Culture Clash
Culture Clash
Disagreements can threaten
feelings of self worth'People have been working on marketing plans for about three months, but we'd like to hear your fresh perspectives," was the invitation issued by Dan Kagawa to Krishna Joshi.
Dan, born and raised in Hilo, had recently welcomed Krishna to the marketing division of a digital technology company in Honolulu. Dan knew only a few facts about Krishna's background. He was from New Delhi, India, and was from a prominent and well-respected family. He had attended the prestigious Allahabad University and wanted to develop his entrepreneurial skills by working for a start-up company in the United States.
Dan had asked Krishna to participate in a staff meeting where the marketing of cellular phones was to be discussed. Krishna shared his view that 30-second spots on television would be most effective. Kathleen Jacobs disagreed in a direct but pleasant tone of voice. "There are real limitations to a marketing campaign based on television. Cost effectiveness can be a big problem. I feel that we should develop radio spots and place them on stations that will attract drive-time commuters." Other ideas were shared and the meeting was adjourned without a consensus concerning a marketing strategy.
About two days later, Krishna came to Dan's office with a set of complaints. "I can't sleep. I can't eat. I can't face my coworkers in the morning. My entire sense of myself has been attacked." Dan could not figure out why Krishna felt the way he did. Dan reviewed what he knew about Krishna's work and interactions with others, but could not identify a reason for his complaints.
There are several possibilities for Krishna's reactions. In India, he may not have learned to separate disagreements on issues from personal feelings about the disagreements. In many parts of the world, there is a great deal of overlap between "my opinions" and "my feelings about my self-worth." Forthright disagreements, then, can be interpreted as personal attacks. Another possibility is that Krishna is not accustomed to vigorous discussions with women. He may have known women in high school and college, but he may have rarely observed discussions where women argued forcefully about their positions on various issues. A third possibility is that Krishna is more thin-skinned than other professionals from India. If this is the case, then he would have few opportunities to develop a thick skin given his socialization into a prominent Indian family.
The skill of keeping disagreements separate from personal feelings is not easy to develop anywhere in the world. In some cultures, however, people become exposed to this skill as part of school activities such as debate clubs and teachers assignments to bring in alternative viewpoints for discussions of various social issues.
The purpose of this column is to increase understanding of human behavior as it has an impact on the workplace. Special attention will be given to miscommunications caused by cultural differences. Each column will start with a short example of such confusion. Possible explanations will be offered to encourage thought about these issues.
Richard Brislin is a professor in the College of Business Administration,
University of Hawaii. He can be reached through the
College Relations Office: cro@cba.hawaii.edu