Now days in our world, there are others who are more like us. They have modern civilizations, political parties, industrial complexes and stocks and shares. Their clothes resemble ours. We appear to have similar concepts and values.
As the globalization of business brings executives more frequently together, there is a growing realization that if we examine concepts and values, we can take almost nothing for granted. The word contract translates easily from language to language, but like truth, it has many interpretations.
The language adapted itself to the requirements of its speakers. Thought can be regarded as internalized language. The more educated and literate the individual, the more complex and sophisticated this monologue becomes, and there is no doubt that most of this goes on “in words,” whether expressed aloud or not. Our national or regional culture imposes itself on our behavior rather than the other way round.
Interacting with our compatriots, we generally find that the closer we stick to the rules of our society, the more accepted we become. If people from each culture consider themselves normal, then the corollary is that they consider everybody else abnormal.
We can achieve a good understanding of our foreign counterparts only if we realize that our “cultural spectacles” are coloring our view of them. Our perception of reality may be assisted if we can wear someone else’s shoes for a moment if we can see how he or she views some issue in a way very different from how we see it.
There are over 200 recognized countries or nation-states in the world, and the number of cultures is considerably greater because of strong regional variations. Cross-cultural training followed by international experience goes a long way toward facilitating better relationships and reducing misunderstandings.
The need for a convincing categorization is obvious. It enables us to
✦ predict a culture’s behavior,
✦ clarify why people did what they did,
✦ avoid giving offense,
✦ search for some kind of unity,
✦ standardize policies, and
✦ perceive neatness and Ordnung.
Multi-active cultures are very flexible. Linear-active people, do one thing at a time, concentrate hard on that thing and do it within a scheduled time period.
These people think that in this way they are more efficient and get more done. Multi-active people think they get more done their way. When people from a linear-active culture work together with people from a multi-active culture, irritation results on both sides.
Reactive cultures listen before they leap. Reactive cultures are the world’s best listeners in as much as they concentrate on what the speaker is saying. Even when representatives of a reactive culture begin their reply, they are unlikely to voice any strong opinion immediately.
Reactives are introverted; they distrust a surfeit of words and consequently are adept at nonverbal communication. People belonging to reactive cultures not only tolerate silences well but regard them as a very meaningful, almost refined, part of discourse. Reactive cultures excel in subtle, nonverbal communication, which for the absence of frequent interjections.
The comparison
When members of different cultural categories begin to interact, the differences far outnumber the commonalities.
Reactives fit better with the other two, because they react rather than initiate. The entirely disparate worldviews of linear-active and multi-active people pose a problem of great magnitude in the early years of a new century of international trade and aspiring globalization.
Individuals from certain nationalities sharing characteristics from two categories may find areas of cooperation or common conduct. Interaction among different peoples involves not only methods of communication but also the process of gathering information.
Individuals whose cultural profiles wander away from the axes and who occupy a central location inside the triangle may possess qualities that enable them to be efficient mediators or international team leaders. There is a strong correlation between dialogue-oriented and multi-active people. Multi-active people are knee-deep in information. Most of the successful economies, are in data-oriented cultures.
