CHAPTER THREE - Oxford University Press



CHAPTER 3

What Are the Essential Cultural Value Patterns?

CHAPTER 3 OBJECTIVES AND OUTLINE

Chapter 3 Objectives:

As a result of reading Chapter 3 and participating in related class discussions and activities, you should be able to:

(1) Describe the different functions of cultural values;

(2) Describe the difference between ingroup and outgroup attitudes;

(3) Explain and use examples to illustrate the four key cultural value dimensions;

(4) Identify and use examples to illustrate the three additional cultural value orientations;

(5) Develop a fuller understanding of how cultural values shape human behaviors;

(6) Understand more deeply how individual personality traits and life experience shape personal value systems; and

(7) Describe and apply the mindful O-D-I-S method.

Chapter 3 Outline:

I. Functions of Cultural Values

A. Values: shared ideas about what is right or wrong, fair or unfair, etc. (NOTE: this is a brief description; see textbook for actual definitions.)

B. Identity meaning function: frame of reference to answer fundamental question: Who am I?

C. Explanatory function: implicit understanding of commonly shared values

D. Motivational function: internal drives for rewards or punishment for norm violations

E. Ingroup-outgroup evaluative function: shapes ingroup and outgroup attitudes

1. Attitude: predisposed learned tendency that influences our behavior

2. Ingroups: share interdependent fate and feel emotionally close

3. Outgroups: feel no emotional ties, experience psychological distance and even competition

II. Analyzing Cultural Value Dimensions

A. Discovering Cultural Values

1. Cultural value analysis highlights patterns in cultures

2. Variety of individual differences within a culture

B. Identity: Individualism-Collectivism Value Pattern (most important)

1. Individualism

a. Emphasizes individual identity, rights, and needs over group’s

b. Most northern and western Europe and North America

c. Top individualist values: freedom, honesty, social recognition, etc.

2. Collectivism

a. Emphasizes “we” identity over “I” identity, group rights, in-group needs

b. Asia, Africa, Middle East, Central and South America, Pacific Islands

c. Top collectivist values: harmony, face-saving, respecting parents, etc.

C. Power: Small-Large Power Distance Value Pattern

1. Small power distance cultures: equal power distributions, rights; rewards and punishments based on performance

2. Large power distance cultures: accept unequal power distribution, rights, role relations; rewards and punishments based on age, rank, status, title, etc.

D. Uncertainty: Weak-Strong Uncertainty Avoidance Value Pattern

1. Weak (or low) uncertainty avoidance cultures encourage risk taking and conflict-approaching modes (e.g., the United States)

2. Strong (or high) uncertainty avoidance cultures: clear procedures and conflict avoidance behaviors

E. Sex Roles: Feminine-Masculine Value Pattern

1. Femininity: social gender roles are fluid and can overlap

2. Masculinity: social gender roles are complementary and distinct

a. Men: assertive, tough, task-based accomplishment concerns

b. Women: more modest, tender, quality of life concerns

III. Additional Value Orientation Patterns

A. Meaning: Activity Value Orientation

1. “Doing” solution: achievement-oriented activities

2. “Being” solution: living with emotional vitality, relational connection

3. “Being-in-becoming:” spiritual renewal and connection

B. Destiny: People-Nature Value Orientation

1. Controlling or mastering their environment: control over natural environment

2. Harmony-with-nature or “flowing:” emphasize spiritual transformation or enlightenment over material gain

3. Subjugation-to-nature or “yielding:” nature is beyond control of individuals (includes fatalism: karma)

C. Time: Temporal Value Orientation

1. Future-oriented time sense: emphasizes planning and clear objectives

2. Present-oriented time sense: valuing here-and-now, especially relationships

3. Past-oriented time sense: honor historic and ancestral ties and elders

Iv. Individual Socialization Development

A. Independent versus Interdependent Self-Construal

1. The independent construal of self

a. Views self as distinct, unique; values personal achievement, self- direction, and competition

b. Predominates in individualistic cultures or ethnic groups

2. The interdependent construal of self

a. Emphasizes ingroup connectedness; fitting in, acting in proper manner

b. Predominates in collectivistic cultures or ethnic groups

B. Horizontal versus Vertical Self-Construal

1. Horizontal self-construal: prefers informality, equality, directness

2. Vertical self-construal: prefers formality, respecting roles

C. Internal versus External Locus of Control

1. Internal locus of control: emphasizes free will, personal responsibility

(parallels mastery-over-nature value)

