IC – LECTURE 2

C U LT U R E A N D C U LT U R A L
DIFFERENCES

C C C U 4 0 3 9 – I N T E R C U LT U R A L C O M M U N I C A T I O N
K C L I N @ T E A C H E R . H K U S PA C E . H K U . H K
 I. Defining Culture for the Study of
Communication
TOPICS IN II. Defining Interpersonal
LECTURE 2 Communication
III. Defining Intercultural
Communication
I. DEFINING
C U LT U R E F O R
T H E S T U DY O F
C O M M U N I C AT I O N
H O W C A N W E D E F I N E C U LT U R E I N
T H E S T U DY O F C O M M U N I C AT I O N ?
ACTIVITY 1 – WHAT CAN
REPRESENT THE
CULTURE OF HONG
KONG?

• Suggest three items that can

represent the culture of Hong
Kong:
1.

2.

3.
MIRROR – THE BOY BAND BRINGING
JOY AND LOCAL PRIDE TO HONG KONG

• https://hongkongfp.com/2021/08/22/mirror-the-boy-band-bringing-joy-and-lo
cal-pride-to-hong-kong/

• Edward T. Hall Cultural Iceberg mode

• Visible – Behavior
• Invisible - Values & Thought Patterns

• Mirror: visible (music, performance, fandom) / invisible (local pride, local

identity)
THE COMPLEXITY OF
CULTURE
• The definitions of culture are numerous. Recently, more than 300 definitions of culture are
listed by John R. Baldwin and his colleagues. The definitions of culture in this session focus
on the study of communication.

• Culture is a learned set of shared interpretations about beliefs,

values, norms, and social practices, which affect the behaviors of
a relatively large group of people. (Lustig & Koester, 2012, p25.)

• E.g. Mirror:
• value (local pride, need of joy in hard time) ---> behaviors
(supporting Mirror, fandom)
ACTIVITY 2 – I HAVE FOUND
A NEW JOB IN HONG
KONG!!!
• Mr. S is French and has been working as a marketing assistant in an American
company based in Paris. He has just terminated his contract in France and has been
looking for new opportunities in Asia. Recently, he has received an offer from a
brand management firm in Hong Kong. Though he is looking forward to his new life
in Hong Kong, he doubts if he can adapt to the local culture.

1. How may Mr. S sense that he comes from a different cultural framework when
he lives in Hong Kong?
2. What are the difficulties he may encounter when he tries to adapt to the
workplace culture in Hong Kong (e.g. working hours, relationship with colleagues
and boss, other usual practices in offices, etc.)?
ACTIVITY 2 – PROFILE OF
MR. S
Name: Mr. S

Age: 32

Nationality: French (originated from

Senegal)
Religion: Muslim

Language Proficiency: French, English

Academic Background: Bachelor in

Business Administration
Work Experience: 5 years in
marketing
Photo of Omar Sy, a French Disclaimer: characters and profile in this exercise
actor are entirely fictional
FRENCH
WORKPLACE CULTURE
• The right to disconnect: French law lets employees switch off after work
• https://youtu.be/pB7N-invN8k
• https://youtu.be/pTvwOTQ_E7M

• Citizens in France in 2017 have the right to disconnect after hours from work. That's
easier said than done when the smartphone is just sitting there on the kitchen
counter. And even if you have the self-discipline to say no, how to resist subtle
pressure from the boss or peers? After all, the new law doesn't impose penalties on
offending companies. Which brings us to a paradox: we want more privacy and a
clearer separation between work and personal life while we also crave yet more
connectivity.
ACTIVITY 2 – RESPONSES

• How may Mr. S sense that he • What are the difficulties he may
comes from a different cultural encounter when he tries to
framework when he lives in adapt to the workplace culture in
Hong Kong? Hong Kong (e.g. working hours,
1.
relationship with colleagues and
boss, other usual practices in
2.
offices, etc.)?
1.
3.
2.

