CLASS-1

Culture definitions:
Kluckhohn (1962): ‘culture consists of patterned ways of thinking, feeling and reacting,
acquired and transmitted mainly by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievement of
human groups, including their embodiments in artefacts; the essential core of culture
consists of traditional (i.e., historically derived and selected) ideas and especially their
attached values’
Triandis (1972): the subjective perception of the human-made part of the environment
including the categorization of social stimuli, associations, beliefs, attitudes, roles, and
values that individuals share

Hofstede (1980): culture consists of shared mental programs that control individuals’
response to their environment.
The levels of mental programming are human nature, groups, and individuals, referring to
respectively universal characteristics, culture, and personality.

Characteristics of culture:
Group phenomenon; it refers to a group of individuals.
Shared; it is a common basis of understanding although there may be deviations.
Learned; it is sociological and artificial and learned through social institutions such as
family, friends, schools, media, and religious organizations.
Enduring; it persists and enduring or long-lasting effects on behaviors and religion and
language reinforce this persistence
Powerful influence on behavior; it refers to internalized control.
Systematic and organized; cultural elements complement each other and are in
consistency.
Largely invisible; it is visible only when you are out of it due to its normality.
Normality; culture defines a particular normal that is not questioned and largely followed.

Normality:
What goes on in our culture is seen as natural and correct, and what goes on in other
cultures is perceived as unnatural and incorrect.
We perceive our own in-group customs as universally valid.
We believe that it is natural to help and cooperate with members of our own group and to
be distrustful of and sometimes hostile toward out-group members.

Caveats:
Culture does not necessarily result in the same behaviours in all individual members but
signals the same meaning every time.
Culture describes the attitudes of most people most of the time, never of all the people all
of the time.
There might be similar values in different cultures but priorities between the values
across within cultures might differ.

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CLASS-2

Organizational culture refers to the shared values and beliefs that enable members to
understand their roles in the organization. It also refers to behavioral regularities like
common language and rituals.
Organizational culture also includes common norms such as the amount of work to be
done and the degree of cooperation between management and employees.
Organizational culture is the overall atmosphere of the firm as reflected by the way that
members interact with each other, conduct themselves with customers, and feel about the
way they are treated by higher level management.

Determinants:
The values and visions of the organization’s founder; the founder/leader can impose
his/her vision and choose the fitting individuals for that vision or make those unfitting
ones leave.
The external environment in which the organization operates; the environment such as
general economic conditions, geography, and climate shapes the policies and practices of
organizations and thus culture.
The internal strategies the organization selects to succeed; an organization’s strategies
and policies such as growth in foreign markets, outsourcing, and price competition affect
the direction of organizational culture.
The larger national culture or cultures of the people who make up the workforce of the
organization; national characteristics like status-consciousness, paternalism, and family-
orientation are generally reflected in organizational cultures.

Components:
Visible aspects include physical setting, language, stories, legends, myths, heroes and
heroines, ceremonies, behaviors, and dress
Invisible aspects behind visible aspects include shared values, beliefs, norms,
expectations, and assumptions that bind people and systems together.

Characteristics:
Holistic; organizational culture is systematic and organized. Visible and invisible
elements are related; they are consistent in general.
Historically determined; organizational culture has a history, on which it is established.
The history is accumulated through organizational successes.
Socially constructed; organizational culture is interaction-based. It is constructed through
and within organizational members’ relations not simply written rules and procedures.

Functions:
Boundary; organizational culture defines boundary and creates distinctions between one
organization and another.
Identity; organizational culture gives identity to and creates a sense of belongingness for
organizational members.
Commitment; organizational culture creates commitment in organizational members
towards the achievement of organizational goals.

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Code of conduct; organizational culture provides norms of behavior, what to do and not
to do as an organizational member.

Differences between organizational and national culture:

Effect; organizational culture is much less effective in shaping individual thoughts and
behaviors. It cannot counteract the effect of national culture.
Visibility; organizational culture is more visible because there are many other
organizations an individual is a member of and but there is generally one dominant
national culture. Individuals can make comparisons between different organizational
cultures.
Vulnerability and instability; organizational culture is much more vulnerable because it is
not internalized to the same degree of national culture. It is much later learned and there
are many organizations an individual belongs to and compares. National culture is
everywhere.
Socialization; secondary socialization is the basis of organizational culture and occurs
when already socialized individuals adopt organizational values and norms. National
culture is acquired through primary socialization and is almost impossible to lose.
Organizational culture can always be subject to desocialization.
External support; organizational culture needs more external support to survive due to its
instability. These supports might include more communication, more interaction, and
explicit rules and procedures.

Strong organizational culture:

An organizational culture might be strong or weak. A strong culture shows the qualities
of cohesiveness, easy communication, and high interdependence.
Cohesiveness; it refers to a common way of understanding the organization’s internal
affairs and external relations. Organizational members share the same values, beliefs, and
attitudes.
Easy communication; communication between organizational members is easy and
effective. Members at different layers listen to and address one another’s concerns and
problems. Members share their views and thus easily develop a common basis of
understanding.
High interdependence; this emerges as a result of easy communication and cohesiveness.
Organizational members recognize and value their dependence of one another. They
work towards the common goal of organizational success.