2. External locus of control: emphasizes fate, external forces shape a

person’s life events (parallels subordination-to-nature value)

V. Intercultural Reality Check: Do-Ables

To be a flexible intercultural communication at the values clarification level, practice O-D-I-S:

A. Mindful observation (O), description (D), multiple interpretations (I), suspend ethnocentrism (S)

B. Observe a wide range of people and situations before making generalizations

CHAPTER 3 CHECK-UP

Check out the following self-assessment and cultural literacy questions:

Self-Assessment Quiz: Use this to learn about individualism-collectivism value patterns. Answer the following question. Can you identify the value pattern reflected in each answer?

You have two hours to prepare for an examination for one class and an oral report that you and several fellow students will present in another class. The exam score is your own; the oral report earns a group grade. Both are worth 25 percent of your grade in each class. In the two hours, you can only do one well. Which would you choose?

a. Study hard for the exam—it reflects your individual achievement.

b. Prepare for the group report—don’t let down your team members.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

a. This answer expresses an individualistic value pattern.

To take an assessment of the rest of your value patterns, check out my.blog 3.1 in the text on page 45.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

b. This answer expresses a collectivistic value pattern.

To take an assessment of the rest of your value patterns, check out my.blog 3.1 in the text on page 45.

Table Quiz: Use this table quiz to learn about your cultural or ethnic community’s value tendencies. Complete each sentence by choosing the phrase which best reflects your cultural or ethnic community’s tendencies.

1. The instructors in a college classroom should:

a. actively solicit students’ input.

b. lecture and impart their wisdom.

2. The manager in an organization should:

a. manage by giving firm, clear guidance to employees.

b. manage by actively consulting with employees about their ideas.

The answers to these questions indicate a culture’s power distance value characteristics.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1a. This answer reflects a small power distance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.2 in the text on page 49..

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1b. This answer reflects a large power distance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.2 in the text on page 49.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2a. This answer reflects a large power distance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.2 in the text on page 49.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2b. This answer reflects a small power distance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.2 in the text on page 49.

Table Quiz: Take this quiz to learn about your cultural or ethnic community’s value tendencies. Complete each sentence by choosing the phrase which best reflects your culture’s or ethnic community’s tendencies.

1. In my cultural or ethnic community, conflict is viewed as:

a. positive.

b. negative.

2. At school in my cultural or ethnic community:

a. challenges are welcome.

b. routines are welcome.

The answers to these questions indicate a culture’s uncertainty avoidance characteristics.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1a. This answer reflects a weak uncertainty avoidance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.3 in the text on page 51.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1b. This answer reflects a strong uncertainty avoidance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.3 in the text on page 51.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2a. This answer reflects a weak uncertainty avoidance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.3 in the text on page 51.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2b. This answer reflects a strong uncertainty avoidance value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.3 in the text on page 51.

Table Quiz: How does your cultural community view the roles of males and females? Complete each sentence by choosing the phrase which best reflects your cultural community’s tendencies.

1. In my cultural or ethnic community, those who are expected to take initiative are:

a. both genders.

b. only males.

2. In my cultural or ethnic community, the most critical aspect in school is:

a. social adjustment.

b. academic performance.

The answers to these questions indicate a culture’s “masculinity” or “femininity.”

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1a. This answer reflects a “feminine” cultural value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.4 in the text on page 52.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1b. This answer reflects a “masculine” cultural value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.4 in the text on page 52.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2a. This answer reflects a “feminine” cultural value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.4 in the text on page 52.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2b. This answer reflects a “masculine” cultural value pattern.

To see the rest of the descriptions for these different cultures, check out Table 3.4 in the text on page 52.

Self-Assessment Quiz: Use this quiz to learn about the “being,” “doing,” and “being-in-doing” value orientations. Which of the following options sounds most like your own value preference? Can you identify which one reflects a “being,” a “doing,” and a “being-in-becoming” value orientation?

a. I feel useless if I am not doing something constructive every day.

b. I prefer to enjoy life with my full five senses present in each waking moment.

c. Developing an inner understanding of who I am is more important than any other tangible accomplishment.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

a. This preference reflects a “doing” value orientation.

To quiz yourself on the rest of the personal value orientations such as destiny, time, and space, check out my.blog 3.3 in the text on page 53.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

b. This preference reflects a “being” value orientation.

