Lesson 2: Communication

and Globalization
The world has shrunk into a global village, but
have we become more of ‘neighbors’ or more of
strangers to each other?
For our part, we Filipinos have increased our awareness
and acceptance of the notion that we belong to a
diverse, global community. This is not confined to
communication with people from other countries, but is
inclusive of communication within our own societies,
even with the minorities and the indigenous peoples. It
is therefore imperative that WE learn to communicate
effectively with people regardless of age, gender, race,
ability, religion, sexual orientation, income, marital
status, or ethnicity.
Communication in the modern world must be
anchored on the concept of diversity, since
effective communication and the ability to
understand cultural differences are skills that
have become requisites not only for a meaningful
social life but also for a successful professional
career.
Even professionals from the countries that are
traditionally known for sticking to their
native tongue (e.g. Japan, Korea, Vietnam)
have started to learn English, as the
internationally-recognized lingua franca, with
the concept that learning English does not
make them less Japanese, Koreans, or Viets.
In addition, digital technology has erased
territorial boundaries among countries and
among people with varying cultures. The
notion of being a ‘stranger’ has been
revolutionized as the people whom we used
to treat as strangers are now our co-workers,
classmates or friends – albeit some only in
social media.
Hence, there is a need to develop graduates and
professionals who are multiculturalists – those who are
engaged with and respectful of people with different
cultures. These are not necessarily people from other
countries all the time, since a country may have varying
sub-cultures among its general society. In the
Philippines, for example, there is no argument that
people from Southern Tagalog have a different culture
from the Bicolanos, and those from Zamboanga have
different norms and beliefs from the Ilocanos.
 Simply write True or False after each statement.
1. I enjoy communicating with persons who are like me in terms of interests and
with the same socio-economic status, as much as I enjoy communicating those
who are not ‘like’ me.
2. I am equally sensitive to the concerns of all groups of society, and I genuinely
care to the plight and issues surrounding them.
3. I can tell when persons with different cultures do not understand me or are
confused by my actions.
4. I am not afraid of interacting with members of minority groups nor with
members of a dominant culture.
5. Persons from other cultures who do not actively participate in a conversation,
debate or any form of discussion act that way probably because of their culture’s
rules.
Simply write True or False after each statement.

6. Persons from other cultures have the right to be angry at members

of my own culture.
7. How I handle conflict or disagreements with persons from other
cultures depends on the situation and on the culture they are from.
8. My culture is not superior to other cultures.
9. I am knowledgeable of how to behave when communicating or
interacting with people having different cultures.
10. I respect the communication rules of cultures other than my own.

Discuss your answers with your professor or your classmates.

The greater the number of statements that are honestly
true to you, the more prepared you are to welcome the
opportunity of communicating and interacting with
people from different cultures. This is a very important
aspect in one’s personal life or professional careers,
since avoiding intercultural communication is virtually
inevitable in any organization.
This is especially true in business organizations,
when products can go global and the manner by
which any product is communicated to the
global market can make or break the brand.
Here are a few examples of business
miscommunication in a global setting:
•In the past, Gerber dealt with issues in some cultures
where women have low literacy rates such as Africa and
the Middle East. The women in these cultures generally
use pictures to tell them what food they are buying.
When Gerber started selling their product in these
countries, the women saw the picture of the baby and
believed that there was a baby or part of one baby in the
jar.
Here are a few examples of business
miscommunication in a global setting:

Irish Mist is a brown whiskey

produced in Dublin, Ireland. In
Germany, however, “Mist” literally
translates to “crap”.
Here are a few examples of business
miscommunication in a global setting:
•Joni (read as “Yoni”) is a brand of skin
product. However, Yoni means ‘uterus’ or
‘vagina’ in Sanskrit, and is an Indian
representation of female genitalia, especially
pertaining to the Hindu goddess Shakti.
Undoubtedly, globalization has affected the way people and
companies communicate with each other. In some cases,
cultural differences have accentuated cultural insensitivity,
which is most felt in the business world. Since everyone is a
consumer of particular business products, it is important to
know the issues, etiquette, protocol, communication styles and
negotiation approaches of people from different cultures using
the business experience as example. Here are some instances
when lack of cultural or linguistic sensitivity in global
communication severely affected companies or products.
Here are some instances when lack of
cultural or linguistic sensitivity in global
communication severely affected companies
or products:

• McDonald’s spent thousands on a new TV ad to

target the Chinese consumers. This featured a
Chinese man kneeling before a McDonald’s
vendor and begging him to accept his expired
discount coupon. The ad caused uproar over
the fact that begging is considered a shameful
act in Chinese culture.
Here are some instances when lack of
cultural or linguistic sensitivity in global
communication severely affected
companies or products:

• Similarly, McDonald’s also unintentionally

offended thousands of Muslims when it
printed an excerpt from the Koran on its
throwaway (take-out) hamburger bags.
Muslims saw this as sacrilegious.
Here are some instances when lack of
cultural or linguistic sensitivity in global
communication severely affected
companies or products:

• Some staff at the African port of

Stevadores saw the supposedly
internationally-recognized symbol
for “fragile” (i.e. broken wine
glass). Since in their culture, they
treat the pictures printed on
packages to be representation of
what’s inside, they thought it was
a box of broken glasses and threw
all the boxes into the sea.
Here are some instances when lack of cultural or linguistic sensitivity in global
communication severely affected companies or products:

• The film “Hollywood Buddha”

caused outrage and protest on
the streets of Sri Lanka,
Malaysia and Myanmar
(Burma) when the designer of
the film’s poster decided to
show the lead actor sitting on
the Buddha’s head, which is an
act of clear degradation against
something holy.
Here are some instances when lack of cultural or linguistic
sensitivity in global communication severely affected companies or
products:

• Coors (beer) once

had its slogan
“Turn it loose.”
translated to
Spanish, but it
became to mean
“Suffer from
diarrhea.”
• All of these examples are predominantly business-related, where
companies failed to regard cultural differences in packaging and
communicating their product to the global market. However, the cost
of cultural insensitivity in global communication can be felt in
everyday communication, as cultural misunderstandings often lead to
misinterpretation and unnecessary tension between people.
Here are some examples
demonstrating this in a global
setting:
• Showing the sole of a shoe (by
crossing one’s legs and pointing one’s
shoes to the speaker, for example)
means nothing to observers in most
Western and Asian countries. In
Muslim cultures (such as Saudi
Arabia), however, the gesture is
perceived as insulting. Similarly,
crossing one’s legs while seated is
customary for Westerners, but this is
a social faux pas in Korea.
Here are some examples demonstrating this
in a global setting:
• Blinking rapidly while
another person is
talking is normal for
most people, especially
during tense situations.
For Taiwanese, this is
considered impolite.
Here are some examples demonstrating
this in a global setting:

• The Japanese view the business

card as an extension of their
body, while Americans view it
simply as a business formality.
Hence, when Japanese hand over
their business cards with two
hands and with great care, they
get insulted when the person
receiving just put it away with
haste.
These are just some of the instances when miscommunication and
misunderstanding can happen as a result of cultural ignorance and
insensitivity in the global environment. In order to develop more
meaningful relationships and establish productive interaction with
people having different cultures, everyone should recognize and
respond to such differences and nuances. In addition, people have to
be mindful that not everyone from the same culture exhibits the same
characteristics and habits in communication, so sensitivity is key to any
successful communicative situation.
• In communicating in a highly global environment, the challenge that
faces everyone is to learn to understand, accept, and address cultural
– and communication – differences.