3.
1. CULTURE IS
LEARNED
• Culture is learned from the people you interact
with as you are socialized.
• Humans learn their culture through interactions
with parents, other family members, friends,
teachers, and strangers who are part of the
culture.
• E.g. Child education on decision making; showing
table manners; classroom behaviors; how to be a
good child/student, etc. Watching how adults react
and talk to new babies is an excellent way to see
the actual symbolic transmission of culture
among people. For example, when do you smile?

Language and greetings – how are we socialized

through interactions?
2. CULTURE INVOLVES
LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE
• Nation
- Nation is a political term
referring to a government and a
set of formal and legal
mechanisms that regulate the
political behaviors of its
people.

Japan and Korea – how do you

compare the national cultures of
these two countries?
2. CULTURE INVOLVES
LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE
• Race
- Race refers to certain physical similarities, such as skin color, that are shared by a group of people
and are used to mark or separate them from others.
- Primarily, Race is not a biological term; it is a political and societal term invented to justify
economic and social distinctions.
- Not all people of the same race have the same cultural backgrounds. For example, although a
person from South Korea and an North Korea are both from the same race, they are from distinct
cultures.
- One’s “race” is best understood as a social and legal construction, or a classification system.
E.g., white and non-white; Asian and Africans, etc.
- Race can, however, form the basis for prejudicial communication that can be a major obstacle to
intercultural communication. Categorization of people by race in the US has been the basis of
systematic discrimination and oppression of people of color.
• Becoming Yellow: A Short History of Racial Thinking

• Does Anyone know this book?

2. CULTURE INVOLVES
LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE
The
• Ethnicity Demographics :
- Ethnicity refers to a wide variety of Ethnic Groups in
groups who might share a language, Hong Kong (Hong
historical origins, religion, nation- Kong 2016 By-
state, or cultural system. census)
- The nature of the relationship of a group’s
ethnicity to its culture will vary greatly. It
is possible for members of an ethnic
group to be part of many different
Teochew culture
cultures and/or nations. E.g., Jewish
people share a common ethnic
(Hong Kong
identification even though they belong to Teochew Festival,
widely varying cultures and are citizens of 2015)
many different nations.
2. CULTURE INVOLVES
LARGE GROUPS OF
PEOPLE
• Nation - political
• Race - physical
• Ethnicity - historical origins

• Gu Hongming ( 辜鴻銘 )
2. CULTURE INVOLVES
LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE
• Mandopop Star's Olympics
Tweets Stir Up Trouble
• https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-SJB-
9870
• Mandopop Star Fish Leong's Olympi
cs Tweets Stir Up Trouble in China -
WSJ.pdf
• Fish Leong, Malaysian singer

• Nationality - Malaysian
• Ethnicity - Chinese
3. CULTURE IS A SET OF
SHARED INTERPRETATION
• Cultures exist in the minds of people, not just in external or tangible
objects or behaviors. The meanings of symbols exist in the minds of the
individual communicators; when those symbolic ideas are shared with
others, they form the basis for culture.