To quiz yourself on the rest of the personal value orientations such as destiny, time, and space, check out my.blog 3.3 in the text on page 53.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

c. This preference reflects a “being-in-becoming” value orientation.

To quiz yourself on the rest of the personal value orientations such as destiny, time, and space, check out my.blog 3.3 in the text on page 53.

Self-Assessment Quiz: Use this quiz to learn more about independent and interdependent self-construals. Choose whether you tend to agree or disagree with the following statements.

1. I often consult my close friends for advice before acting.

a. Agree

b. Disagree

2. I prefer to be self-reliant rather than depend on others.

a. Agree

b. Disagree

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1a. Agreement on the first statement indicates a tendency toward an interdependent self-construal.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.4 in the text on page 58.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1b. Disagreement on the first statement indicates a tendency away from an interdependent self-construal.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.4 in the text on page 58.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2a. Agreement on the second statement indicates a tendency toward an independent self-construal.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.4 in the text on page 58.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2b. Disagreement on the second statement indicates a tendency away from an independent self-construal.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.4 in the text on page 58.

Self-Assessment Quiz: Take this quiz to learn about vertical and horizontal personality traits. Choose whether you tend to agree or disagree with the following statements. Can you identify which statements reflect a horizontal personality trait and which reflect a vertical personality trait?

1. I think older siblings should take care of their younger siblings.

a. Agree

b. Disagree

2. I respect people who are competent, not their roles or titles.

a. Agree

b. Disagree

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1a. Agreement on the first statement reflects a tendency toward a vertical personality trait.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.5 in the text on page 60.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

1b. Disagreement on the first statement reflects a tendency away from a vertical personality trait.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.5 in the text on page 60.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2a. Agreement on the second statement reflects a tendency toward a horizontal personality trait.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.5 in the text on page 60.

POP-UP INTERPRETATION:

2b. Disagreement on the second statement reflects a tendency away from a horizontal personality trait.

To take the full assessment, check out my.blog 3.5 in the text on page 60.

CHAPTER 3 GLOSSARY-MATCHING QUIZ

Match the following five terms with their respective definitions:

a. Values

b. Uncertainty avoidance

c. Identity meaning function of values

d. Power distance

e. Self-construal

___ 1. The extent to which individuals subscribe to the ideology of equal power distributions and the extent to which members adhere to unequal power distributions.

___ 2. Provides the frame of reference with which to answer the fundamental question: Who am I?

___ 3. The extent to which members of a culture do not mind conflicts or uncertain situations and the extent to which they try to avoid those uncertain situations.

___ 4. Shared ideas about what is right or wrong, what is fair or unfair, what is important or not important.

___ 5. The degree to which people conceive of themselves as separate or connected to others.

POP-UP ANSWER:

1. d

2. c

3. b

4. a

5. e

Match the following five terms with their respective definitions:

a. Attitude

b. Outgroups

c. Harmony-with-nature value orientation

d. Cultures high in uncertainty avoidance

e. Subjugation-to-nature value orientation

___ 1. Belief that nature is a powerful force beyond the control of individuals.

___ 2. Belief that we should all live harmoniously with each another because we are all creatures of the same universe.

___ 3. Groups with whom one feels no emotional ties, and from whom one may experience psychological distance and even feel competitive against.

___ 4. Prefer clear procedures and conflict avoidance.

___ 5. A predisposed tendency that influences thinking patterns.

POP-UP ANSWER:

1. e

2. c

3. b

4. d

5. a

CHAPTER 3 REVIEW QUIZ

Multiple Choice: Select and click the BEST ANSWER from the choices available.

1. This is a common cultural pattern found in most northern and western regions of Europe and in North America.

a. “Being” activity value orientation

b. Collectivism

c. Subjugation-to-nature value orientation

d. Individualism

POP-UP ANSWER:

d. Individualism (p. 47)

2. A flood has hit a small town in England, where Carly lives. She responds to the flood by viewing it as something that is beyond the control of her or her town, and in fact, was predestined. Which destiny value orientation is she endorsing?

a. Controlling the environment

b. Harmony-with-nature

c. Subjugation-to-nature

d. Internal locus of control

POP-UP ANSWER:

c. Subjugation-to-nature (p. 55)

3. Cici is most often concerned with her personal achievements, and is rather competitive with classmates. She would tend to have a(n) _____________ construal of self.

