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Introduction Communication is the process of creating and sharing information with one another. Rapid changes in technology, transportation and immigration is making the world into a small intersected community, where understanding how different cultures communicate is extremely important. In order to achieve effective intercultural communication we have to understand how different cultures communicate. Communication styles differ by how power is distributed within an organization. There are essentially two types: hierarchical, and democratic. In a hierarchical structure the most power is held by the highest ranking individual, where as in a democratic structure, power distribution is uniformed among the individuals. Edward T. Hall (1976) originated the classification of high-context versus low-context cultures, based on the amount of information that is implied versus stated directly in a communication message. In high-context cultures, the meanings of the messages are found in the

situation and in the relationships of the communicators or are internalized in the communicator’s beliefs, values, and norms. In low-context cultures, less emphasis is placed on the context. Instead they rely on explicit verbal messages Understanding these differences is essential to accurately decoding the message. Communication specialists estimate that three-fourths of our communication is nonverbal and takes place through our behavior. Nonverbal cues serve as the markers of ones’ identities. The way people dress, the accent pattern, and the nonverbal way of gesturing, all deliver messages to others. A cultures perception of time can alter the message being communicated. In a culture that uses linear time, tasks are sequential. The focus is on the task to be completed within a certain framework. Cultural concepts of time represent strong normative forces affecting the behaviours and cognitions of the communicators. The past decade has brought many advances in technology.

These advances are affecting the way cultures communicate and do business. To examine intercultural communication, four countries from four continents are selected: Canada, Brazil, Germany and Japan. The study of these differences and similarities in communication will help people to work and socialize in the global world. Power: Hierarchical Cultures versus Democratic Cultures Communication is always correlated with culture. Most American businesses have the relatively democratic organizational patterns; they tend to allow a free flow of information. “No matter what their job descriptions, workers in more democratic cultures may consider themselves colleagues with differing levels of responsibility.” (pg 43, Cross-Cultural Communication, Sana Reynolds & Deborah Valentine) North American organizations do not distinguish people by ranks or jurisdiction and respect equality. Information flows freely; communication flows both upward and downward in democratic cultures. Ideas,

suggestions, and complaints are sent to anyone by anybody in companies that allow free information flow. In Brazil, individualism is upheld by hardship in the economy, creating a social hierarchy that does not respect the rules of equality. Brazil is aristocratic in its culture and politics. People of "high rank" maintain an authoritative distance In business decisions are made by the highest- ranking person. This steep hierarchy discourages input from those at lower levels to those at higher levels. Furthermore, information slows down as it moves up the levels of authority eventually reaching the decision maker who is overloaded with information. On the way down, information moves quickly The Far East countries are observed to have a hierarchical organizational structure. “The Japanese prefer a strict hierarchy in their organizations, and that promotion in Japanese government and businesses is usually based on seniority.” (Page 43, Cross-Cultural Communication, Sana

Reynolds & Deborah Valentine, Prentice Hall, 0-13-049784-3) The Confucian thought is closely related to the Far East culture’s preference for a clearly defined hierarchy. People from the Far East culture believe that clarifying who is in charge is a good way to preserve harmony; therefore, organizational situations where there is a defined hierarchy are more comfortable. To those from Confucian cultures, losing facepersonal dignity, can be devastating and involves not only embarrassment but also profound shame. Furthermore, in a collective culture, one’s loss of face brings shame on the entire organization. Thus, knowing the lines of power and authority by maintaining a clear hierarchy helps people keep their face. Confucian beliefs strictly define the duties and responsibilities of relationships that are inherently unequal. These cultures are comfortable with a clear hierarchy in business, government, religion, and family life. The priorities of Germans are authority and

hierarchical differences. Germans are autocrats, who prefer formal communication when conducting business. Autocratic leaders give order in a certain manner, which shows directness and straightforwardness. This is called The Eiffel Tower Culture as orders come from the top to the bottom. Brazil, Japan, and Germany prefer a hierarchical organizational structure because it avoids uncertainty. Power is ensured within the organization However, this hierarchy can cause concealment and misrepresentation of information. In non-hierarchical cultures such as Canada, everyone is equal and information flows without limits. This can cause confusion throughout the organization This democratic structure requires further training of job responsibility to ensure effective communication. Social Framework: Culture is distributed in two major groups: high-context and low-context. Canada is a low-context culture. Canadian managers rely heavily on memoranda, announcements, position papers, and other

formal forms of communication to state their positions on issues. Canadian supervisors may hoard information in an attempt to make them look professional and as a way of persuading their employees to accept decisions and plans. Germany is an example of a typical European country that has a low- context culture. Individualism reflects the philosophical meaning, which is having the sense of achieving one’s goal in order to provide good for the community. Germany observes little social hierarchy in the organization as they focus on their personal achievements. Truth and directness are important aspects in business, therefore criticism and other strong comments are not considered as personal disapproval. They believe that they solve their problem by explicitly speak up their thoughts. As the result of their directness, confrontations among workers result in a better outcome. Collectivistic cultures, such as the Far East, are usually high-context cultures. These cultures emphasize

