Introduction
Interacting effectively with others in the workplace requires a clear understanding of expectations. Such expectations can be culturally based. In addition, learning to communicate in another language involves more than learning grammar rules and vocabulary. It’s true that learning these are important, but it is also necessary to learn what kind of language to select when, and that involves learning about culture.
Examples
Here are some examples to consider:
- A supervisor knows how to say, “Do this now!” in Spanish, and has a lot of Spanish speaking employees. Is this going to be an effective request? Will the employees consider it rude and feel mistreated even if she doesn’t intend to be impolite?
- An English Language Learning (ELL) employee speaks English very well and is extremely hard-working and efficient, and then gets promoted to supervisor. In his native culture, employees are almost never praised by their supervisors. What will happen if he doesn’t find out that employees in the U.S. expect to receive positive feedback frequently, even at times for completing their routine job tasks?
- A supervisor wants to award an outstanding ELL employee who she knows led a work-group to complete a task on time, despite many obstacles. The employee speaks English very well, and comes from a culture that is very concerned with cooperation, maintaining group harmony, and not promoting individual achievement. What will happen if the supervisor decides to recognize the employee at the next meeting of the entire office?
- An English Language Learning employee has a serious problem at work. In her culture, conflicts are never discussed and little emotion is ever shown in the workplace. Her supervisor has told all of the employees in the department that if they have a problem, they should come and talk about it, and they can find a solution. What will happen if the problem doesn’t resolve itself, and if the supervisor assumes no one coming to the office to talk means no problems?
In all of these cases, the supervisors and employees can understand the same language, but the cultural differences in how requests are worded, what should be discussed, and when and how compliments are given can cause problems.
How Staff Language and Culture Services Can Help
Staff Language and Culture Services can provide consultations about integrating diverse cultures in the work place, and about culture and how it affects communication styles and language choice. This can be done either one-on-one, in small groups, or with larger meetings. Often, this kind of cultural training is part of workplace language classes, but it can be important even for those who do not need pronunciation, grammar, or other language training. Please contact Staff Language and Culture Services (319-335-5822) or jane-gressang@uiowa.edu if you would like more information.
Cultural Handouts Currently Available
- East Asian Culture in the Workplace: China, Japan, Korea, & Taiwan (pdf)
- Cultural Diversity Issues in Healthcare (pdf)
- Talking to Speakers of Other Languages (pdf)
- U.S. Culture in the Workplace (pdf)
- List of Websites and Other Cultural Resources (pdf)
- Staff Language and Culture Services Language Matching Game (pdf)
- Staff Language and Culture Services Language Game (pdf)
- Intercultural Conflict Style, Mitchell Hammar's Model (pdf)
Photo courtesy of © British Council Uzbekistan