a. internal

b. external

c. independent

d. interdependent

POP-UP ANSWER:

c. independent (p. 59)

4. A culture which confronts a natural disaster, such as floods, by building dams, bridges, and other water-control features, is operating from which people-nature value orientation?

a. Controlling their environment value solution

b. Harmony-with-nature or “flowing” value solution

c. Subjugation-to-nature or “yielding” value solution

d. “Being” value solution

POP-UP ANSWER:

a. Controlling their environment value solution (p. 54)

5. On Carlos’ first day as a study-abroad student, he was surprised to find that his instructor asked for student feedback and that at the end of class, the instructor went to lunch with some of the students. Having paid attention in his intercultural communication class, Carlos understands that the culture in which he is now living is a ____________ culture.

a. future-oriented

b. past-oriented

c. large power distance

d. small power distance

POP-UP ANSWER:

d. small power distance (pp. 48-49)

6. Caitlyn’s father always decides where to go on vacation and Caitlyn is expected to accept the decision without complaint. Caitlyn’s mother does the packing and is concerned with the quality of the hotel. Caitlyn is in a _____________ family situation.

a. “masculine”

b. “feminine”

c. “being-in-becoming”

d. “being”

POP-UP ANSWER:

a. “masculine” (pp. 51-52)

7. Which group or nation is most likely to emphasize individual initiative and achievement and a future value solution?

a. Saudi Arabia

b. Saudi Arabian upper class

c. U.S. middle-class European Americans

d. All Japanese classes

POP-UP ANSWER:

c. U.S. middle-class European Americans (p. 57)

8. Camille and Chika have different reactions to their equally poor performances on the first exam of the semester. Camille believes that it is her responsibility to do better and that she must make extra effort on the next exam. Chika believes that destiny or fate was involved and that sometimes external forces shape one’s life events. Camille has a(n) _____________ locus of control and Chika has a(n) ____________ locus of control.

a. internal; external

b. external; internal

c. vertical; horizontal

d. horizontal; vertical

POP-UP ANSWER:

a. internal; external (p. 60)

9. A culture which answers the question of the relationship between people and the natural by being more fatalistic and acting humbly in the face of cataclysmic external forces, is operating under which people-nature value orientation?

a. Controlling their environment value solution

b. Harmony-with-nature or “flowing” value solution

c. Subjugation-to-nature or “yielding” value solution

d. “Doing” value solution

POP-UP ANSWER:

c. Subjugation-to-nature or “yielding” value solution (p. 55)

10. Cristina is a study-abroad student who moves to the United States to live in a college apartment in California. She notices that her roommates don’t knock before entering her bedroom; they just open the door and walk right in. Rather than decide that U.S. Americans are “rude,” she practices the O-D-I-S method from her intercultural communication class. Which letter represents her efforts to be more open-ended in evaluating her roommates’ behavior and to refrain from her initial ethnocentric evaluation of the behavior as “rude?”

a. O

b. D

c. I

d. S

POP-UP ANSWER:

a. S= Suspend ethnocentric evaluation and perform open-ended evaluation (p. 62)

True/False: In order to identify the best answer, consider whether each statement is true (i.e., accurate) or false (i.e., inaccurate). Click either “a” for “True” or “b” for “False.”

1. The most important value dimension that shapes our sense of self is the individualism-collectivism value dimension.

a. True

b. False

POP-UP ANSWER:

a. True (p. 44)

2. Individuals with an external locus of control tend to emphasize free will, individual motivation, and personal effort and responsibility.

a. True

b. False

POP-UP ANSWER:

b. False (p. 60)

3. People with a vertical self-construal emphasize informal interactions and a direct approach to resolving problems.

a. True

b. False

POP-UP ANSWER:

b. False (p. 59)

4. People operating under a future-oriented time sense are concerned with fixed schedules and short- to medium-term planning.

a. True

b. False

POP-UP ANSWER:

a. True (p. 57)

5. All individuals from Asian countries operate from an interdependent self-construal.

a. True

b. False

POP-UP ANSWER:

b. False (p. 59) Variety exists within the culture; not all individuals from Asian countries have interdependent self-construals.

