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- Introduction
- What is culture?
- Culture is like an Iceberg
- Culture and its core elements
- What is intercultural communication?
- Which are the challenges in intercultural communication?
- Transnational communication skills
- Enhancing cultural awareness for transnational communication
- Choosing adequate communication strategies
- Intercultural Conflict Management
- Stumbling blocks in Intercultural Communication
- Which are the elements that may lead to a conflict situation?
- Conflict strategies
- Conflict prevention
- Working on the intercultural image of the organisation
- What is the “image” of an organisation?
- Why should you adapt the image of your organisation to cultural premises?
- How can you work on your intercultural image?
- Quiz
- External resources
Culture is like an Iceberg
https://pixabay.com/de/illustrations/eisberg-wasser-blau-ozean-eis-1421411/
An easy way to represent culture is by imagining that culture is like an iceberg with a visible tip and an invisible part underneath the water surface. The visible tip corresponds to the areas of culture we can see in the physical sense like architecture, dress, food, gestures, devotional practices and much more.
None of the visible elements can ever make real sense without understanding the drivers behind them. It is these invisible, often unconscious elements related to the bottom part of the iceberg which are the underlying causes of what shows on the visible part. So, when thinking about culture, the bottom part of the iceberg will include elements such as religious beliefs, rules of relationships, approach to the family, motivations, tolerance for change, attitudes to rules, communication styles, comfort with risk, the difference between public and private, gender differences and more.
When intercultural conflicts arise people often dispute about the visible representations of cultural elements (Why do Muslim women wear headscarves? Is it right to have a Christian cross in a class-room at school?) – not conscious of the fact that in most cases the values and attitudes behind are the real causes of the conflict.