新編跨文化交際 案例分析答案

Unit1CommunicationAcrossCulturesCase1(Page23)Thiscasetookplacein3cultures.Thereseemedtobeproblemsincommunicatingwithpeopleofdifferentculturesinspiteoftheeffortstoachieveunderstnading.1）InEgyptasinmanycultures,thehumanrelationshipisvaluedsohighlythatitisnotexpressedinanobjectiveandimpersonalway.WhileAmericanscertainlyvaluehumanrelationships,theyaremorelikelytospeakoftheminlesspersonal,moreobjectiveterms.Inthiscase,Richard’smistakemightbethathechosetopraisethefooditselfratherthanthetotalevening,forwhichthefoodwassimplythesettingorexcuse.Forhishostorhostessitwasasifhehadattendedanartexhibitandcomplimentedtheartistbysaying,“Whatbeautifulframesyourpicturesarein!”2）InJapanthesituationmaybemorecomplicated.Japanesepeoplevalueorderandharmonyamongagroup,andthatthegroupisvaluedmorethananyparticularmember.Incontrast,Americansstressindividualityandareapttoassertindividualdifferenceswhentheyseemjustifiablytobeinconflictwiththegoalsorvaluesofthegroup.Inthiscase,Richard’smistakewasmakinggreateffortstodefendhimselfeveniftheerrorisnotintentiona.Asimpleapologyandacceptanceoftheblamewouldhavebeenappropriate3)WhenitcomestoEngland,wexpectfewerproblemsbetweenAmericansandEnglishmenthanbetweenAmericansandalmostanyothergroup.Inthiscasewemightlookbeyondthegestureoftakingsugarorcreamtothevaluessexpressedinthisgesture:forAmericans,“Helpyourself”;fortheEnglishcounterpart,“Bemyguest.”AmericanandEnglishpeopleequallyenjoyentertainingandbeingentertained,buttheydifferinthevalueofthedistinction.Typically,theidealguestatanAmericanpartyisobewho“makeshimselfathome”.FortheEnglishhost,suchguestbehaviorispresumptuousorrude.Case2(Page24)Acommonculturalmisunderstandinginclassesinvolvsconflictsbetweenwhatissaidtobedirectcommunicationstyleandindirectcommunicationstyle.InAmericanculture,peopletendtosaywhatisontheirmindsandmeanwhattheysay.Therefore,studentsinclassareexpectedtoaskquestionswhentheyneedclarification.MexicanculturesharesthispreferenceofstylewithAmericancultureinsomesituations,andthat’swhythestudentsfromMexicoreadilyadoptedthetechniquesofaskingquestionsinclass.However,Koreanpeoplegenerallypreferindirectcommunicationstyle,andthereforetheytendnottosaywhatisontheirmindsandtorelymoreonimplicationsandinference,soastobepoliteandrepectfulandavoidlosingfacethroughanyimproperverbalbehavior.Asismentionedinthecase,tomanyKoreans,numerousquestionswouldshowadisrespectfortheteacher,andwouldalsoreflectthatthestudenthasnotstudiedhardenough.Case3(Page24)Theconflicthereisadifferenceinculturalvaluesandbeliefs.Inthebeginning,Marydidn’trealizethatherDominicansistersawherasamemberofthefamily,literally.IntheDominicanview,familypossessionsaresharedbyeveryoneofthefamily.LuzwasactingasmostDominicansisterswooulddoinborrowingwithoutaskingeverytime.OnceMaryunderstoodthattherewasadifferentwayoflookingatthis,shewouldbecomemoreaccepting.However,shemightstillexperiencefrustrationwhenthishappenedagain.Shehadtofindwaystocopewithherownemotionalculturalreactionaswellasherpracticalproblem(thebatteriesrunningout).Case4(Page25)Itmightbesimplyaquestionofdifferentrhythms.Americanshaveonerhythmintheirpersonalandfamilyrelations,intheirfriendlinessandtheircharities.Peoplefromothercultureshavedifferentrhythms.TheAmericanrhythmisfast.Itischaracterizedbyarapidacceptanceofothers.However,itisseldomthatAmericansengagethemselvesentirelyinafriendship.Theirfriendshiparewarm,butcasualandspecialized.Forexample,youhaveaneighborwhodropsbyinthemorningforcoffee.Youseeherfrequently,butyouneverinviteherfordinnernotbecauseyoudon’tthinkshecouldhandleaforkandaknife,butbecauseyouhaveseenherthatmorning.Therefore,youreserveyourmoreformalinvitationtodinnerforsomeonewholivesinamoredistantpartofthecityandwhomyouwouldnotseeunlessyouextendedaninvitationforaspecialoccasion.Now,ifthefirstfriendmovesawayandthesecondonemovesnearby,youarelikelytoreservethisseethesecondfriendinthemorningsforinformalcoffeemeetings,andinvitethefirstonemoreformallytodinner.Americansare,inotherwords,guidedveryoftenbytheirownconvenience.Theytendtomakefriendsrapidly,andtheydon’tfeellikeitnecessarytogotoagreatamountoftroubletoseefriendsoftenwhenitbecomesinconvenienttodoso,andusuallynooneishurt.Butinsimilarcircumstances,peoplefrommanyothercultureswouldbehurtverydeeply.Unit2CultureandCommunicationTheanalysisofthiscase:(Page38)TheleastthreethingsamongthefollowingTomdidthatwereregardedtobeimpolite:b.Tomopensthegiftassoonasheispresentedwithit.d.Tomdoesnotmakeasecondofferofdrinkswhentheyrefusethefirst.e.TomtalksaboutthecostoflivingintheU.S.A.f.Tomdoesnotaskthemtostaylongerwhentheysaytheymustbeleaving.g.Tomdoesnotgoouttoseethemoff.Case5(Page60)Analysis:TheChineseguideshouldrefusethefirstofferbecauseheisobeyingtheChineserulesforcommunication.WeChinesearemodest,politeandwell-behaved.Maybetheguideiswaitingforasecondorthirdofferofbeer,buthedoesn’tknowthereasonsbehindtheruleinAmericanculturethatyoudonotpushalcoholicbeveragesonanyone.Apersonmaynotdrinkforreligiousreasons,hemaybeareformedalcoholic,orhemaybeallergic.Whateverthereason,youdonotinsistonofferingalcohol.Sotheypolitelynevermadeasecondofferofbeertotheguide.Case6(Page61)Whenaspeakersayssomethingtoahearer,thereareatleastthreekindsofmeaningsinvolved:utterancemeaning,thespeaker’smeaningandthehearer’smeaning.Inthedialogue,whenLitzaskedhowlonghermother-in-lawwasgoingtostay,shemeantthatifsheknewhowlongshewasgoingtosatyinFinland,shewouldbeabletomakeproperarrangementsforher,suchastakingherouttosomesightseeing.However,hermother-in-lawtookLitz’squestiontomean“Litzdoesnotwantmetosatyforlong”.FromtheChinesepointofview,itseemsinappropriateforLitztoasksuchaquestionjusttwodaysafterhermother-in-law’sarrival.Ifshehastoaskthequestion,itwouldbebettertoasksometimelaterandsheshouldnotlethermother-in-lawhearit.Case7(Page62)Analysis:Keikoinsistsongivingvaluablegiftstohercollegefriends,becauseincountrieslikeJapan,exchanginggiftsisastronglyrootedsocialtradition.Shouldyoureceiveagift,anddon’thaveonetoofferinreturn,youwillprobablycreateacrisis.Ifnotasseriousasacrisis,onewhodoesn’tofferagiftinreturnmaybeconsideredrudeorimpolite.Therefore,inJapan,giftsareasymbolicwaytoshowthecare,respect,gratitudeandfurtherfriendship.Keiko’scollegefriendswouldratherroundupsomeofthenecessaryitemsandtheyarewillingtohaveherusethem.Theyreallyexpectednothingfromher.ForinAmerica,peopledonatetheirusedhouseholditemstochurchortothecommunity.TheywouldneverconsidertheseolditemsasgiftstoKeiko.SoKeiko’svaluablegiftshavemadeherAmericanfriendsfeeluncomfortableCase8(Page62)WhentheChinesegirlAmyfellinlovewithanAmericanboyatthattime,itseemsthatshepreferredtocelebrateChritmasintheAmericanway,forshewantedverymuchtoappearthesameasotherAmericangirls.Shedidnotliketoseeherboyfrienddisappointedatthe“shabby”ChineseChristmas.That’swhyshecriedwhenshefoundoutherparentshadinvitedtheminister’sfamilyoverfortheChristmasEvedinner.ShethoughtthemenufortheChritmasmealcreatedbyhermotherastrangeonebecausetherewerenoroastturkeyandsweetpotatoesbutonlyChinesefood.Howcouldshenoticethenthefoodchosenbyhermotherwereallherfavorites?Fromthiscase,wecanfindalotofdifferencesbetweentheChineseandWesternculturesinwhatisappropriatefoodforabanquet,whataregoodtablemanners,andhowoneshouldbehavetobehospitable.However,oneshouldneverfeelshamejustbecauseone’scultureisdifferentfromothers’.AsAmy’smothertoldher,youmustbeproudtobedifferent,andyouronlyshameistohaveshame.Unit3

CulturalDiversityCase7(Page76)Betweenfriendsthereisinevitablyakindofequalityofgive-and-take.Butindifferentcultures,peopleviewthisdifferently.InChineseculture,friendshipsdevelopslowlybecausetheyarebuilttolast.WeChinesepreferthesaying“Afriendindeedisafriendinneed.”Andweneverrefusetheaskingforhelpfromafriend.Weneverforgetthetimelyhelpbyafriendwhenweareontherocks.ButInAmericanculture,theyviewthisinadifferentway.Oncehelped,theyoffertheirhelponlyonce.That’swhyJacksonsaidthatMr.Zhaowasaskingtoomuch.Intheirview,friendshipsarebasedoncommoninterests.1DifferentLands,DifferentFriendships(P77)FrenchFriendshipsGermanFriendshipsEnglishFriendshipsChineseFriendships(見補(bǔ)充材料）AmericanFriendships(見補(bǔ)充材料）補(bǔ)充案例（AmericanFriendship）Twomothers,CarmenandJudy,aretalkingtoeachotherataparkwhiletheirchildrenareplayingtogetherinthesand.Caemen:Hi,Judy.Judy:Hi,Carmen.Howareyou?Carmen:Fine.I’mgladtoseethatourchildrenliketoplaytogether.Judy:Yeah,metoo.Irememberjustamonthagotheyweren’tsharingtheirtoys.Carmen:Nowitlookslikethey’reenjoyingeachother.Judy:Finally!Maybewecouldgettogetherateachother’shousessometime.I’msurethekidswouldenjoythat.Carmen:Sure.That’dbenice.Judy:Well,let’sdoitsoon.Carmen:O.K.(JudyandCarmencontinuetotalkwhiletheirchildrenplay.)CaseAnalysisJudyandCarmenarenotrealfriends.Theydon’twanttogettogether,really.Theyoncemeteachotheramonthago.Americanssometimesmakegeneralinvitationlike“Let’sgettogethersometimes.”O(jiān)ftenthisisjustawaytobefriendly.Itisnotalwaysarealinvitation.Ifthey’dliketosetaspecific(exact)time,thatmeansarealoffer.2FamilyStructure(P83)ChineseFamilyFilipinosFamilyVietnameseFamilyJapaneseFamily(SeeCase9andCase10)LatinAmericanFamilyCase9(Page96)TraditionalJapaneserespecttheireldersandfeeladeepsenseofdutytowardthem.TheeldersintraditionalJapanesefamiliesaretypicallyoverpowered.Sothegrandfatherseemedtobeanabsoluteauthorityfortheyoungchairman.InJapaneseculturechallengingordisagreeingwitheilder’sopinionswouldbedeemedasbeingdisrespectful.Thatiswhytheyoungchairmansaidnothingbutjustnoddedandagreedwithhisgrandfather.AnditresultsintheJapanesecompany’swithdrawalfromthenegotiationsconcerningarelationshipwithPhil’scompanyaweeklater.Case10(Page97)InJapan,acompanyisverymuchlikeabigfamily,inwhichthemanagerwilltakecareoftheemployeesandtheemployeesareexpectedtocevotethemselvestothedevelopmentofthecompanyand,ifitisnecessary,tosacrificetheirowninterestsfortheinterestsofthecompany.ButtotheFrench,acompanyisjustaloosely-knitsocialorganizationwhereinindividualsaresupposedtotakecareofthemselvesandtheirfamilies.Andthefamilyisthenumberonepriority,whichisunliketheJapanesemodel“notinvolvingfemalesandtherighttodecidebydominantmale”.Case11(Page97)Inmostcultures,anapologyisneededwhenanoffenceorviolationofsocialnormshastakenplace.TomanyWesterners,JapaneseapologizemorefrequentlyandanapologyinJapanesedoesnotnecessarilymeanthatthepersonisacknowledgingafault.TomanyJapanese,WestenersmayseemtoberudejustbecausetheydonotapologizeasoftenastheJapanesewoulddo.Inthiscase,theatitudeoftheAustralianstudent’sparentsisshockingtheJapanesebutwillbeacceptableinanEnglish-speakingsociety,forthestudentisalreadyanadultandcanberesponsibleforherowndeeds.Case12(Page98)Inthiscase,itseemsthattheChineseexpectationwerenotfulfilled.First,havingtwopeoplesharinghostresponsibilitiescouldbeconfusingtotheChinese.Second,inChina,itisatraditionforthehosttoofferawelcometoastatthebeginningofthemeal.Bynotdoingso,theCanadianmightbethoughtrude.TheabruptdepartureoftheChinesefromthebanquetwasprobablyanindicationthattheywerenotpleasedwiththewaytheyweretreated.TheCanadians’lackofunderstandingoftheChineseculturewouldbeaproblemintheirdealingwiththevisitingdelegation.Unit4LanguageandCultureCase13Thisexamplevividlyillustratesthatfailuresininterculturaltranslationmayprobablyleadtoveryseriousconsequence,orevendisasterstohumanbeings.Definitely,translationisnotsuchasimpleprocessasrenderingaword,asentenceoratextliterally,butratherafarmorecomplexonethanmostpeopleassumed.Forexample,onceaChinesecosmeticmanufacturerwantedtopromotetheirproductsintotheinternationalmarket.Thesloganoftheadvertisementwas:―sweetasJade‖,sinceinChinese―jade‖wasalwaysemployedtocomplimentwoman‘sbeauty;butunfortunately,itwasnotanappropriatewordtodescribethebeautyofaladyinWesterncultures.InEnglish,―jade‖initsuseofreferringawomanhadtheconnotationssuchasvulgar,rude,immoral,orskittish.Undoubtedly,thesalesinEuropeancountrieswerenotsatisfying.Theseemingequivalentsbetweenlanguagesmayhaveverydifferentconnotationsindifferentcultures,thusthetranslatorshouldbecautiousintheprocessofdoingthetranslationsoastoavoidmisunderstandings.Case14“楊”referstoYangKaihuiwhowasMaoZedong‘sdeceasedwifeand―柳‖referstoLiuzhixunwhowasLishuyi‘sdeceasedhusband.Theycanbetranslatedindifferentways,butitseemstobeverydifficult,ifnotimpossible,toachieveequivalenceintranslatingfromChineseintoEnglish.Adoptingtheliteraltranslationstrategy,version1appearstobefaithfultotheoriginalbutmayeasilyconfusethereadersinthetargetlanguage.Version2employstheliberaltranslationstrategywithanattempttoconveytheoriginalmeaningaspreciselyaspossible.However,theoriginalpoeticflavorislostastherhetoricdevice—pun—isnotreproduced.Case15Thetranslationseemstobefaithfultotheoriginal,butitmaynotbereallygoodforthepurposeofinterculturalcommunication.Foreignreadersofthetranslationmayfinditstrangeandinappropriate.ThefollowingiswhatafriendlyAmericanjournalisthascommentedonthetranslation:Myfirstreactionwasunfortunatelylaughterbecauseitissofullofmistakes.ItomitssomenecessaryinformationabouttheDragon-BoatFestival,includingitshistoricaloriginsandwhenitactuallytakesplace.Thesethingsareimportant…Thecopyseemstotryto―snow‖thereaderwithfanciful,overblownassertionsabouthowterrificitallis,butinunintentionallyhilariouslanguagethatleavesthereaderlaughingoutuninformed…Thebrochurealsosuffersfromlackofbackgroundmaterial,thetaking-if-for-grantedthatthereaderalreadyisfamiliarwithmanyaspectsofChinesehistoryandculture?Itdoesn‘ttellyouwheretogo,howtogetthere,whenthingsareopenandclosed,howmuchtheycost,andsoforth.Allthesearethingspeoplevisitinganareawanttoknow.WhyisitthatmanyChinesetravelguidesreadbasicallythesame,nomatterwhatregionisbeingwrittenabout,andaresopackedwithindiscriminatehyperbole?Lessexaggerationwouldactuallybemoreconvincing.Case16ComparingthetwoEnglishversions,wecanseethatinYang‘sversionmoreculturally-loadedmeaningsareconveyedfromtheoriginalwhileHawkes‘versionmaybeeasierforEnglish-speakingreaderstocomprehend.Lookatsomeofthedifferencesbetweenthetwoversionsofthisextract:賈母TheLadyDowager/GrandmotherJia老祖宗OldAncestress/Grannydear鳳辣子FieryPhoenix/PeppercornFeng二舅母王氏LadyWang,herseconduncle‘swife/herUncleZheng‘swife,LadyWang學(xué)名叫做王熙鳳theschool-roomnameHis-feng/thesomewhatboyish-soundingnameofWangXi-feng黛玉忙賠笑見禮，以“嫂”呼之Tai-yulostnotimeingreetingherwithasmileas―cousin.‖/Dai-yuaccordinglysmiledandcurt-eyed,greetingherbyhercorrectnameasshedidso.竟不象老祖宗的外孫女兒Shedoesn‘ttakeafterherfather,son-in-lawofourOldAncestress/Shedoesn‘ttakeafteryoursideofthefamily,Ganny.怨不得老祖宗天天嘴里心里放不下NowonderourOldAncestresscouldn‘tputyououtofhermindandwasforevertalkingandthinkingaboutyou./Idon‘tblameyouforhavinggoneonsoaboutherduringthepastfewdays現(xiàn)吃什么藥？Whatmedicineareyoutaking?/NottranslatedAndtherearesomeculturally-loadedexpressionsinthetextthatseemtodefytranslation:璉二嫂子內(nèi)侄女以“嫂”呼之外孫女兒嫡親的孫女兒妹妹Bycomparingdifferenttranslationsofthesametext,wecanachieveabetterunderstandingofculturalgapsanddifferencesandthenlearntoemployproperstrategiestobridgethosegapsintranslatingacrosslanguagesforinterculturalcommunication.Unit5CultureandVerbalCommunicationCase17Whenthesetwomenseparate,theymayleaveeachotherwithverydifferentimpressions.MrRichardsonisverypleasedtohavemadetheacquaintanceofMrChuandfeelstheyhavegottenofftoaverygoodstart.Theyhaveestablishedtheirrelationshiponafirst-namebasisandMrChu‘ssmileseemedtoindicatethathewillbefriendlyandeasytodobusinesswith.MrRichardsonisparticularlypleasedthathehadtreatedMrChuwithrespectforhisChinesebackgroundbycallinghimHon-fairatherthanusingthewesternname,David,whichseemedtohimanunnecessaryimpositionofwesternculture.Incontrast,MrChufeelsquiteuncomfortablewithMrRichardson.Hefeelsitwillbedifficulttoworkwithhim,andthatMrRichardsonmightberatherinsensitivetoculturaldifferences.Heisparticularlybotheredthat,insteadofcallinghimDavidorMrChu,MrRichardsonusedhisgivenname,Hon-fai,thenamerarelyusedbyanyone,infact.Itwasthisembarrassmentwhichcausedhimtosmile.HewouldfeelmorecomfortableiftheycalledeachotherMrChuandMrRichardson.Nevertheless,whenhewasawayatschoolinNorthAmericahelearnedthatAmericansfeeluncomfortablecallingpeopleMrforanyextendedperiodoftime.Hissolutionwastoadoptawesternname.HechoseDavidforuseinsuchsituations.Case18EveniftheAmericanknewUrdu,thelanguagespokeninPakistan,hewouldalsohavetounderstandthecultureofcommunicationinthatcountrytorespondappropriately.Inthiscase,hehadtosay―Noatleastthreetimes.Insomecountries,forinstance,theUkraine,itmayhappenthataguestispressedasmanyassevenoreighttimestotakemorefood,whereasintheUKitwouldbeunusualtodosomorethantwice.ForaUkrainian,todoittheBritishwaywouldsuggestthepersonisnotactuallygenerous.Indeed,Britishrecipientsofsuchhospitalitysometimesfeelthattheirhostisbehavingimpolitelybyforcingthemintoabind,sincetheyrunoutofpoliterefusalstrategieslongbeforetheUkrainianhosthasexhaustedhis/herrepertoireofpoliteinsistencestrategies.Case19Talkingaboutwhat‘swrongisnoteasyforpeopleinanyculture,butpeopleinhigh-contextcountrieslikeChinaputhighpriorityonkeepingharmony,preventinganyonefromlosingface,andnurturingtherelationship.ItseemsthatRonKellyhadtolearnadifferentwayofsendingmessagewhenhewasinChina.AthomeinCanadahewouldhavegonedirectlytothepoint.ButinChina,goingdirectlytotheproblemwithsomeonemaysuggestthatheorshehasfailedtoliveuptohisorherresponsibilityandthehonorofhisorherorganizationisinquestion.Inhigh-contextcultureslikeChina,suchamessageisseriousanddamaging.Inlow-contextcultures,however,thetendencyisjustto―spititout,togetitintowordsandworryabouttheresultlater.Sendersofunwelcomemessagesuseobjectivefacts,assuming,aswithpersuasion,thatfactsareneutral,instrumental,andimpersonal.Indirectnessisoftenthewaymembersofhigh-contextcultureschoosetocommunicateaboutaproblem.Case20ItseemsthatthelettersofrequestwritteninEnglishaswellasinChinesebyChinesepeoplearelikelytoprefacetherequestwithextendedface-work.ToChinesepeople,thenormalandpolitewaytoformarequestrequiresprovidingreasonsthatareusuallyplacedbeforetherequests.Ofcourse,thisisjusttheinverseofEnglishconventionsinwhichrequestsarefrontedwithoutmuchface-work.IntheviewoftheEnglish-speakingpeople,theopeninglinesofChineserequestsandsomeotherspeechactsdonotusuallyprovideathesisortopicstatementwhichwillorientthelistenertotheoveralldirectionofthecommunication.Worstofall,thelackofprecisionandthefailuretoaddressthepointdirectlymayleadtosuspicionsthattheChinesespeakersarebeatingaroundthebush.Tothem,thepresenceofaclearandconcisestatementofwhatistobetalkedaboutwillmakethespeechmoreprecise,moredramatic,andmoreeloquent.However,theChineselearningandusingEnglishincommunicationmayfinditdifficulttocometotermswiththecommonEnglishtendencytobeginwithatopicstatement.IntheChineseculture,statingone‘srequestormainpointatthebeginningwouldmakethepersonseemimmodest,pushy,andinconsiderateforwantingthings.Ifyourspeechgivesotherstheimpressionthatyouaredemandingsomething,youwouldlosefaceforactingaggressivelyandnotconsideringtheothers.Thusyou‘dbehurtingpeoplebyclaimingsomethingforyourself.Insuchasituation,itisusuallyconsideredasmartstrategyifyoucarefullydelineatethejustificationsthatwillnaturallyleadtoyourrequestorargument.Therefore,insteadofstatingtheirpropositionsomewhereinthebeginningandthenproceedingtobuildtheircase,Chinesepeopleoftenfirstestablishasharedcontextwithwhichtojudgetheirrequestsorarguments.Onlyaftercarefullyprefacingthemwithanavalancheofrelevantdetails,asiftonullifyanyopposition,willtheypresenttherequestsorarguments.Unit6CultureandNonverbalCommunicationCase21Sometimesourbestintentionscanleadtobreakdownsincross-culturalcommunication.Forexample,oneoftheverycommonmannersoftouchinghandshakingmayresultinconflictwhenperformedwithnoconsiderationofculturaldifferences.Amongmiddle-classNorthAmericanmen,itiscustomarytoshakehandsasagestureoffriendship.Whenwantingtocommunicateextrafriendliness,amaleintheUnitedStatesmay,whileshakinghands,graspwithhislefthandhisfriend‘srightarm.However,topeopleofMiddleEasterncountries,thelefthandisprofaneandtouchingsomeonewithitishighlyoffensive.Therefore,inVernon‘seyes,Kennethwasactuallyanextremelyoffensivemessagetohim.Case22InPuertoRicanculture,asinsomeotherLatinAmericanandEasterncultures,itisnotrightforachildtokeepaneye-contactwithanadultwhoisaccusinghimorher,whileintheUnitedStates,failingofmeetingotherperson‘seyeaccusinghimorherwouldbetakenasasignofguiltiness.Astheprincipalknewlittleaboutthisculturaldifferenceinusingeye-contact,hedecidedthatthegirlmustbeguilty.Generallyspeaking,avoidingeye-contactwiththeother(s)isoftenconsideredasaninsultinsomecultures,butmaysignifyrespectforauthorityandobedienceinothercultures.Case23Justlikesmile,laughingdoesnotalwaysservethesamefunctionindifferentcultures.Interestingly,forusChinese,laughingoftenhasaspecialfunctiononsometensesocialoccasions.Peoplemaylaughtoreleasethetensionorembarrassment,toexpresstheirconcernaboutyou,theirintentiontoputyouateaseortohelpyoucomeoutoftheembarrassment.Inthiscase,thepeopletherewereactuallywishingtolaughwiththeAmericanratherthanlaughather.Theirlaughingseemedtoconveyanumberofmessages:don‘ttakeitsoseriously;laughitoff,it‘snothing;suchthingscanhappentoanyofus,etc.UnfortunatelytheAmericanwasunawareofthis.Shethoughttheywerelaughingather,whichmadeherfeelmorebadlyandangry,forinherculturelaughingonsuchanoccasionwouldbeinterpretedasaninsultingresponse,humiliatingandnegative.Case24ItisobviousthatthereexistssomedifferencebetweentheBritishandGermansintheiruseoftouch.ThelackoftouchthatseemstobenaturalinBritainmaybeconsideredstrangebyGermans.Whatisrequired(inthiscase,shakinghandswitheachother)inonecountrycouldbetakenasunnecessaryinanother.Theappropriatenessofcontactbetweenpeoplevariesfromcountrytocountry.Figuresfromastudyoffersomeinterestinginsightintothismatter.Pairsofindividualssittingandchattingincollegeshopsindifferentcountrieswereobservedforatleastonehoureach.Thenumberoftimesthateitheronetouchedtheotherinthatonehourwasrecorded,asfollows:inLondon,0;inFlorida,2;inParis,10;inPuertoRico,180.Thesefiguresindicatethattouchisusedverydifferentlyindifferentcultures.Unit7TimeandSpaceAcrossCulturesCase25ForpeoplefromtheAmericancultureandwesternEuropeancultures,one‘stimeshouldbescheduledintosegmentsorcompartmentswhicharetobekeptdiscretefromoneanother.Theyprefertodoonethingatatime.Theywillbeannoyedwhentheyhavemadeanappointmentwithsomebody,onlytofindalotofotherthingsgoingonatthesametime.Theydon‘tliketointerruptothersandbeinterruptedbyotherwhiletheyaredoingsomething.Incontrast,peoplefrommanyotherculturesincludingtheChineseculturearemorelikelytooperatewithseveralpeople,ideas,ormatterssimultaneously.Theyaremoreeasilydistractedandsubjecttointerruptions,whichtheywouldnotusuallymindverymuch.ThemiscommunicationbetweenKatherineandthedirectorcanbeascribedtotheirlackofknowledgeabouteac