Obstacles in intercultural communication Essay

Introduction As industry and trade continues to spread globally and communities intermingle, the difficulty of language barriers becomes more prominent. This barrier includes not only language, but a way of thinking also. Simply learning a language does not infer that the culture of the language learned is comprehended. This can lead to major communication difficulties in all areas: intercultural marriage, working or teaching abroad, relocating to another country, and negotiating any aspect of daily life. Intercultural communication demands much more than simply speaking a language; it demands good listening skills, an open mind and the ability to step outside one’s own culture mentally. This type of learning doesn’t happen with everyone, but with some sense of adventure and the willingness to see beyond one’s own mind set, it is rewarding for both parties. This paper will look at various obstacles to intercultural communication, how they occur and suggested methods for circumventing them. Wherever we are born, our culture defines us. We may be American, but from the South, very different in culture from the West Coast. Every country has its own sections of culture, ethics, morals and dialects. When different cultures come together and attempt to communicate, even in each other’s languages, difficulties arise due to culture more than language itself. Even though nations have varying cultures within them along with a common language, the variance is not enough to cause the difficulties that arise when people of two very different cultures interact. Perceptions, values and beliefs are the root of cultural differences (Anna Jones & Xuan Quach, 2004). First of all, bridging the gap in regard to intercultural communication involves perception. People of different cultures perceive things in different ways, according to the way they were raised. Perceptions in terms of beliefs and values are learned early in life, then they become an integrated part of an individual’s way of thinking; the way the individual conducts his or her life will bring about societal consequences that are wide and varied. According to Jones and Quach, awareness of perception is the beginning of understanding. What works well for one culture may disgust or offend another, and these things may not be obvious. What is â€Å"common sense† in one culture will not be to another. Therefore, knowing another language does not introduce an individual to a culture. Culture is easy to observe, but not to define, since it is based upon perceptions. Culture is basically learned behaviors shared among people who, for the most part, share the same language and live in the same place (Richard Brislin, 2002). Culture is passed on from generation to generation not specifically through overt teaching and learning, but through familiarity and repetitive exposure. Culture is person-made behaviors, collectively. Contributors to culture may be climate, topography, economics and technology (or lack of it), but is people that make the culture around these external factors. An individual from a technologically advanced culture would have some amount of difficulty understanding an individual from a Third World culture, and vice-versa. The individual from the ease of high-tech life will have difficulty understanding the slower and less frenzied ways of a low-tech individual. In this case, we can compare Americans to rural Mexicans. Americans expect services and tasks to be accomplished expediently and efficiently. Rural Mexicans (and even Mexicans in cities) do not have the advantage of equipment and technology to expedite tasks such as landscaping, home repair, even making a driveway. They work with hand tools and the work is slow. They do not set time limits in terms of â€Å"deadlines† as Americans tend to do. Therefore, an American living in Mexico would need to understand that while the job will eventually get done, it might not get done as fast as it would back at home. This is an example of differences in value. Americans tend to value speed and efficiency, and do not tolerate having to wait very well since technology has made nearly everything on-demand. A very good example of potential culture clashes can be illustrated in the following conversation, between an American living in Mexico and a Mexican technician who is to install a satellite dish (A = American and M = Mexican).