Cultural Communication & Education » Cultural Interaction

A Hideous Peril:cultural Antagonism

Admin — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 06:43:21 +0000

The very inception of my candid statements, via which I will strive to shed a light upon the current political,social and cultural issues,remarkably concerns itself with the solid conception of cultural antagonism that pravails among the communities in the world.Since the very early stages of human history,inevitable confrontations and skirmishes have come to emergence ,which paved the way for the mass annihilations of individuals.Unlike the previous eras when the function and utilization antagonism were copiously moulded by violence and physical obliteration,the contemporary one ,a more insidious and hard-to-deal,sneaks into the stage in terms of cutural alienation.

   Stemming from the observable lack of socio-cultural interaction,the xenophic predispositions of cults versus one onother are bound to bring about an unfair prejudice ,hence hampering stability in mutual realtions between communities.Albeit the efforts to alleviate the clashes of nations,I am of the very opinion that there still occurs an inadaquency of recognition and a tangible sense of an “adamant bias “at the outlook of people towars others or better to say to the “outlandish”

     Actually,what really stimulated me to jot down an article elaborating on the contemporary alienation and the image of otherness is my concecutive visits to usa,spain and other western countries,where I attained the change of rendering asessments as to how the western mind perceives and allays the cultural,sociological and religious merits pertaining not only to Turkey but also to the whole islamic world.Also my present accomodation in usa for my MA degree has exerted a profound impact on me to sustain such an article that makes a” sad but true” delineation of how each side reacts to other.

     And the truth be told that from the first moments of my involment in usa,I have been exposed to baseless and ridiculous questions which have nothing to do with any cultural and religious aspect of Turkey.The staple reason behind this is the lenght of cultural bridge between turkey and usa.Despite the salient numbers of turks residing in usa ,the attempts to abrogate the adamant bias against islamic and turkic precepts are insufficient.

      To illustrate the topic,I wish to refer to my 4-month of cultural exchange program experience in south carolina,usa,whose demographic structure is composed of various races ,afro-americans forming the majority.The instant I commenced to caress the diversity and the multi-cultutal sprit of american dream,the nebulosity and anxiety in my mind vanished into the thin air,leaving its place to a sense of mental operation with sentimental cooperation as I formed the basis of new friendships and mutual interaction.It was just like a speck on the horizon and a distinction between reality and opiumed mind.It was not the reflections of missisipi river and tom sawyer of mark twain nor the naturalistic experimentations of hemingway.This time,I was living the american dream to the core,acting like a protaganist in an american novel.They were the moments that gave me sensous delight,making my dreams come true.

     Employed in a resort,I faced up to my liability to be aware of the american better and to gain a sophisticatd insight into knowing others.The staff were multicultural and what really nonplussed me was the absence of atrocity and a perpetual tendency to callobrate and perform in harmoy.As once uttered y David thorue the language of friendship is not words but meanings and to me the meanings were hearts and humanistic buds bloosoming in minds.

        At this respect,the mutual notifications regarding the tenets of our cultures and religions verily led to an amelioration in our judgements of each other.And this is ,in my view,of pramount significance in that each indivdual should feel the burden to introduce its culture ,thus providing purification from hatred and the adamant bias.In brief,the rudimental point is to be receptive and respectable to be received and respected.

         By means of socializing,we can root out the misconceptions about Turkey and islam,which are irrelevantly identified with primitivism and terrorizm.In the same way.The image of america,notorious for belligerent and truculent predilections in iraq and elsewhere shouldnt invervene our judgement of its folk. Sharp distinction is supposed to be drawn up between govermental policies and humanism as it would vehemently be wrong to put the blame at the gate of a nation or a group.Once this point is fully understood and digested,the needless arguments and conflicts will come to an end.

       My fundamental offer to mitigate the intensity of this rigid bias is to augment the dimensions and amount of the cultural interaction,which is best probable by direct involment and interfacing.To do so,more and more turkish people should be present in usa and vice versa.Also turkey must be represented more professionally in the states.

