You know, various comments of how things are going to be worse off, when will I come back from that little adventure of mine, why don't I visit more often, why can't I be there for that family occasion and clearly those are no longer important since moving abroad. According to this theory, a high context (HC) culture, such as Japan, is characterized by nonverbal communication and meanings shared implicitly by speaker/listener that are highly dependent on the context. It consists of four capabilities - Drive, Knowledge, Strategy and Action, and they can be used in a variety of diverse situations! In high-context communication, a message cannot be understood without a great deal of background information. Other national heroes include: John Paul II, Lech Walesa, Nicolaus Copernicus and Frederic Chopin Poland is bordered by 7 countries and the Baltic Sea. When it comes to external business communication however, my experience is that the British are closer to the low-context end of the scale. IOR collects cookies to improve your experience on our website. When it came to trait affection given, the United States participants reported giving more affection than any of the three other countries. Privacy Policy. Speedway is extremely popular in Poland and the Polish Extraleague attracts the greatest number of spectators among all sports played in the country. Wojewdztwo pomorskie - wojewdztwo znajdujce si w pnocnej czci kraju. After the country lost its sovereignty in the 19th century, Romantic literature flourished in the country. In 1988, intercultural communication research Stella Ting-Toomey developed face-negotiation theory to help explain the importance of face within interpersonal interactions.37 The basic idea behind face-negotiation theory is that face-saving, conflict, and culture are all intertwined. Can be very slow. What Is The Difference Between Catholic And Christian? Yes. Most marriages were arranged and divorces were rare and looked down upon. The Renaissance period also witnessed the production of great literary works by the Polish authors and poets. Relationship Focused The earliest culture of Poland traces its origin to the culture of the Early Slavs who settled in the country. Moreover, in a collectivistic culture, there is a belief that you should do what benefits the group. 3. Messages may seem direct because Poles believe people should be free to express opinions. Striving for everyone to have equal rights is an important theme. This may take several group and one-on-one meetings. The peasants and workers constitute the majority of the population. Modern Polish art was associated with heavy experimentation and was born with the Moda Polska movement. We also mentioned that nonverbal communication isnt exactly universal. For understanding culture, Hofstede acknowledges that this distinction ultimately has a lot to do with work goals.28 On the masculine end of the spectrum, individuals tend to be focused on items like earnings, recognition, advancement, and challenge. This post is a part of the series where Id like to share some of my cross-cultural experiences and stories. A high context culture may look very different to a person who is familiar with a low context communication style. The same is true of thrift. Geerts taxonomy was originally based on data collected by IBM, and he found that cultures could be differentiated by power distance, individualism/collectivism, masculinity vs. femininity, uncertainty avoidance, long-term vs. short-term orientation, and indulgence vs. restraint. The Poles have always welcomed artists from abroad and adopted cultural trends of other countries to enrich their own lively cultural scene. Having local representation can contribute to trust and sometimes lead to less strenuous negotiations. High-context cultures: Much of the society's communication takes place through . But respect for hierarchy of seniority and position is practiced. Particularism Also, my personal preferences come into play, which are closer to the low-context part of the scale. The terms low-context culture (LCC) and high-context culture (HCC) were created by Hall to describe how communication styles differ across cultures. If something was not clear, the team was asking clarifying questions easily. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. DM me the word 'CULTURE' and I'll come back with the details of how to get started. Notice that the U.S. does not make it into the top five or the bottom five. Wincenty Kadubek, Gallus Anonymus, and Jan Dugosz were some of the famous Middle Age Polish authors. Still, they illustrate the importance of knowing and understanding gestures in differing cultures because we do not all interpret nonverbal behavior the same way. They come from people caring for us and the relationships we have together. Some gestures can mean wildly different things in different parts of the world. In my eyes however thats nothing in comparison to what the Polish are capable of. Polish literature developed and evolved since the arrival of Christianity in Poland. As a manager, take time to articulate specific tasks and check with employees to demonstrate the importance of the employee and the project. The Polish also love playing volleyball and the country has a history of participation in several international competitions of this game. In these cultures, there tends to be high respect for the past and the various traditions that have made that culture great. And yet they hurt. Messages are communicated in many ways. High-context cultures are more likely to be intuitive, contemplative, and concerned with the collective. Need for Certainty Geography Communication in Polish society is ' low context ', meaning that they usually speak frankly and can be very direct when it comes to saying 'no'. The top five most masculine countries are Slovakia, Japan, Hungary, Austria, and Venezuela (the U.S. is number 19 out of 76); whereas, feminine countries are represented by Sweden, Norway, Latvia, Netherlands, and Denmark. In such a culture, conformism, the. "In high-context culture, people tend to personalize their disagreement with others. However, the concepts of what is low, middle, and upper can have very large differences. Asian, African, Arab, central European and Latin American cultures are generally considered to be high-context cultures. Uncertainty avoidance then involves the extent to which cultures as a whole are fearful of ambiguous and unknown situations. High-context cultures: Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, . When