Weak organizational culture:

Incongruous value system; there are several value systems in conflict and there is no
commonly accepted higher culture.
Lack of communication; members rarely communicate and their communication is
confined to their small cliques or groups.
Disunity; members do not feel any dependence on other members and recognize and
work for only individual goals not general organizational goals.

Organizational culture classifications-1:

Process-oriented vs. result-oriented:

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Whether you follow relevant procedures to achieve your goal or achieve your goal by
whatever means
Job-oriented vs. employee-oriented:
Whether you do your job without regard to employees’ well-being or regard employees’
well-being when doing your job
Professional vs. parochial:
Whether you are open-minded and open to diverse views and ready to trust others, or
narrow-minded and comfortable with mainstream views and only ready to trust those you
already know
Open-system vs. closed-system:
Whether you take into account both external and internal environments or you are
obsessed or occupied with internal relations and insiders
Tightly vs. loosely controlled:
Whether you control through formality and punctuality, implying processes and
procedural controls, or through cultural elements, implying diversity and individuality
Pragmatic vs. normative:
Whether you emphasize flexibility or policy/rule

Organizational culture classifications-2:

Family culture:
It is person-based, person oriented and hierarchical. It is a paternalistic organization, in
which the leader behaves like a father to the members of the organization. It is like a
family. Relations are personal and long-term. The leader and members exchange
respect/obedience and protection/guidance. Subjective knowledge is valued more than
objective data. Relations based on social status differences are the focus.
Eiffel tower culture:
It is role-based, task-oriented and hierarchical. It is like a bureaucracy with impersonal
systems and procedures. Division of labor with clear job definitions, job-based hierarchy
and hierarchical control, and resistance to change are the features. Roles based on rational
status differences are the focus.
Guided missile culture:
It is project-based, task-oriented and egalitarian. The work is organized by professional
expertise not hierarchy. Members participate in temporary projects and teams and are
mostly at the same level of hierarchy. They try to accomplish the task. As tasks change,
members might also change. Relations are more rational than social. Change is easier.
Task achievement through rational relations is the focus.
Incubator culture:
It is fulfillment-based, person-oriented and egalitarian. Organizational members’ self-
actualization is the primary goal; this increases individual commitment. The organization
is organized rather informally through the members’ qualifications and commitments.
Formal rules are limited in number and not much needed. Change is easy. Self-
achievement through social relations is the focus.

Organizational culture and cultural diversity:

There may be diversity within the same organization. There may be sub-cultures within
an organizational culture. These sub-cultures may reflect the cultures of top management,

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middle management, lower management, different levels in the non-managerial
workforce, different departments such as marketing and finance, and different
subsidiaries. Such an organizational culture is called pluralistic. The opposite is a
monolithic culture, which is characterized by one overarching theme that does not allow
any sub-culture to emerge.

CLASS-3

Globalization:
Globalization refers increasing and ongoing integration of societies. Globalization is a
system of interdependence between societies although there may be differences in the
degree of interdependence. Globalization is a trend towards the unity of human social
formations.

Economic aspect:
Globalization is an economic phenomenon. The common business trend is to grow
beyond domestic boundaries, internationalization, and export orientation. As a result
national economies are much more interconnected and open to foreign products. Free
flow of goods, services, labor, and capital characterize globalization. International
production, international trade, and international investment are at their peak levels.

Social-cultural aspect:
Globalization refers to a convergence in the social-cultural characteristics of societies.
Societies have begun to resemble one another and more integrated. They are more
connected by highly developed transportation and communication technologies.
Consumption becomes a common activity in all societies, resulting in a consumption
culture. It makes people similar in terms of tastes and becomes a tool to acquire identity.
The American values of individualism, competitiveness, and achievement-orientation
define individuals in different societies. But there is also a demand for difference and
new identities as a response, social class differences still persist, and national identities
are still preserved.

Political aspect:
Globalization refers to a relative loss in the power of nation-states as opposed to
supranational institutions and corporations. There are political-economic organizations
that cut across national boundaries such as the NAFTA and the EU. An individual
residing in a European country can file lawsuit against his/her country at the European
Court of Human Rights, which has binding decisions over national governments.

Characteristics of globalization:
Modernization:
Modernization refers to the disintegration of traditional societal values including personal
relationships and group consciousness. Modern society is based on rationality, written
rules, and individuals rather than family. It is a society of efficiency and effectiveness
based on scientific measures.

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Marketization:
Marketization refers to the diffusion of free market economic model. Mobility of capital,
investment in real economy or financial, trade liberalization, and financial liberalization
are the results of marketization. The withdrawal of governments from economic life and
privatization of government services are another result. Citizens are replaced by
consumers.

