the two icebergs
colliding above.

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3. The adjustment phase

This phase is very important because whether we succeed through the culture shock
period depends on our ability to make adjustments. In this phase, it is hoped that
those entering the new area will be able to interact with the environment in the new
area and find ways to make adjustments.

4. Bi-cultural phase (dual culture phase)

After successfully passing the three previous phases, one will enter this fourth phase.
He will already be able to feel comfortable living with two cultures at the same time.
He was able to adjust to the culture in the new territory. Nevertheless, there must be
a balance between understanding foreign cultures without leaving their true identities.

To anticipate and overcome culture shock, there are several ways that can be
done, namely:

1) Add insight into new areas to be entered;

2) Finding information about culture, life habits and activities that are popular in the
destination area to the topic of daily speech and body language that is commonly
used;

3) Upon arrival at the destination, immediately try to recognize local life.

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CHAPTER III

CONCLUSION

A. Conclusion

Understanding the culture of other nations does not mean eliminating the
culture of one's own nation. Cross Cultural Understanding is a concept in
understanding intercultural communication, so that high-level learning objectives are
achieved. In the current era of globalization, understanding the culture and character
of other nations is very important.

By understanding the character of other nations, we are able to become


leaders in global space. Because the leader requires communication that is
understood by everyone he leads. Cross Cultural Understanding places human values
beyond ethnic, national and ethnic groups.

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REFERENCES

Tugasanakkampus000.blogspot.com/cross-cultural-understanding. Diakses 24
Febuary 2020 jam 21:27

Rickyanggili.blogspot.com/2017/02/cross-sultural-understanding. Diakses 25
February 2020 jam 21.00

Koentjaraningrat (2000) Kebudayaan mentalitas dan pembangunan (cetakan ke


sembilanbelas). Jakarta: PT Gramedia pustaka utama.

Nishimura, S., Anne Nevgi and seppo Tella (2009) Communication style and cultural
features in high/low context communication cutures. Artikel dapat diunduh di:
www.helsinki.fi/tella/nishimuranevgitella.pdf

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