it came to trait affection given, the United . Documents should all be translated into Polish even if negotiations are in English. Communication within a family or close-knit group is high context in almost any part of the world. Formula One Racing was first introduced to Poland by driver Robert Kubica. The United States is number one on individualism, according to Hofstedes data.27 Americans are considered individualistic. When it comes down to it, despite the issues we have in our country, the power disparity is not nearly as significant as it is in many other parts of our world. High-context cultures will use communication that focuses on underlying context, meaning, and tone in the message, and not just the words themselves. Long-term orientation focuses on the future and not the present or the past. Poland boasts 17 Nobel prize winners, including four Peace Prizes and five in Literature. Children are taught to be polite and the Polish society stresses a lot on polite behavior. US is the most low-context culture followed by Australia, Canada, Netherlands, Germany, UK. Well, typical. Marriage plays an important role in the Polish society. During this time, large-scale migration of the rural population to Polish cities was observed. The world's cultural diversity naturally leads to many types of communication differences from one region to the next. In this section, were going to examine three important luminaries that have helped shape our understanding of culture and intercultural communication: Edward T. Hall, Geert Hofsteded, and Stella Ting-Toomey. Today, many companies have goal-setting, 360 feedback, and training programs. The beaches and coastal waters of the country offer aquatic sports and beach activities like canoeing, kayaking, sports-fishing, etc. It is therefore of a higher context than the British one. Attendees should wait to be told where to sit. Companies who decide to hire locally should be prepared to have translators present during interviews. Customers with long standing are given priority over new customers. Anxiety about the future based on: a history of beingtaken over by neighboring countries; and the legacy ofbeing under communist rule from 1945-1989. Its always great to get another perspective on cultural differences! Differentiate between Edward T. Halls low-context and highcontext cultures. While working in multicultural teams therefore important to state the fact that there are currently various cultures involved in the project. yes it is a high context culture! In any major area of academic study, there are luminaries that one should understand. Bg si rodzi, Bogurodzica are some of the oldest musical compositions originating in Poland. A high context culture orientation is one in which information is shared consistently by all members of the same group. However, because there is still a great deal of bureaucracy, deadlines are often delayed. The other countries did not differ from each other with regard to trait affection given. 6: Cultural and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication, Book: Interpersonal Communication - A Mindful Approach to Relationships (Wrench et al. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. As the cities in Poland grew during the Middle Ages, the food markets of the country flourished and culinary exchange of ideas also grew. Does your co-culture differ from the dominant culture? If you are from a high context culture and working with someone from a low context culture, focus on the content of the message without looking for hidden meaning. Try to make initial introductions through a local representative rather than on your own. The national dances of the country are Oberek, Mazurek, Krakowiak, and Kjawiak. I have to admit, I can't remember exactly the moment I told my close ones about the move abroad, it all happened so quickly in my case Why do you think context is such an important cultural characteristic? We had tables for each region or country and coordinating the event preparation and lists of invitees with our recruiting colleagues from the participating offices. The cultural variability dimensions, in conjunction with individual, relational, and situational factors influence the use of particular facework behaviors in particular cultural scenes. Exchange of business cards is important. Its a real life example from my first job in London where I was a campus recruiter and was organising an international event for students studying in the UK but wanting to work for our office in other parts of the world. Intercultural facework competence refers to the optimal integration of knowledge, mindfulness, and communication skills in managing vulnerable identity-based conflict situations appropriately, effectively, and adaptively. Although most people in the country wear modern Western outfits in their daily lives, the traditional attire is worn during cultural festivals, weddings, religious events, harvest celebrations, and other special occasions. I can feel the differences of course, but its nothing extremely surprising rather something you need to get used to. Business is still largely based on relationships. Being an American and moving from a lower context culture to a higher context culture, you will experience different emotions and challenges than moving from higher context culture to the lower one. Affectionate communication is conceptualized as a persons use of intentional and overt communicative behaviors to convey feelings of closeness, care, and fondness in the form of verbal statements, nonverbal behaviors, and social support.35. In HCC, on the other hand, intention or meaning can best be conveyed through implicit contexts, including gestures, social customs, silence, nuance, or tone of voice.20 Table 6.3.1 further explores the differences between low-context and high-context cultures. The traditional clothing of the Polish people varies greatly with their location in the country. Like China, Brazil is a high-context culture. Most often, in cultures which are closer to the Direct side of the spectrum, you can expect that what is being said has the most value. The Polish culture has greatly evolved over the years having been influenced by the geographic location of the country at the confluence of European regions with their distinct cultures. Is Singapore a high context culture or low context culture? Pickles and sauerkraut are popular side dishes and dessert options will often include ice cream, cheesecake, apple pie and "makowiec", a poppy-seed cake.