Communication:
Communication results in the convergence of time and space. This convergence process
is facilitated by information and transportation technologies. Consequently, a global
community emerges and people all around the world develop an international sensitivity
in global and national problems. Thus, communication creates global responsiveness
about international politics and the destructive results of capitalism. Individuals in
different parts of the world as well as nations are more connected. So, cultures also
communicate through individuals.

Democratization:
Democratization refers to liberal or parliamentary democracy based on the free market
economy and individual initiative. The model assumes that there is a plurality of interests
in society and people with the same interest form groups and organizations to promote
those interests. This is against the classical industrial model, in which there are the
interests of capital and of labor in conflict. The consequence of the new model is loss of
labor power as opposed to capital due to divisions among labors and associated decreases
in real wages. Democratization is not a smooth process everywhere. Societies need a
stable, strong, and educated middle class to sustain democracy.

Multinational corporations:
Multinational corporations are internationally operating business organizations. Their
numbers and power have increased unprecedentedly. They are the backbone of
globalization and main supporters, concerned mainly the effective operation of markets in
different countries where they operate. They promote the development of markets against
traditional relations of exchange through communication technologies. They are also the
economic basis of liberal democracy. Labor is a simple factor of production for
multinational corporations. There are also global terrorist organizations and international
gangs controlling drug and human trafficking; these can be also considered multinational
corporations. Multinationals are also more flexible and alliance-based.

International trade theories:

Mercantilism; it refers to an export oriented economy, in which imports are restricted and
controlled. It is the strategy of the British Empire during the colonial period, which sells
the products produced in the British Isles in the British colonies. The colonies were not
open to the goods of other rival countries.

Absolute advantage; the theory argues that nations should specialize in the production of
what they are most efficient to produce. For example, Turkey can specialize in the

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tourism industry. The problems with this theory are it disregards competitor nations and
the relative value of products in the market.

Comparative advantage; the theory argues that nations should focus on the products they
produce more efficiently than other nations. For example, as opposed to most European
countries, Turkey can focus on agricultural products. So, a relative evaluation of
countries production capacity is proposed. The problem with this theory is it ignores the
question of whether a nation can buy the products other nations produce but it needs by
selling its own products in the market.

Factor proportions trade; the theory points to the most abundant factor for a nation to use,
labor or capital or land. For example, China might prefer producing labor-intensive
products as the labor is abundant. The problems with this theory are it ignores
transportation costs and consumer preferences and two nations might produce the same
product with different factor proportions and the same price.

International investment and product life-cycle; the theory suggests that production
facilities move from more developed to less developed countries as profit margins
decrease. Textile is an example. Its production moved from Europe to East Asia. Europe
now produces fashion, for which profit margins are much higher.

Porter’s competitive advantage of nations; this is an industry level analysis generalized to

nations. The characteristics and power of customers, suppliers, substitutes, potential
entrants, and industry competitors are evaluated to understand the profitability of an
industry or economic sector. The variables then are who the customers for our nation’s
product are and what their characteristics and power are over our nation, who our
suppliers are, whom we compete with, whether there is any substitute for our product
which other nations or our nation produce, and which nation can be a potential entrant.

International investment; the theory states that international investment should be made if
the advantages of location, ownership, and internalization exist. For example, Toyota
invests in Turkey to sell to the European Union from this location, owns a worldwide
brand name that can be accepted by the European consumer, and can internalize the local
knowledge from the local Turkish workforce and market.

Global institutions:
The World Bank makes hard loans to developing countries to build infrastructure.
The International Monetary Fund makes emergency loans to stabilize local currencies
with the IMF conditionality.
The World Trade Organization promotes free trade by negotiating and enforcing
multilateral trade agreements with member nations.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development provides a multinational
forum for discussing economic issues and developing strategies for global economic
development.
The G-8 provides a multinational forum for discussing global economic and political
issues.

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The International Labor Organization provides fair labor standards throughout the world
yet with no legal enforcement authority.

Advantages of globalization:
Productivity and efficiency gains; organizations have to be efficient due to global
competition and access to low-cost or qualified labor, and technological developments.

Growth and employment; productivity increases and international trade lead to economic
growth and an increase in the number of available jobs.

Increase in quality and number of choices; due to global competition, companies offer a
variety of products for every taste and increase their quality.

Decrease in prices; due to intense competition again, product and service prices decrease
in general. This means a relative increase in income for consumers.

Disadvantages of globalization:
Polarization in the world; the burdens and benefits of globalization are not fairly
distributed. There are polarizations between developing and developed countries,
between workers (of both developing and developed) and multinational companies, and
between skilled and unskilled workers. The former groups reap the benefit while the
latter groups bear the cost.

Environmental degradation; companies disregard environmental concerns as much as

possible and move to the countries where environmental regulations are less strict. It is
easier to invest in such countries where people are mainly concerned employment
opportunities.

