CCC Chapter 7 1

Cross Cultural Communication

Chapter 7Life Space

CCC Chapter 7 2

Learning Outcomes Involvement:

Specific Vs Diffuse Cultures Specific-oriented Cultures (segregate task

relationship)

Diffuse-oriented Cultures (involves in close relationships)

CCC Chapter 7 3

Specific Vs Diffuse

How far we get involved? Whether we show emotions in dealing

with other people? We engage others:

Specific areas of life and single level of personality

Diffusely in multiple areas of our lives and at several levels of personality at the same time

CCC Chapter 7 4

Specific Vs Diffuse Cultures

Specific-oriented Cultures: A Manager segregates (isolate) out the task

relationship she or he has with a subordinate and insulates this from other dealings.

Diffuse-oriented Cultures: Every life space and every level of personality

tends to permeate all others. Reputation always leaks to some extent into other

areas of life. The extent is what we measure for specificity ( small) vs. diffuseness ( large)

CCC Chapter 7 5

Kurt Lewin’s Model Kurt Lewin, the German-American Psychologist,

represented the personality as a series of concentric circles with “life spaces” or “personality levels” between them.

The most personal and private spaces are near the center.

Most shared and public spaces are at outer peripheries.

U –Type ( American life spaces) & G – Type ( German Life spaces) are contrasted in Fig.7.1 Lewin’s Circles

CCC Chapter 7 6

Kurt Lewin’s Model U-type (American) life spaces

Much more public space than private, segregated (separated) into many specific sections

Friends enter into the public spaces are not necessarily close or life-time buddies

American personality is so friendly and accessible – being admitted into one public layer is not a very big commitment

G-type (German) life spaces Entry and access to life spaces are guarded by thick line It is hard to enter and you need the other’s permission to enter Public space is relatively small Private spaces are large and diffuse – once a friend is admitted,

this lets the friend into all, or nearly all private spaces. Your Standing and reputation cross over these spaces.

CCC Chapter 7 7

Specific Vs Diffuse Cultures

Germans may be thought by Americans as remote and hard to get to know

Americans may be thought out by Germans as cheerful, garrulous, yet superficial, who let you into a very small corner of your public life and regard you as peripheral.

Borders and barriers between “life spaces” have physical dimensions also.

CCC Chapter 7 8

The Danger Zone Specific - Diffuse

Encounter What U –types sees as impersonal, the G-type sees as

highly personal Pleasure and pain, acceptance and rejection ramify

more widely in the diffuse system When Americans “let in” a German or French and show

their customary openness and friendliness, that person may assume that they have been admitted to diffuse private space.

French / Germans for example, may be offended by criticism-as-a professional which they take to be attack-by-a –close friend.

See Fig.7.2 in this context.

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Specific Vs Diffuse Cultures

Losing Face Specific Cultures with their small area of

privacy clearly separated from public life, have considerable freedom for direct speech. “Do not take it personally” is a frequent observation

In relationship with diffuse people this approach can be insult

CCC Chapter 7 10

National DifferencesExercise 1

A boss asks a subordinate to help him paint his house. The subordinate, who does not feel like doing it, discusses the situation with a colleague.

A. The colleague argues: “You don’t have to paint if you don’t feel like it. He is your boss at work.Outside he has little authority.”

B. The subordinate argues: “Despite the fact that I don’t feel like it, I will paint it. He is my boss and you can’t ignore that outside work either.

Where do you stand?

CCC Chapter 7 11

National DifferencesExercise I

Fig.7.3 shows the proportion of managers that would not paint the house.

Around 80% or higher in the UK, USA, Switzerland and most of Northern Europe would not paint.

In the diffuse societies of China, Nepal the majority would.

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Negotiating the

Specific - Diffuse Cultural divide

In diffuse cultures, everything is connected to everything Diffuse culture partner would like to know many personal

details Specificity and diffuseness are about strategies for getting to

know other people. Figure 7.4 : left diagram shows the typical diffuse strategy :

( from general to specific) “circle around” the stranger, getting to know him diffusely, come down to business specifics later when relationship of trust have been established

On the right, you get “straight to the point”, to the neutral, objective” aspects of business deal, and if the other remain interested, then you”circle around” getting to know them in order to facilitate the deal. ( from specific to general)

CCC Chapter 7 13

Cultural Context Specific and diffuse cultures also known as

Low and high context cultures Context has to do with how much you

have to know before effective communication can occur

How much shared knowledge is taken for granted by those in conversation with each other