• Culture is shared beliefs, values, norms and

social practices that people bring to their
interactions and the unique expectations and
experiences that arise as a result of particular
interpersonal relationships that develop.
3. CULTURE IS A SET OF
SHARED INTERPRETATION
• Beliefs refer to the basic understanding of a group of people
about what the world is like.
- A belief is an idea that people assume to be true about the world.
- Beliefs are a set of learned interpretations that form the basis for
cultural members to decide what is and what is not logical and correct.
- Cultural beliefs are expectations about how the world works.
- Beliefs are sometimes based on the teachings of those regarded as
authorities, such as parents, teachers, elders, etc.
- Peripheral beliefs refer to matters of personal taste.
A rare look inside North Korea's Kim Il Sung University -
BBC News
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFWD9fRtmMk
3. CULTURE IS A SET OF
SHARED INTERPRETATION
• Values refer to what the group of people defines as good or bad, right or
wrong, fair or unfair, just or unjust, beautiful or ugly, clean or dirty, valuable
or worthless, appropriate or inappropriate, and kind or cruel. It is also
about what it regards as important.
- Cultures differ not only in beliefs but also in values.
- Values are the desired characteristics or goals of a culture.
- Values serve as guiding principles in people’s lives.
3. CULTURE IS A SET OF
SHARED INTERPRETATION
• Norms refer to rules for appropriate behaviors, which
provide the expectations people have of one another and of
themselves. Norms are the predictable behavior patterns
that members of a culture typically follow.
- Norms are the socially shared expectations of appropriate behaviors.
- E.g., the greeting behaviors of people within a culture are governed by
norms; good manners in different situations are based on norms.
- Norms basically constitute the “right” way of communication and
performing a role within a culture.
3. CULTURE IS A SET OF
SHARED INTERPRETATION
• Social Practices are the predictable behavior patterns that members of
a culture typically follow.
- Social practices are the outward manifestations of belief, values, and norms. E.g.
gifts are usually opened in the presence of the guest in the States, while the host may thank
many times and avoid opening the gift in front of the guest to show respect in Chinese culture.
- Social practice can be informal. The practice of eating with “good manners” can be
culturally different. For example, finishing all the food on the table can be a respect for the
host in European culture, while finishing all the food on the table can be a loss of face for the
host in Chinese culture.
- Social practice can be formal. Formal social practice can be rituals, ceremonies, and
structured routines typically performed publicly and collectively: saluting the flag, praying in
church, honoring the dead at funerals, getting married, etc.
REMARKS – CULTURE AS A
‘WAY OF LIFE’
• However, as suggested, “Individuals in a culture generally are socialized in
ways consistent with the cultural-level tendencies, but some individuals in
every culture learn different tendencies.”

• Taken together, the shared beliefs, values,

norms, and social practices provide a “way of
life” for the members of a culture.
 HOW DOES THE WORKPLACE
CULTURE IN HONG KONG AFFECT
THE BEHAVIOURS OF MR. S?

Industrious Hong Kong, Hong Kong Connection

(11/3/2016) Local Etiquette, Hong Kong Guide (time
unknown)
4. CULTURE AFFECTS
BEHAVIOURS
• The shared interpretations about beliefs, values, and norms affect the behaviors
of large groups of people.
• The social practices that characterize a culture give people guidelines about what
things mean, what is important, and what should or should not be done.
• Thus, culture establishes predictability in human interactions.
• Cultural differences are evident in the varying ways in which people conduct their everyday
activities, as people “perform” their culture in their behavioral routines.
• Remarks: However, no one is entirely “typical” of the culture to which she or he
belongs; each person differs, in unique ways, from the general cultural tendency
to think and to behave in a particular way. Differences in age, gender, social status,
and many other factors also affect the likelihood that people will enact specific behaviors
16 ETIQUETTE TIPS
WHEN RIDING TRAINS IN JAPAN

• https://matcha-jp.com/en/118
• 6. Let People Get off First
• 7. Don't Rush onto the Train
• 9. Silence Your Phone and Don't Make Phone
Calls

• Above Behaviors reflect what beliefs, values,

norms?
• Are they nature born like this?
II.
INTERPERSONAL
C O M M U N I C AT I O N
W H AT I S I N T E R P E R S O N A L
C O M M U N I C AT I O N ?
INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
• Interpersonal Communication Patterns:
• Interpersonal communication patterns are the face-to-face verbal and nonverbal coding
systems that are developed to convey meanings and intentions.
• These patterns include communication with parents, siblings, peers, teachers, relatives, neighbors,
employers, authority figures, and other social contacts.
• Differences in interpersonal communication patterns both cause and result from
cultural differences.
- Verbal communication systems, or languages, give each culture a common set of categories
and distinctions to organize perceptions and ideas and to give meaning to shared experiences.
- Nonverbal communication systems provide information about the meanings associated with
the use of space, time, touch, and gestures. They help to define the boundaries between
members and nonmembers of a culture.
INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
• Interpersonal Communication Patterns are also important in maintaining the
structure of a culture because they are the means through which a culture
transmits its beliefs and practices from one generation to another.
The entire network of interpersonal relationships provides unrelenting
messages about the preferred ways of thinking, feeling, perceiving,
and acting in relation to problems with which the culture must
cope.
III.
I N T E RC U LT U RA L
C O M M U N I C AT I O N
W H A T I S I N T E R C U LT U R A L
C O M M U N I C AT I O N ?
ACTIVITY 3 – PROFILE OF
MR. S
Name: Mr. S