Undermined national sovereignty; Nation states lose their power as opposed to

supranational institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank, which affect the political
and economic direction of countries. These institutions are not subject to democratic
legitimation and out of national election systems. Also, nation states are less powerful
than multinational corporations, which demand stable exchange rates and cuts in social
and health expenditures and threat to leave when imposed high tax rates.

Neo-colonialism; higher social classes and developed countries benefit more from
globalization, which creates a mechanism to transfer resources and capital from the less
developed to the developed and from the people to the corporations.

Consumption culture; people gain identity through consumption and in consumption

places. They mainly develop social relations through consumption patterns and cultural
products seem to gain their value in consumption. So, social status is achieved through
what items one can buy and consume. There are only markets and individuals that
consume within those markets rather than social groups and societies.

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CLASS-4

Parochialism is a mindset that refers to that there is only one truth. In terms of
management implications, this means managerial practice does not change from culture
to culture.
Ethnocentrism is similar to parochialism. The different is that the existence of other
cultures is recognized but not valued. Again, this means that culture does not make any
effect on managerial practices.

Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck’s model:

Relationships to nature and external environment
Domination; control over of nature, organizational change easier, control and planning
oriented
Subjugation; submission to nature, difficult to accept organizational change, external
influences such as natural or human-made disasters highlighted
Harmony; working together with nature, environmentally oriented, search for common
ground in workplace problems, context-based control

Beliefs about human nature

Good; people inherently good, proper selection tool to find the right person, making them
wok through motivational techniques, empowering employees, self-control
Evil; people inherently bad, proper selection tool to find the right person, making them
work through control techniques, close supervision, monetary motivations
Mixture; people inherently a mixture of good and evil, proper selection and training tools
to find and train new employees, negotiation with people

Relationships among people

Individualist; concern and responsibility for one’s self and immediate family, individual
achievements and evaluations, more competitive, interesting work valued, more
egalitarian
Collateral; concern and responsibility for one’s own group defined in different ways,
group evaluations, more cooperative, relationships within work groups more important
than tasks, work group boundaries important
Hierarchical; concern and responsibility for one’s group arranged in a rigid hierarchy,
matrix organization not acceptable, respect for authority and seniority, tall organizations,
communication on a hierarchical basis

Nature of human activity

Being; living for the moment, work for fun and living, work-employee fit important,
feelings important, short-term planning, spontaneity
Doing; striving for goals, performance measures, work as central life activity,
achievement oriented, practicality
Thinking/controlling; reflecting on events and relationships, neither passive nor active,
wait-and-see-first attitude, detailed control procedures

Space

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Private; private personal spaces, respect for personal ownership, private meetings valued,
strangers kept at a distance, rationality
Public; common public spaces, activities in private considered suspicious, social
proximity and even touching, public meetings valued, sincerity
Mixture; both private and public spaces, private and public activities distinguished

Time orientation
Past; decisions respect to events in the past, customary and traditional approaches, past
examples to resolve issues and plan, continuity emphasized
Present; decisions respect to events in the present, short-term approaches and gains, plans
generally modified
Future; decisions respect to events in the future, long-term approaches and gains,
planning for future and change

Dimensions are not bipolar. All preferences in a dimension can be represented in a

society with a rank order.

Hofstede’s model:
Individualism-collectivism: the extent to which one’s self-identity is defined by the
individual characteristics or by the characteristics of the groups to which the individual
belongs on a permanent basis
Individualist; individual consequences of action, private interactions with close friends or
by own, individual decision making, individual rewards, individual initiative and
achievement, impersonal market relations
Collectivist; group interests more important, individuals as group members, collective
identity, consequences of action for groups, interactions within groups and public,
consensus and consultation-based decision making, loyalty and solidarity valued,
traditional seniority-based relations

Power distance: the extent that power differences are accepted and sanctioned in a society
High power distance; power and control differentials considered normal, obedience
expected, exchange obedience and respect, authoritarian management styles, tall
centralized structures, large supervisory personnel, low qualifications at lower levels
Low power distance; more participative and egalitarian, subordinates are consulted with,
flatter and decentralize structures, small supervisory personnel, high qualifications at
lower levels

Uncertainty avoidance: the extent to which societies focus on ways to reduce uncertainty
and create stability
Low uncertainty avoidance; comfortable with lack of knowledge, dislike for highly
structured organizations and excessive rules, creativity, deviations from norms tolerated,
less structuring of activities, fewer written rules, more risk taking by managers, higher
labor turnover, and more ambitious employees
High uncertainty avoidance; stronger need for certainty, predictability, and clarity,
written rules and strong social norms, formal and highly structured organizations with
clear job descriptions, deviations perceived threatening, dominance of experts, more

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structuring of organizational activities, more written rules, less risk taking by managers,
lower labor turnover, and less ambitious employees