CHAPTER 3 INTERCULTURAL WEB SURFING

Check out the following Internet sites and other resources that are relevant to this chapter:

Hofstede’s value dimensions provide country specific data, allowing for comparison and contrast value tendencies of different countries:



The video of the 2008 Winter Olympics, when a Japanese snowboarder received a large backlash from his home country after wearing his country’s uniform “inappropriately:”



This CNN article explains the cultural reasons behind the orderly reaction to the earthquake and tsunami in Japan:



Taking It Global: A web page designed to explore cultural diversity, values, and expression:



Read about the GLOBE project (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness), mentioned in Chapter 3:



Films:

Men of Hula (Documentary, Hawaii, 2006) is a stunning look Robert Cazimero and his vision to bring reclaiming the masculine side of the ancient dance.

Dances With Wolves (1990) A U.S. lieutenant in the Civil War is exiled to a remote Sioux territory. He must learn to adapt to those whose ways are different from his.

Book:

Amy Chua (2011). Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. In this controversial book, read Ms. Chua’s values on parenting that caused much discussion during early 2011.

CHAPTER 3 INTERCULTURAL TOUR

Check out the following intercultural scenario:

A CRITICAL INCIDENT: TRANSMITTING

INFORMATION ON TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS*

“Adjustment to Japan has been much easier than I thought it would be,” Karl Ruch told his wife about a year after their move from Germany. Karl had been sent by an automobile company in Frankfurt to see if he could establish production facilities for transmission systems that would be built in Japan and imported into Germany. Having been told that negotiations take a long time in Japan, he was not disappointed that it had taken a year for a major meeting to be set up with his key Japanese counterparts. But the Japanese had studied the proposal and were ready to discuss it this morning, and Karl was excited as he left for work. At the meeting, people discussed matters that were already in the written document that had been circulated beforehand.

Suddenly, it occurred to Karl that there was an aspect of quality-control inspection that he had left out of the proposal. He knew that the Japanese should know of this concern because it was important to the success of the project. Karl asked the senior person at the meeting if he could speak, apologized for not having already introduced the quality-control concern he was about to raise, and then went into his addition to the proposal. His presentation was met with silence, and the meeting was later adjourned without a decision having been made on the whole manufacture-importation program. Because Karl thought that a decision would be made that day, he was puzzled.

What was the reason for Karl’s difficulty?

*Source: Adapted from K. Cushner and R. Brislin (1996). Intercultural Interactions: A Practical Guide, 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

INTERACTIVE PROBES

(Ask yourself and probe your classmates’ reactions)

(NOTE: See “Chapter 3 Class Handouts” for a printable form containing these questions.)

Click the number with the best analysis and write down the reason for your choice.

1. Karl had brought up quality control, an issue about which the Japanese are very proud. The Japanese thought that Karl was questioning their commitment to quality control.

2. Expecting a decision in a year was still unrealistic; Karl should have been more patient.

3. Karl had brought up an issue on which there had not been prior discussion among the people somehow involved in that special issue.

4. Karl had asked the senior person about speaking; in actuality, there was a younger person present who was in charge, and Karl should have deferred to that person.

POP-UP EXPLANATION:

1. Although the Japanese are very proud of their success in the area of quality control, it is not automatic that they would be upset if an issue concerning quality control were raised. If well handled, it would be an opportunity for the Japanese to make a good presentation. Providing a time to discuss quality control might well help the progress of a proposal. The key is the phrase “if well handled.” Please choose again.

POP-UP EXPLANATION:

2. It does take a long time to develop new business ventures and production export-import projects, but the Japanese have slowly become accustomed to working with Germans and have made some concessions to German sensitivity to time. The project involving Karl seemed to be proceeding reasonably well in a realistic time frame (expectations of completion in three months would be the sort of mistake German companies have made in the past). Karl made a mistake at the meeting discussed in the story. Please choose again.

POP-UP EXPLANATION:

3. CONGRATULATIONS! This is the best answer. The big cultural mistake on Karl’s part was in his method of introducing the new issue about quality control. In Japan (and, in general, in Southeast Asia), people do not like surprises at meetings. Most information sharing and introduction of new ideas takes place in one-on-one meetings between the parties involved in the decisions to be made. After all corrections, modifications, and additions are made in these interactions, an addition to a proposal can be put on the agenda of a later meeting at which all the people involved in the project will be present. By that time, everyone in the meeting will have had extensive opportunities to study the addition to the proposal and no one will be embarrassed or “lose face” by an aspect of the proposal that might affect his or her responsibilities but about which he or she is unprepared to comment.