nonverbal communication and subtleness in communication rather than being frank. High-context cultures are extremely polite, which fits with the indirect, subtle nature of interpersonal communication. Ambiguity and obscurity characterized conversations in a high-context culture. One purpose of this style of communication is to avoid threatening the face of one’s conversation partner, thus bringing shame upon oneself. What is not said may be more important than what is said Collectivism and interdependent self-construal in Japan promote the need for verbal circumspection, and verbal circumspection often promotes face preservation and relational harmony. Brazilians prefer high-context communication, rich in non-verbal cues, that takes place in person. They focus on personal relationships In accordance with high-context communication, "Maybe" or "I will try" is understood as "No" in Brazilian culture. Brazil is a land of paradox, where reality is often not

what it appears to be. There are distinct differences between classes and race. When communicating Brazilians seek emotional connections with others. In high-context communication, the listener or interpreter of the message is expected to read “between the lines,” to accurately infer the implicit intent of the verbal message, and to observe the nonverbal nuances and subtleties that encircle or “wrap” the verbal message. In contrast, low-context cultures read the message itself Conflict is less common in high-context society than low-context, for a number of reasons. First, emphasis is on the group instead of the individual, reducing interpersonal friction. Second, an elaborate set of standards emphasize “obligations” over “rights”, what one owes to others rather than deservers for oneself. Third, the value attached to harmony cultivates skill in the use of ambiguity, circumlocution, euphemism, and silence in blunting incipient disputes. The ability to assimilate

differences, to engineer consensus, is valued above a talent for argument in high-context cultures. Non-verbal Communication Non-verbal communication is important. It includes eye contact, facial expression, and gestures. North Americans use eye contact in one-to-one conversations, indicating interest and respect. Facial expressions and body gestures are used on various occasions. In North America, if a person nods by moving his head up and down, it means “yes”. The same gesture in Kuwait would mean the exact opposite, “no” 1 In German and North American business situations, shaking hands at the beginning and the end of a meeting is important. In Germany, a handshake may be accompanied with a slight bow and a good eye contact. Brazilians are religious, emotional, and mystical people who think of the body as the sender of messages. Understanding non-verbal clues is essential to understanding what is being said. Personal space is not emphasized in Brazil It is common for

people 1 Seung Woo Han (301002412), Gillian Epp (301083305), Eun Hoe Lee (301080043), Marsha Hasjim (301078803) engaged in conversation to stand less than a foot apart and it would be considered rude to take a step backwards. In a Brazilian office people come in and out, and several conversations are carried on at once. People do not take turns speaking One might interrupt conversation or speak simultaneously. This is not considered inappropriate Brazilians also tend to linger in silence for long periods of time, a custom that makes Canadians uncomfortable. The value of talk versus silence in a conversation varies greatly depending on the culture. For instance, in comparison to European Americans, Asians are much more taciturn, or reluctant to talk. An Asian is more likely to use indirect expression to convey an intended meaning. Silence itself may be a very important message For the Japanese, the silence between two utterances in a conversation belongs to the previous speaker,

who indicates how long the silence should continue. The listener should show respect to the previous speaker’s wish for silence, especially if the speaker is older or of higher status than the listener. Electronic Communication Canada’s technology has improved in parallel with U.S The role of electronic communication in Canada has also grown significantly. Canadian organizations use teleconferencing, which allows them to confer simultaneously using telephone or e-mail group communications software. Electronic data interchange is a way for organization to exchange standard business transaction documents using direct computer-to computer networks. Video conferencing is an alternative to travel Brazil is an oral culture. Face-to-face, oral communication is preferred over electronic communication. It is common and expected, that any electronic communication is confirmed with a rendezvous. Electronic communication is very common in Japan. Japan is one of the worlds most connected

information societies. They lead in rankings of: the Internet use, the Internet penetration, broadband penetration, mobile phone ownership, 3G mobile telecoms, WiFi hotspots and WiBro (Mobile WiMax)coverage. The economy from television to advertising to banking to the automobile sector has embraced wireless broadband connectivity offering everything from digital broadcast TV to handhelds and cars, to over half of Japan using payment systems on their mobile phones. Germans are developing new innovation in their world of communication. The German government plans to wiretap all electronic communications such as mobile, emails, and Internet traffic. Such innovation shows how important and valuable electronic communication is to Germany. The most popular type of electronic communications in Germany is email; as it increases productivity and efficiency. Conclusion Canada, Germany, Brazil, and Japan each have a unique communication style. They differ in how they approach power, social

framework, and non-verbal communication. Brazil and Japan are collective countries while Germany and Canada are individual. People in collective cultures work dependent to each other and be more productive when working as a team. On the other hand, people in individual cultures work on separate tasks and make them more effective and efficient when working independently. The role of time differs in each country; Brazil applies flexible time, Japan applies cynical time, and Germany and Canada apply linear time. For Germany and Canada, even though they are both low context countries, they have a different perspective in giving power to people. Comparisons and contrasts of the four countries of the four aspects can be found in the table below. Through an observation, it can be said that relationship and social framework are tightly related to each other. High context cultures have collective values, while low context cultures have individualist values. The four aspects mentioned above

definitely affects on communication. Communication itself is an exchange of information between senders and receivers, and thus, people easily refer it as a simple matter. However, communication is very complex and high-technological context to understand and to use. This complex context becomes more complicated when culture is involved. Different cultures have different ways to communicate, and by understanding how these cultures communicate, effective inter-cultural communication can be achieved