How much reference there is to tacit common ground

CCC Chapter 7 14

High and Low context cultures

High context culture Japan and France Strangers must be ‘filled in’

before business can be properly discussed

Tend to be rich and subtle but carry a lot of “baggage”

Never really be comfortable for foreigners who are not fully assimilated

Tend to look at relationships and connections

Low context culture America and Netherlands Each stranger should

share in rule-making Tend to be adaptable

and flexible Tend to look at

objectives, specifics and things

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Effect of specific-diffuse orientation on business

Americans prefer MBO & Pay-for-performance to motivate employees as part of their specific orientation

In MBO – first agreement on objectives ( the specifics) Diffuse cultures approach the issue from the opposite

direction. It is the relationship between A and B that increases or

reduces output, not the other way around. Objectives or specifics may be out of date by the time

evaluation comes around. B may not have performed yet done something more valuable in altered circumstances.

Only strong and lasting relationships can handle unexpected changes of this kind.

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Effect of specific-diffuse orientation on business

Japanese cultures speak of “acceptance time” : the time necessary to discuss proposed changes before they are implemented

Nemawashi concept : binding the roots of shrubs and trees before transplanting them

Fig.7.5 shows “the circling around before coming to the point”

Pay –for-performance concept not popular as it ignores role of superiors / team mates

Diffuse cultures do have lower turnover and employee mobility because of importance of “loyalty”and the multiplicity of human bonds.

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Effect of specific-diffuse orientation on business

Pitfalls of evaluation and assessment Specific cultures easily criticize people without

devastating the whole life space of the target of that criticism

Example : in diffuse culture “stealing” is not easily separable from domestic circumstances and the western habit of separating an “office crime” from a “problem at home”is not accepted.

“Frank discussion” of subordinates in diffuse cultures may be perceived as total rejection / betrayal of mutual confidence

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Effect of specific-diffuse orientation on business :

Exercise -II

Some people think a company is usually responsible for the housing of its employees. Therefore, a company has to assist an employee in finding housing

Other people think the responsibility of housing should be carried by the employee alone. It is so much to the good if company helps.

See Fig.7.6 for findings of the survey.

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The Mix of Emotion and Involvement

Different combinations : level of emotion or affectivity ( High to low or neutral ) with its “reach”or scope ( diffusing several life spaces or

remaining specific) Four Combinations are described by Talcot Parsons. Fig.7.7 shows four different primary response:

Diffusive – Affective (DA) – expected reward is love : a strongly pleasure diffusing many life spaces ( negative evaluation : hate)

Diffuse – Neutral (DN) – expected reward is esteem: less strongly expressed admiration also spread over many life spaces ( negative evaluation : disappointment)

Specific – Affective (SA) – expected award is responsiveness : a strongly expressed pleasure specific to certain occasion or performance ( negative evaluation : rejection)

Specific – Neutral (SN) – expected reward is approval : a job, task, or occasion specific expression of positive, yet neutral approbation. ( negative evaluation : criticism)

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The Mix of Emotion and InvolvementExercise -III

Which of the following four types of people do you prefer to have around you? Review these descriptions carefully, then circle the one that most closely relates to your preferences and the one that represents your second preference

A. People who completely accept you the way you are and feel responsible for your personal problems and welfare ( combines Diffuse & Affective : love)

B. People who do their work, attend to their affairs and leave you free to do the same ( Specific & Neutral : approval)

C. People who try to improve themselves and have definite ideals and aims in life ( Diffuse & Neutral : esteem)

D. People who are friendly, lively and enjoy getting together to talk or socialize ( specific and affective : enjoyment)

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The Mix of Emotion and Involvement

Exercise –III : Findings

Fig. 7.8 shows how a number of nationalities score in this exercise

Typical American approach is quite close to the mean both for emotion and in balance between the specific and the diffuse.

Eastern and Western Germans are very similar in emotional levels, but East Germans are appreciably more specific.

Fig. 7.9 shows regional cultural differences

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Reconciling specific – diffuse cultures

Specific extreme can lead to disruption Diffuse extreme to a lack of perspective Collision between them results in

paralysis Interplay of the two approaches is good:

Recognizing the privacy is necessary Complete separation of private life leads to

alienation and superficiality Business is a business but stable and

deep relationship mean strong affiliations

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Practical tips for doing the business in specific and diffuse

cultures

Table 1 / Pg.100 highlight the differences between specificity and diffuseness

Table 2 / Pg.100 shows tips for doing business in both cultures

Table 3 / Pg.101 shows when managing and being managed in both cultures