Communication and Cultural Variations

Communication and Cultural Variations

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Scholars have identified seven major communication variations1 across cultures: high and low context, collectivist and individualist orientations, comfort with uncertainty, masculine and feminine orientations, approaches to power distance, time orientation, and value of emotional expression (Hall, 1976; Hofstede, 1984, 2001; Matsumoto, 1989).

These seven variations may seem like opposites, and you may think that your culture must be one or the other. However, these variations play out along a spectrum: your culture may be masculine in some ways and feminine in others. Also, within any culture, there is great variance among different groups in terms of where they fall on the spectrum. Finally, there are always some people who reject the thinking and behaviors associated with their dominant culture. With these caveats in mind, let’s consider each variation more closely.