POP-UP EXPLANATION:

4. Even if this were the case, the Japanese would probably have sensed that Karl was being polite in deferring to the senior person. Attempts to be polite, even if they do not exactly meet the norms in a given situation, are often taken as indications of good will. There is a better answer that focuses on a mistake Karl made in style rather than in exact substance of his remarks. Please choose again.

CHAPTER 3 CLASS HANDOUTS

Note: Your instructor may ask you to download, print out, and/or e-mail the following class handouts for this chapter.

THE PARABLE

THE PARABLE EXERCISE: INSTRUCTIONS TO PARTICIPANTS

THE PARABLE EXERCISE: REFLECTIVE ANALYSIS

VALUE ORIENTATION EMPHASES

FOUR-DIMENSIONAL VALUES INVENTORY (DVI)

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS ON DVI

INTERACTIVE PROBES FOR “TRANSMITTING INFORMATION…”

THE PARABLE

ROSEMARY is a young woman about twenty-one years old. For a long time she has been engaged to a young man named HERNANDO, and she is coming from a great distance to meet him for their scheduled wedding. The problem she faces is that between her and her betrothed there lies a river. No ordinary river, mind you, but a deep, wide river infested with hungry crocodiles.

ROSEMARY ponders how she can cross the river. She thinks of a man who has a boat, whose name is SVEN. She approaches SVEN and asks him to take her across the river. SVEN replies, “Yes, I’ll take you across the river if you’ll spend the night with me.”

Shocked at this offer, she turns to another acquaintance, LEE PAI, and tells him her story. LEE PAI responds by saying, “Poor ROSEMARY, I understand your problem, but I don’t see how I can help. It’s really your problem, not mine.”

ROSEMARY, in desperation, decides to return to SVEN, and spends the night with him. In the morning SVEN takes her across the river. She completes her journey and arrives in time.

Her reunion with HERNANDO is warm, but on the evening before they are to be married, ROSEMARY feels compelled to tell HERNANDO how she succeeded in getting across the river. HERNANDO responds by saying, “I can’t believe you would do such a thing. I wouldn’t marry you if you were the last woman on earth.” And he banishes her as a soiled woman.

Finally, at her wit’s end, ROSEMARY turns to our last character, SEIICHI. He listens to her story and says, “What a terrible thing to happen. Rosemary, I don’t love you, but I will marry you.” And that’s all we know of the story.

NAME: _____________________________

“The Parable” Exercise: Instructions to Participants

1. Write down, in rank order, the character whose behavior you MOST APPROVE to LEAST APPROVE, plus a brief sentence explaining your first choice, second choice, and so on.

2. Split into groups of four or five. Each group member should take turns to share his or her first choice, second choice, then third choice, and so on. Probe each other for the reasoning behind the rank-order decision-making process.

3. Discuss and arrive at a group consensus of the rank-order choices. One member of the group should be responsible to record group choices and report back to the entire class.

Individual Rank-Order Choices

MOST APPROVE: 1. ___________________________

2. ___________________________

3. ___________________________

4. ___________________________

LEAST APPROVE: 5. ___________________________

Source: Adapted from William Weeks, Paul Pedersen, & Richard Brislin (1979). A Manual of Structured Experiences for Cultural Learning. LaGrange Park, IL: Intercultural Network.

NAME______________________________

THE PARABLE EXERCISE: REFLECTIVE ANALYSIS

1. On the individual level, who was your top-ranked choice? What values were you defending? Who was your bottom-ranked choice? What values were you rejecting?

2. Where did you learn your cultural/personal values? Identify some influential sources.

3. Did you change your rankings to the group consensus rankings wholeheartedly? Explain your decision or dilemma.

4. Recommend two or three constructive ways to understand your own values and/or other people’s values mindfully.

NAME: _____________________________

VALUE ORENTATION EMPHASES: What value orientation emphases are embedded in the following list of statements or proverbs?