Masculinity-femininity: the extent to which traditional male orientations of ambition and

achievement are emphasized over traditional female orientations of nurturance and
interpersonal harmony
Masculine; success and money as dominant values, earnings, recognition, advancement,
and challenge, individuals as independent decision makers, achievement as recognition
and wealth, high job stress, assumption of disliking work and control over employees
Feminine; quality of life and relationships as dominant values, cooperation and
employment security, balance between seeking promotion and keeping good relations
with colleagues, sympathy for disadvantaged people, individuals as group decision
makers, achievement as social contacts and living environment, low job stress,
assumption of liking work and empowering employees

Trompenaars’ model:
Universalism; everyone treated equally, pre-specified and universally applied laws and
policies, one correct way to treat all people, hiring practices and performance evaluations
based on strict company policies, nepotism unacceptable, rational and professional
business, business goal oriented
Particularism; rules and policies as guidelines, each issue evaluated on its own merits and
circumstances, people treated in their own circumstances and relations, no single correct
way of dealing with everyone, application of law flexible, some deviations from a
business contract likely, personalized and relationship-based business

Individualism; quick decision making, decision by a single experienced professional

member
Communitarianism; decisions based on consent and consultations, slow decision making,
long-lasting business relations

Neutral; not appropriate to express emotions, controlling emotions in judgment, physical

contact and expressive gestures avoided, written information and contract preferred not
enthusiastic but calm
Affective; expressing emotions acceptable, enthusiastic and energetic, warm response

Specific; life largely compartmentalized, individual’s different roles isolated, to-the-point

and efficient, structured meetings, only relevant qualifications and titles considered
Diffuse; unclear boundaries between individual’s roles, work relationships extended to
personal relationships, all titles and connections important, indirect

Achievement; status and rewards according to individual or group accomplishments,

leadership based on performance, objective and technical data, technical advisers,
knowledgeable people
Ascription; status and rewards based largely on seniority or inheritance or social class or
gender, leaders from privileged social categories, assumption of seniority as expertise,
senior people

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Sequential time; time viewed as linear and divisible, schedules important for business and
private lives, generally future oriented, agreements with limitless opportunities, specific
deadlines
Synchronic time; time viewed as circular and indivisible, relationships more important,
event- not deadline-based, generally past or present oriented, historical roots important,
no fixed deadlines

Inner-directed; controlling individual fate, individual responsibility, trying to win at the

expense of the other side
Outer-directed; external factors more determinant in individual fate, adjustment to
external environments, trying to win together

Schwartz’s model
Conservatism; maintenance of existing status relations, solidarity, cohesiveness,
traditional order, personal initiative restrained, obedience as a merit, generally collectivist
Autonomy; intellectual and affective autonomy, individuals’ right to pursue own goals
and have pleasurable experiences, generally individualist

Hierarchy; respect for obligations and role differentiation, deviations sanctioned,

generally high power distance
Egalitarianism; voluntary cooperation, concern for everyone’s welfare, generally low
power distance

Mastery; controlling and changing the world, exploitation of environment, assertiveness,

ambition, success
Harmony; preservation of social and natural world, living in harmony with environment

American firm:
Short-term employment, individual decision making, individual responsibility, rapid
evaluation and promotion, explicit and formalized control, specialized career paths,
segmented concern, possible to bypass hierarchy, problem-solver managers
Japanese firm:
Long-term employment and planning, collective responsibility, slow evaluation and
promotion, implicit and formal control, nonspecialized career paths, holistic concern,
difficult to bypass hierarchy, expert managers

Advantages of workforce diversity:

Business in diverse marketplace; Easier to sell in different markets, speaking the
language of the market, employee-consumer fit
Creativity and increased problem solving; pool of different minds and ideas and thus
creativity, different approaches to problems, culturally-oriented and informed
perspectives
Flexibility and change; more open to new ideas and perspectives, existence of different
backgrounds and less conservative, commonness based only on organization rather than
group

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Disadvantages of workforce diversity:
High convergence situations; not reaching a complete agreement, decreased
organizational commitment, ineffective and inconsistent organizational moves
Communication and integration problems; misunderstandings and misinterpretations due
to cultural differences
Stereotyping; generalizations about subgroups, conflict between subgroups
Gender role conflicts; conservative patriarchical prejudices, conflict with male employees
Culture shock; encounter with a foreign culture in a foreign country, adaptation problems

CLASS-5

At the group level, worldview is identical to culture. At the individual level, worldview
refers to one’s own perspective of the world and again shaped by culture. Worldviews
also affect the way we do business.

Religion is a source of worldviews and cultures.

Religion is a socially shared set of beliefs, ideas, and actions that relate to reality.
Religion is a guide for people’s everyday practices.
Monotheistic religions suggest that there is one supreme god and polytheistic religions
suggest that there may be many gods or no god at all.

Judaism
Principles:
God is one.
No human will ever be divine.
Humans are free.
Humans are the pinnacle of creation.
Jews are chosen people in terms of serving God.
Humans must be obedient to God-given commandments as written in the wholly book
Torah.
Human-beings are held personally responsible for their deeds in this life.

