You must be thinking why this topic is not parked under ‘Barriers to Communication’? Yes, social and cultural differences are indeed one potential barrier but because this is such a huge topic, we have decided to let it have a section on its own!
With globalization, people are moving all over the world at a faster pace. Be it for work or going about your daily lives, you need to communication wherever you are. The global market creates countless opportunities for business and personal development. However, ineffective communication can ruin these opportunities. There is a need to be able to communicate with people from different culture, language, tradition and religion.
Let's take a look at some of the cultural barriers to communication …show more content…
Cultures like the United States are less mindful of their elders and less likely to take their advice into account when making important decisions. However, in Asian society where we learn to respect our elders can sometimes be abused by people who are more senior in age. Such attitudes towards age cause the age identity factor to impact intercultural communication in the workplace.
• Seniority (organizational hierarchy)
Seniority is the length of time that an individual has served in a job or worked for an organization. Seniority can bring higher status, rank, or precedence to an employee who has served an organization for a longer period of time. Seniority usually means that the employee earns more money than others doing similar work. People in that position may perceive themselves with more authority and this is where it can impact communication in the workplace.
• Ethnicity
An ethnic group or ethnicity is a category of people who identify with each other based on similarities, such as common language, ancestral, social, cultural, or national experiences. These people usually like to be together and form cliques at the …show more content…
They may form cliques and start to speak in their own native language hence subconsciously ignoring the feelings of others in the same department. According to a new CareerBuilder survey, 43% of workers say their office is populated by cliques—which are tightly knit groups of co-workers who socialize in and outside the office, and often exclude others.
• Traditional practices and observances
The way we communicate is affected by the culture we were brought up in. This may not be that obvious in Singapore as most of us share and is exposed to most of the practices. Eg: It’s quite common to see some of our Indian or Malay colleagues eating with their hands. But we should not take this for granted. We need to exercise empathy and consideration when communicating with each other.
• Religious and spiritual observances
People may find it difficult to communicate with people who follow another religion. This is because religion does influence how people think and hence creating differences in opinions. Empathy, tolerance and acceptance of religious views are the best way to accommodate each other.
•
With globalization, people are moving all over the world at a faster pace. Be it for work or going about your daily lives, you need to communication wherever you are. The global market creates countless opportunities for business and personal development. However, ineffective communication can ruin these opportunities. There is a need to be able to communicate with people from different culture, language, tradition and religion.
Let's take a look at some of the cultural barriers to communication …show more content…
Cultures like the United States are less mindful of their elders and less likely to take their advice into account when making important decisions. However, in Asian society where we learn to respect our elders can sometimes be abused by people who are more senior in age. Such attitudes towards age cause the age identity factor to impact intercultural communication in the workplace.
• Seniority (organizational hierarchy)
Seniority is the length of time that an individual has served in a job or worked for an organization. Seniority can bring higher status, rank, or precedence to an employee who has served an organization for a longer period of time. Seniority usually means that the employee earns more money than others doing similar work. People in that position may perceive themselves with more authority and this is where it can impact communication in the workplace.
• Ethnicity
An ethnic group or ethnicity is a category of people who identify with each other based on similarities, such as common language, ancestral, social, cultural, or national experiences. These people usually like to be together and form cliques at the …show more content…
They may form cliques and start to speak in their own native language hence subconsciously ignoring the feelings of others in the same department. According to a new CareerBuilder survey, 43% of workers say their office is populated by cliques—which are tightly knit groups of co-workers who socialize in and outside the office, and often exclude others.
• Traditional practices and observances
The way we communicate is affected by the culture we were brought up in. This may not be that obvious in Singapore as most of us share and is exposed to most of the practices. Eg: It’s quite common to see some of our Indian or Malay colleagues eating with their hands. But we should not take this for granted. We need to exercise empathy and consideration when communicating with each other.
• Religious and spiritual observances
People may find it difficult to communicate with people who follow another religion. This is because religion does influence how people think and hence creating differences in opinions. Empathy, tolerance and acceptance of religious views are the best way to accommodate each other.
•