1. The person who has achieved success has lived well, laughed often, and loved much.

Value emphasis:

2. The person who stands alone excites our imagination.

Value emphasis:

3. One finger cannot lift a pebble.

Value emphasis:

4. We will be known forever by the tracks we leave.

Value emphasis:

5. Walk lightly in the spring; Mother Earth is pregnant.

Value emphasis:

6. One arrow can be broken easily, but three arrows—bundled together—cannot be broken lightly.

Value emphasis:

7. Sour, sweet, bitter, and pungent—all must be tasted.

Value emphasis:

8. In youth, we learn; however, it is really in old age that we finally understand.

Value emphasis:

9. If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.

Value emphasis:

10. When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion.

Value emphasis:

NAME: _________________________________

FOUR-DIMENSIONAL VALUES INVENTORY (DVI)

Instructions: With a mark (X), indicate the predominant values of your cultural/ethnic group, workplace, family, and your own personal orientation on the continuum. (If you are not working right now, think of your college or university environment.) For example,

Cultural Value: Individualism Collectivism

I. Identity Dimension - Individualism/Collectivism

Cultural Value: Individualism Collectivism

Workplace Value: Individualism Collectivism

Family Value: Individualism Collectivism

Self Value: Individualism Collectivism

II. Power Distance - Small Power Distance/Large Power Distance

Cultural Value: Small P.D. Large P.D.

Workplace Value: Small P.D. Large P.D.

Family Value: Small P.D. Large P.D.

Self Value: Small P.D. Large P.D.

III. Uncertainty Avoidance - Weak U.A./Strong U.A.

Cultural Value: Weak U.A. Strong U.A.

Workplace Value: Weak U.A. Strong U.A.

Family Value: Weak U.A. Strong U.A.

Self Value: Weak U.A. Strong U.A.

IV. Sex Roles - "Feminine"/Fluid vs. "Masculine"/Distinctive

Cultural Value: Feminine Masculine

Workplace Value: Feminine Masculine

Family Value: Feminine Masculine

Self Value: Feminine Masculine

NAME: ______________________________

Discussion Questions on DVI

Jot down some of your reflections and talk to a “friendly face” right next to you. Compare the differences and similarities between your value rankings and your classmate's value rankings. Have a good conversation—ask some probing questions and practice some attentive listening skills.

1. How are your family value patterns different from or consistent with the larger cultural and/or ethnic value patterns?

2. How are your personal value patterns different from or consistent with the larger cultural and/or ethnic value patterns?

3. Which value dimension has the most influence on your everyday communication behavior?

How so? Give a clear communication example.

4. Who is the "real you" in terms of your value system—your personal self, your workplace self, your family self, and/or your cultural self?

5. Think about a specific region of the world you might be visiting for an extended period of time or doing business with in the future. Identify the specific value dimension differences you might find between your cultural values and the cultural values in the region.

6. If you have to work with other students with diametrically opposite values on a team project, how would you manage the differences in a competent manner? Recommend three ideas you can practice or apply in order to manage possible value clashes.

A CRITICAL INCIDENT:

TRANSMITTING INFORMATION ON TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS

“Adjustment to Japan has been much easier than I thought it would be,” Karl Ruch told his wife about a year after their move from Germany. Karl had been sent by an automobile company in Frankfurt to see if he could establish production facilities for transmission systems that would be built in Japan and imported into Germany. Having been told that negotiations take a long time in Japan, he was not disappointed that it had taken a year for a major meeting to be set up with his key Japanese counterparts. But the Japanese had studied the proposal and were ready to discuss it this morning, and Karl was excited as he left for work. At the meeting, people discussed matters that were already in the written document that had been circulated beforehand.

Suddenly, it occurred to Karl that there was an aspect of quality control inspection that he had left out of the proposal. He knew that the Japanese should know of this concern because it was important to the success of the project. Karl asked the senior person at the meeting if he could speak, apologized for not having already introduced the quality control concern he was about to raise, and then went into his addition to the proposal. His presentation was met with silence, and the meeting was later adjourned without a decision having been made on the whole manufacture-importation program. Because Karl thought that a decision would be made that day, he was puzzled.

What was the reason for Karl's difficulty?

Source: Adapted from: Kenneth Cushner & Richard Brislin (1996). Intercultural Interactions: A Practical Guide, 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

NAME:____________________________________

INTERACTIVE PROBES FOR “TRANSMITTING INFORMATION…”

(Ask yourself and probe your classmates’ reactions)

Click the number with the best analysis and write down the reason for your choice.

1. Karl had brought up quality control, an issue about which the Japanese are very proud. The Japanese thought that Karl was questioning their commitment to quality control.

2. Expecting a decision in a year was still unrealistic; Karl should have been more patient.

3. Karl had brought up an issue on which there had not been prior discussion among the people somehow involved in that special issue.

4. Karl had asked the senior person about speaking; in actuality, there was a younger person present who was in charge to whom Karl should have deferred.

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