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Communication styles and patterns differ vastly among people from different cultures. Every culture has a “communication style norm” that is used by a majority of people in that culture and when that style mixes with another, all types of stereotypes and perceptions arise. 52 Activities for Improving Cross-Cultural Communication specifically explores cross-cultural communication issues with an eye toward increasing cross-cultural understanding and effectiveness.
The exercises in this book are intended to facilitate effective communication across a wide range of differences. Many of the exercises are written with instructions that address needs for a specific audience (e.g., gender or generation). Stringer and Cassiday have written and adapted sound, ready-to-use activities for settings where the exploration of cross-cultural communication would be beneficial: the workplace, the classroom, human resources programs, ESL classes, corporate diversity training, international team development workshops, conflict management and others.
52 Activities for Improving Cross-Cultural Communication is a practical trainer’s manual includes applications from many sectors and angles: business, diversity, cross-cultural fields, and from trainers in the U.S., Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America. The exercises are organized according to the appropriate audience, the time required to perform, and the risk level for participants, a unique feature created by the authors, and are easily adaptable to the user’s particular need and situation.
There is something for everyone in this book: those who like hands-on, practical activities; those who prefer experiential exercises; and those who learn best if they can reflect on ideas.
Praise for 52 Activities:
"This practical book is a must-have for facilitators who are seeking new communication exercises to add to their repertoire. Whether in the classroom or in a group session, the exercises in 52 Activities for Improving Cross-Cultural Communication are sure to be a hit with participants and practitioners alike. Stringer and Cassiday are leaders in the are of cross-cultural competence and now all of us can benefit from their expertise!" --Amy George, VP Talent Development, Diversity and Inclusion, Terex Corporation
Contents
Acknowledgments Introduction
1 Communication Continuum Exercise
2 Second Language Walk-in-Their-Shoes
3 Decoding "Work Speak"
4 Alpha-Beta Partnership
5 A Fair Shake
6 The Language of Gestures
7 Rational, Emotive, Intuitive
8 What Would You Do?
9 How Would I Say That?
10 E-Mail: Communicating Across Cultures
11 Toothpicks
12 Building Cultural Bridges to Communication
13 Are You Listening?
14 Communicating Policy in a Cultural Context
15 Can Anyone Hear Me?
16 Communication Solution
17 Persuasion
18 My Rule/Your Rule
19 Thought Bubble Role-Plays
20 Different Days-- Different Ways
21 Building Team Communication
22 Bridging Behaviors
23 The Intercultural Classroom
24 What's in a Word?
25 Pacing 26 Switching Directions: Direct/Indirect
27 Your Choice: Style Continuum
28 Debate or Dialogue?
29 First Impressions
30 Sounds Like Silence
31 Me, Myself, and E-Mail 32 High Road, Low Road
33 E-Mail Intent vs. Impact
34 Be Specific!
35 My Inner Rules
36 Nondefensive Communication
37 My Name Is
38 PALS Dialogue
39 If I Woke Up Tomorrow
40 Building Style Proficiency
41 Build a Structure
42 Talking Through Touch
43 He Learned She Learned
44 I Think-- You Feel
45 What a Funny Thing to Say!
46 Mr. Ramirez or Jose
47 Public/Private Self 48 What Do You See?
49 Delivering the Message
50 The "Right" Fit
51 "Meeting" Your Needs
52 How Rude Was That?
Appendices A Some Core Techniques for Improving Cross-Cultural Communication B General Classification of Activities
C References
About the Authors
Donna Stringer, the president of Executive Diversity Services, is a social/developmental psychologist with several years of experience as a cross-cultural educator and trainer.
Patricia Cassiday is an educator and consultant on topics related to guidance, third culture kids, total quality education and student assessment.
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