Groups:
Orthodox; closely following the holy book
Reform or liberal; liberal interpretation of the holy book
Conservative; less conservative than orthodox Jews, minor changes in traditional
practices, no fundamental change suggested
Hassidim; most conservative Jews, closely following the holy book

Implications:
Not against private ownership and commercial activities
Traditional business orientation
Restrictions on consumption of certain foods
No work on Sabbath

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Christianity
Principles:
The Trinity of God (the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit)
Jesus Christ as the role model
Salvation by regret

Principles: Ten Commandments

Worship no god but the God
Do not make images of anything in heaven
Do not use the God’s name for evil purposes
Observe the Sabbath and keep it holy
Respect your mother and father
Do not commit murder
Do not commit adultery
Do not steal
Do not accuse anyone falsely
Do not covet another person’s possessions

Groups:
Roman Catholic; traditional form, hierarchical religious order, monks as intermediaries,
Pope in Rome
Eastern Orthodox; hierarchical, Patriarch in Istanbul
Protestant; no intermediaries, not hierarchical, no confession ritual, individual
responsibility
Indigenous Christians; non-western groups, traditional cultural elements

Implications:
Importance of work
Private property
Protestant ethic and hard work
Catholicism and social justice

Islam
Principles: Six Articles
Allah as the only god
Belief in angels
Belief in holy books including the Torah and the Bible, but also believing that Koran is
the last
Belief in other prophets including Moses and Jesus, and Muhammad being the last and
the greatest
Belief in judgment day
Belief that everything good or evil proceeds from the god

Other Principles:
Honoring and respecting parents

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Respecting the rights of others
Being generous but no squanderer
Avoiding killing except for justifiable causes
Not committing adultery
Dealing justly and equitably with others
Being of pure heart and mind
Safeguarding the possessions of orphans
Being humble and unpretentious

Implications:
Fairness, equity, and mutual consent in business
No interest
Not against free enterprise
Focus more on spiritual life
Prohibitions on bribery, alcohol, pork meat, chance games, and obscenity
Civil code regulating all life spheres

Hinduism
Principles:
Transient and illusory world
Incarnations and cycle of birth and rebirth
Karma and nirvana
Hierarchy of gods and goddesses
Vedas as the religious texts
Spiritual and material worlds not separated
No formal religious hierarchy
Strict social hierarchy and cast system

Implications:
Asceticism
Not supportive of entrepreneurship and wealth creation
Immobility between classes
Paradox: current-day India with highly productive workforce and industrial activities

Buddhism
Principles:
Spiritual fulfillment
Existence as suffering due to desire for things and persons
Suppression of desire and end of suffering
No god or gods but a supreme truth

Implications:
No support for free enterprise
Spiritual not material well-being
Suppression of desires

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Confucianism
Principles:
Hierarchical relationships between people for stability in society (ruler-subject, father-
son, older brother-younger brother, husband-wife, older friend-younger friend)
Exchange of respect/loyalty and protection/consideration
Family as the prototype for all social institutions
Group membership before individuality
Harmony and keeping face
Love for humankind
Respect for the past
Respect for the acquisition of knowledge and character building
Virtue not law to run society
Responsibility of government for the governed

Implications:
Fostering and developing long-term relationships
Networking and cultivating relationships with business partners
Personal and reciprocal not just contractual and transactional relationships
Work ethic

Comparison
West:
Mechanistic worldview
Reason over intuition
Science over religion
Universe as something manageable
Dualism of spiritual and material worlds
East:
Non-mechanistic worldview
Intuition over logical thinking
Wisdom
Universe as something unmanageable
No dualism of mind and spirit but unity

CLASS-6

Definitions:
Communication is to share perceptual fields of interacting persons or to interactively
create a common basis of understanding.
Communication is to attribute meaning to behaviors or define behaviors as a message.
Communication is a two-way process of information exchange between individuals.
Communication is a negotiation of meaning to form a reciprocal basis of understanding.
Communication is a two-way process in which the persons involved in the process try to
achieve a shared meaning by exchanging information and attributing meaning to their
behaviors within a context.

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Intentional communication refers to a conscious attempt on the part of the person to
achieve a shared meaning with the other person.
Unintentional communication refers to a communication situation in which the persons
involved might be unaware that they send or receive a message because people always
attach meanings to behaviors as well as utterances.