Age: 32

Nationality: French (originated from

Senegal)
Religion: Muslim

Language Proficiency: French, English

Academic Background: Bachelor in

Business Administration
Work Experience: 5 years in
marketing
Photo of Omar Sy, a French Disclaimer: characters and profile in this exercise
actor are entirely fictional
ACTIVITY 3 – MR. S AND HIS
COLLEAGUES
• 5 colleagues in the office
1. Mrs. C – Office cleaner/48/HK Chinese/Taoist/Cantonese/Primary 6 (China)
2. Miss K – Marketing officer/27/Indonesian/Muslim/Indonesian, Moderate
English/University Graduate (Indonesia)
3. Mrs. G – Boss/45/British/Not religious/Fluent English, Moderate
French/University Graduate (Britain)
4. Mr. F – Marketing Manager/37/Indian/Hindus/Fluent English/University Graduate
(US)
5. Mr. L – Office Assistant/22/HK Chinese/Buddhist/Cantonese, Mandarin and
Moderate English/Secondary 6 (HK)
Name – Post/Age/Nationality/Religion/Language
Proficiency/Academic Qualification
 ACTIVITY 3 – MR. S AND HIS
COLLEAGUES
• How do you evaluate the efforts needed for Mr. S if he wants to successfully
communicate with his colleagues? And why?

Most Least
efforts efforts

• Please discuss in group and write down your

answer on worksheet individually
 CONTINUUM FOR
INTERCULTURAL
COMMUNICATION

Most Least
intercultu intercultu
ral ral
CONTINUUM FOR
INTERCULTURAL
COMMUNICATION
• Thus, we can create an “interculturalness” scale – to make distinctions
among those communication situations that are placed in the middle, with
some closer and some farther from the most intercultural end.
• There are learned differences among groups of people that are associated
with their culture, such as cultural patterns, verbal and nonverbal
codes, relationship rules and roles, and social perceptions. When
such important differences are relatively large, they lead to dissimilar
interpretations about the meanings of the messages that are created, and
they therefore indicate that people are from different cultures.
CONCLUSION –
INTERCULTURAL
COMMUNICATION
• People are from different cultures whenever the degree of difference
between them is sufficiently large and important that it creates dissimilar
interpretations and expectations about what are regarded as competent
communication behaviors.
• Intercultural communication occurs when large and important
cultural differences create dissimilar interpretations and
expectations about how to communicate competently.
• Intercultural communication involves interactions among people
from different cultures. The objective here is to use crosscultural
comparisons to understand intercultural communication
competence.
REMARKS – RELATED TERMS

I N T R A - C U LT U R A L C R O SS - C U LT U R A L
C O M M U N I C AT I O N C O M M UN I C AT I O N

• ‘The least intercultural’ end of the • Cross-cultural communication is

continuum the study of a particular idea or
concept within many cultures for
better cultural understanding. It
involves a comparison of
interactions among people from
the same culture to those from
another culture.
How funerals
Japan, China, Korea – are practised
can you identify some across different
common characteristics cultures?
REFERENCE – LECTURE 2

• Textbook: Chapter 2
CRAZY RICH ASIANS

Movie Trailer
https://youtu.be/ZQ-YX-5bAs0
Rich Lunch Scene
https://youtu.be/ZrsYIthVY-Y

One Way That Crazy Rich Asians Is a Step

Backward
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/ar
chive/2018/08/asian-americas-great-gatsby-m
oment/568213/

Changing stereotypes and a world of

Crazy Rich Asians
https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opini
on/asia/article/2162359/changing-stereotypes-
and-world-crazy-rich-asians