          Nowdays im on the verge of conducting my MA degree in American literature and culture at south carolina state university.While tackling with the american issues,my other turkish friends an I are in a constant pursuit of representing and introducing Turkey.I am of the opinion that plausible and artistic juxtaposition of cultural issues with literature will enable us to obtain a more matured and prudent appraise of other cultures.This cultural amicability will, with no doubt, be quite pertinent and lucrative for the both side as we have a lot to retain from and instill into the western culture whilst the chariots of globalisation are galloping faster than ever.

                                                                                                        Serkan AYDIN

                                                                                                      Research assistant

                                                             South Carolina State University/Department of American Studies

                                                                                                     Columbia/SC/USA

By: serkan AYDIN

International Business Online – 3 Types of Cultural Communication Gets You More International Sales

Admin — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 20:33:26 +0000

You can’t learn to ride a bike without… well, a bike. Can you?

International business involves cross cultural communication. It is the inherent nature of the business.

To develop good cross cultural communication skills you need foreign communication exposure. With people. Live.

Cultural skills are fairly easy to develop. But you can’t pick them up reading books. You need hands on practice. Most people only need the desire to communicate with other cultures and some practice to put them on the right track.

But good cross cultural communication skills are not easy to develop if you are an online business without much direct contact with your foreign clients.

If all the cross cultural communication you are getting is through emails or order requests, this is how you are going to pick up the skills. There is simply not enough cultural interaction to actually learn with.

But what can you do if you want to get more international sales? Is there anything you can do to help your online business communicate better with your international prospects and clients?

Well you still need to learn from exposure. But you can laser focus your efforts and make progress.

First, you need to identify the three basic components of cultural communication:

International Communication

International Communication can include all aspects of international communication.

But online, it all begins with adapting your own communication for international audiences.

Make the effort to adapt your all of your communication to speak to all international visitors as well as your domestic market.

Simply make a concentrated effort not to cut out your international visitors by ignoring them.

International communication at this level is more about awareness and being universally polite in written communication. It is is the small details.

Multicultural Communication

Multicultural Communication is when your communication speaks effectively across a wide scope of cultures.

For example you can use International English to target the international English-speaking world.

Multicultural Communication may not be the best solution for your domestic market. Your domestic market might have a very strong sales message that would be weakened by communication aimed at multicultural markets.

You may or may not decide on creating two specific communication strategies: one for your domestic market and one for a wide international market.

This is often obvious to implement in non-English speaking countries. Their local communication in their native language, and their international communication in English for wide multicultural audiences.

It can be an interesting option for American companies, for example, to use International English for a wide international marketing campaign.

This could be an initial option. But this needs to be evaluated carefully. Most international marketing is aimed at specific cultures and countries once the markets are identified.

Cross Cultural Communication

Cross Cultural Communication is about targeting your communication to one particular culture.

This step in international communication requires more specific market knowledge. Your message is totally adapted to one specific cultural environment.

It can be used for effective target marketing in a specific country or ethnic group for example.

The bad news for online businesses is that you really do need some cultural exposure to get it right.

The good news?

Online businesses have the advantage of being able to test, track and analyze statistics. This will help in tweaking cross cultural communication.

If you have identified a country with a large enough market, creating cross cultural communication and working extensively with the statistics will probably be worth the time and effort.

Build On International Exposure

By focusing on each of the three types of cultural communication, you will be able to identify what you are currently doing. You will see where you need to improve international communication.

Use any contact with your international prospects and clients to see what you can do to improve the area you are weakest at.

The more exposure you get with your international markets, the more you will see how you need to adapt your communication. And practice is all it takes.

Your cultural communication skills will improve with time. And before you know it your skills will become as automatic as knowing how to ride a bike.

Are you committed to speeding up your international sales cycles?

Learn how to combine cross-cultural marketing tools and international sales strategies for faster sales.

Join us on the International Sales Road Map

Would you like to develop your international business?

Are you a beginner at international sales and marketing?

Read the Beginners Guide Discover Your International Business

By: Cindy King