Basic concepts:
Source; persons or groups or organizations sending the message, older individuals as a
reliable source of information in hierarchical societies
Encoding: the process of assigning verbal and nonverbal symbols by the source to the
message, “I” always written in capital in English as a reflection of individualist culture
Message: a combination of content and treatment and code, covering someone’s coffin
with the national flag
Channel: five senses, believing what we see rather than we hear
Receiver: person or groups or organizations receiving the message, high government
officials given more information
Decoding: the process of attaching meaning to the source’s behaviors, translating “I”
from English to Turkish in lower-case letters as a reflection of collectivist culture
Feedback: the response to the source’s message, high status individuals not responding to
ordinary citizens in hierarchical cultures

Characteristics of communication:
There is no direct mind-to mind contact; culturally mediated physical process
We can only infer; involving interpretation based on cultural backgrounds
Communication is a dynamic process; continuous and active process
We seek to define the world; process of attaching meanings to external phenomena
Communication is interactive; always social and thus cultural process
Communication is inevitable; always assigning meanings to external phenomena
intentionally or unintentionally
Time binding links us together; embodying the elements of past, present, and future
Communication is symbolic; involving symbols always
Communication doesn’t necessarily mean understanding; not necessarily resulting in
agreement
Communication has a consequence; resulting in a response
Communication is self-reflective; leading to self-evaluation of the way a person
communicates
Communication occurs in a context; occurring in a cultural/temporal/spatial context
We are alike and we are different; leading to different interpretations of the same physical
phenomenon

Cross-cultural communication:
It is communication between two individuals from different cultures. Cross-cultural
miscommunication occurs when this communication is unsuccessful and the message is
not sent or received as intended. It is more likely when the difference between the two
individuals’ cultures is greater.

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Obstacles to cross-cultural communication
Mode of thinking and reasoning; people make general assumptions to make sense of the
world, developing different ways to understand social phenomena, which might be in
conflict with one another.
Stereotyping; people develop generalizations about other cultural groups, which might
not apply to every individual in that cultural group.
Language; people speaking different languages obviously do not understand each other
and there might also be translation problems.
Perception; people readily perceive or fail to perceive certain phenomena due to their
cultural backgrounds and cannot easily reach a common understanding.
Religion; religion is a source of mode of thinking and reasoning, making people attend to
certain phenomena and not others and understand the phenomena through different
conflicting assumptions.
Ethnocentrism; people understand the world through their narrowly focused cultural
prejudices, attributing much more value to their cultural backgrounds and disregarding
other cultural grounds.

High context culture:

Communicators use the information contained in either the physical context or
internalized in the person.
Nonverbal cues are important in constructing the meaning.
Deliberation and not speed is the essence of business negotiation.
Relationships are personal and based on trust.
Change is slow and seen as necessary only if it is essential.
There is less personal space and more touching.
These cultures are more collectivist.
The Japanese culture is an example.

Low context culture:

In a low-context culture, most information is contained in explicit codes such as words.
There is less reliance on nonverbal cues except for support or reinforcement.
Speed is the essence of business negotiation.
The relationship is founded on a contractual basis.
The changes in work practices are viewed desirable.
Large personal space is preferred.
Low-context cultures are more individualistic.
The English language and culture is an example.

Nonverbal communication:
It is any intentional or unintentional communication that does not involve any verbal
elements such as spoken or written words, with the goal of achieving a shared meaning
when intentional. Some nonverbal communication is highly embedded in culture as it is
not explicitly formulated like language and thus only understandable by the members of
the same cultural group.

Nonverbal vs. verbal communication:

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Both use a set of symbols based on common cultural understanding and practice.
In both, we attach meanings to behaviors and symbols, for example to crying, laughing,
or speaking.
Many nonverbal actions are governed biologically whereas verbal messages are generally
deliberate.
Nonverbal communication is learned much earlier in childhood.
A nonverbal message can be more emotional in its appeal and impact.
Some nonverbal communication like laughing is more universal.
Verbal messages are sent through a single channel while nonverbal messages come
simultaneously from multiple channels.
Nonverbal communication is ongoing and never-ending.
Absence of message in nonverbal communication is a message.
Nonverbal messages are more confusing due to their contextual embeddedness.

Categories
Time: meanings of schedules or appointments or being late for work, for example
Space: large or small personal offices, for example
Material possessions: government officials’ use of the Mercedes brand, for example
Silence: keeping or breaking silence in social encounters between strangers, for example
Kinesics: putting the feet on the table in the presence of others, for example
Facial expression: showing signs of happiness and sadness, for example
Posture: sitting with legs crossed in the presence of seniors, for example
Gestures: showing the middle finger with the palm inside, for example
Eye contact: looking in the eye when talking, for example
Touch: touching among male friends, for example
Dress: doctors wearing white uniforms, for example
Paralanguage: keeping voice down in the presence of the boss, for example
Smell: women’s putting on perfume, for example

CLASS-7

Theories in general:
Theories organize and summarize knowledge, which is generally fragmented and
meaningless.
Theories clarify complex relationships between variables.
Theories highlight important variables and relationships for management practitioners
and scientific researchers to focus on.
Theories provide a scientific basis to predict the direction of variables and relationships.

Language and intercultural communication:

Language is a culturally embedded system of symbols although it looks like an abstract
system. It reflects specific cultural contexts, in which it is used. Accordingly, linguistic
competence or speaking the language of a culture may not be enough for intercultural
communication. Non-linguistic competence or the knowledge and use of the
characteristics of the culture, especially everyday norms and practices, are also important

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for intercultural communication because of the contextual embeddedness of language. So,
non-linguistic competence includes understanding specific emotional and interpersonal
factors within a culture, engaging in intercultural experiences and practices with the help
of that understanding, and thus reflecting the cultural contexts in the use of the language
of the culture.

Psychological vs. sociological theories:

Psychological theories are interested in the individual adaptation to different cultural
environments.
Sociological theories examine the social-cultural conditions of individuals, looking at
groups and their interactions.

Culture shock theory (psychological):

There are six stages of cultural adaptation for a foreigner. The foreigner experiences ups
and downs as s/he goes through these stages.
Initial contact; new realities as exotic experiences, home-culture framework still used,
new environment not considered as permanent, no reciprocal communicative basis
Initial culture shock; new environment recognized as such, unfamiliar elements revealed,
confusion and misunderstandings, feeling of loss, difference strongly observed and felt,
withdrawal from or minimization of social relations, increasing feeling of paralysis with
communication
Superficial adjustment; temporary feeling of adaptation, communication of basic needs,
interaction with the members of the host or foreign culture, accomplishing some
everyday tasks, recognizing the possibility of common understanding grounds, sense of
loss still
Depression/isolation; intense feeling of loss, cultural differences clearer, feeling of
alienated, no complete accommodation of cultural differences, always foreigner
Reintegration/compensation; coping behaviors developed, negative feelings reduced,
more comfortable with the host environment, learning more about the environment,
applying new learned behaviors
Autonomy; confident in to communicate cross-culturally, perception of normality,
intense interactions with natives, developing commonsense about the culture, confidence
in the use of language, comfortable with being foreigner

General systems theory (psychological):

The lack of understanding of a foreign culture and its language creates a feeling of lack of
control, which result in stress. Stress leads to an adaptive response to create a manageable
environment or perceive the environment as manageable. Adaptation is to learn new
ways or change old ways of behavior and communication in line with the conditions of
the new culture. Adaptation has three dimensions. Cognitive adaptation occurs when the
foreigner possesses and appreciates intercultural identity. Affective adaptation occurs
when the foreigner attains and preserves his/her psychological health. Operational
adaptation occurs when the foreigner becomes an operational member of the host culture
and achieves functional fitness.

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One limitation of the theory is that it does not recognize the responsibility of the host
culture and its members for the adaptation of foreigners. The theory assumes one-way
relations from the foreigner to the host culture.

Uncertainty reduction theory (psychological):

People communicate with foreigners to reduce uncertainty and anxiety about the
behaviors of foreigners who might have different cultural frameworks. People also
communicate and interact to develop trust with foreigners and they trust foreigners as
they develop more knowledge about foreigners through communication and interaction.
As people trust foreigners more through more communication, they also communicate
more with foreigners, more or less knowing the positive results of communication. So,
trust and communication reinforce each other. Ultimately, they together decrease both
uncertainty and anxiety.
The limitation of the theory is that there seems to be no responsibility of natives to
develop intercultural communication with foreigners.

Convergence theory (sociological):

Communication is a dynamic process of convergence of the meaning frameworks of the
communicating parties. As the parties communicate, they better understand the
perspective of the other party and are likely to develop a common ground that bridges
their different perspectives. Complete convergence of perspectives is possible only when
there is unrestricted communication. The theory looks into the conditions of unrestricted
communication between the host and the guest. It looks into the conditions of interacting
individuals not the experiences of a single individual, which facilitate the emergence of a
common understanding in intercultural contexts.

There are four limitations of this theory. First, it ignores cultural preconceptions and
associated possibilities of meaning divergence. Cultural preconceptions make people less
open to communicate and converge toward a middle ground of understanding with people
from other cultures. Second, communication is costly in terms of time and energy. Not all
people are willing to engage in a costly process of communication especially when
possibility of convergence is low. Third, there might be power differentials between the
communicating parties. The powerful is likely to make the powerless accept his/her
perspective rather than try to converge toward a middle ground. Fourth, the theory is not
much concerned about the specific conditions and understandings of the foreigner. The
responsibility of the host, whose understanding seems to be the main reference, is not
much emphasized.

Interpersonal theory (sociological):

The two central concepts of the theory are intimacy (closeness), which facilitates
communication through openness, authenticity, honesty, trust, and empathy, and
performance (competence), which encourages communication because of its positive
consequences.
The three key features of the communication process are context, which is the social-
cultural framework of communication, conduct (behavior), which is the observable
behavior, and content, which is the unobservable behavior.

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It is argued that context, conduct, and content are shaped by the intimacy of the
interpersonal relations and by the performance expectations of the communicating
parties. In other words, intercultural conduct and content is easier to communicate when
their context is based in intimate relations and positive performances.
Communication is also a relationship building or sustaining activity. It refers to an
interaction in which the relations between the parties differ with their degree of intimacy
and with the expectation of positive/negative outcomes. It refers both to a relationship
and to a message. Accordingly, intercultural communication is to build and sustain
relationship between people from different cultures as well as to send/receive their
messages and thus includes all kinds of difficulties of intercultural relationship.

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