商务英语文化

国际商务文化题库

<是非判断题一>

答题说明：请阅读以下表述并判断表述是否正确，若表述正确，请在正确的表述前括号中标示T；若表述错误，请在正确的表述前括号中标示F。

1. (T ) The terms of intercultural communication and international communication can be used interchangeably.

2. ( T ) Stereotypes, like culture itself, are learned in a variety of ways. They are the products of limited, lazy and misguided perceptions.

3. ( F ) Verbal communication is not as clarified and efficient as other ways of communication, e.g. written communication.

4. (F ) We put the index finger and mid-figure apart with palm against the receiver to mean “OK,” which was first used by Winston Churchill.

5. ( T ) Personal territory can be large or small, which is much related to certain elements such as place, sex, age and character.

6. ( T ) Where the power distance is large, the society believes that there should be a well-defined order of inequality in which everyone has a rightful place.

7. ( F ) Asian, Latin American, and West African nations are societies high in individualism but low in collectivism.

8. ( T) In high masculinity societies, people tend to believe that matters of material comfort, social privilege, etc. are related to ability.

9. (T ) For some multinational firms, they can alleviate culture shock by selecting employees for overseas assignments who possess certain personal and professional qualifications.

10. ( F ) Nonverbal greetings include shaking hands, kissing, bowing and making introductions.

<是非判断题二>

答题说明：请阅读以下表述并判断表述是否正确，若表述正确，请在正确的表述前括号中标示T；若表述错误，请在正确的表述前括号中标示F。

1. ( F ) With the integration of language into the fabric of culture, confusion and dysfunction would reign and the culture would fail.

2. ( T ) Language is a means to express and exchange thoughts, concepts, knowledge and information as well as to transmit experience and so on.

3. ( T ) Personal territory can be large or small, which is much related to certain elements such as place, sex, age and character.

4. ( T ) Where uncertainty avoidance is low, the society is comfortable with a low degree of certainty and is open to the unknown.

5. (T ) In high-context communication, the listener is already “contexted” and so does not need to be given much background information.

6. (T ) In U.S., a businessman who is invited for dinner to the private home of a business contact is expected to write a thank-you note shortly after the event.

7. ( F ) American negotiators tend to be competitive in their approach to negotiation, beginning with a realistic offer.

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8. ( F ) It is not advisable to make a high offer at the beginning of negotiation.

9. (T ) The effective management principle and method for a local corporation might not achieve expected result if employees come from different countries in international corporation.

10. ( F ) Nonverbal greetings include shaking hands, kissing, bowing and making introductions.

<是非判断题三>

答题说明：请阅读以下表述并判断表述是否正确，若表述正确，请在正确的表述前括号中标示T；若表述错误，请在正确的表述前括号中标示F。

1. ( T ) Stereotypes, like culture itself, are learned in a variety of ways. They are the products of limited, lazy and misguided perceptions.

2. (T ) Language and culture are closely related, reflecting, influencing and shaping each other.

3. (F ) Eye looking sideways can show one’s coldness and superciliousness. It is impolite to move your head side to side while you are communicating with people, e.g. in India or Pakistan.

4. ( F ) Postures send same messages to all people, e.g. when you stand in an upright position, you impress others as being energetic.

5. ( T ) Individualists prefer self-sufficiency while collectivists give more recognition to their interdependent roles and obligations to the group.

6. ( F ) Large power distance countries such as the United States, Austria, Finland, and Denmark hold that inequality in society should be minimized.

7. ( T ) German businessmen have serious principles about interpersonal relationship and they focus on personal credit.

8. (T ) Control of the schedule often leads to control of the negotiating agenda.

9. ( F ) The goal at a cocktail party is to meet as many people as possible. Everyone expects to get into deep discussions.

10. ( F ) Culture offers ways of identifying with the organization and creates a “you-feeling.”

<是非判断题四>

答题说明：请阅读以下表述并判断表述是否正确，若表述正确，请在正确的表述前括号中标示T；若表述错误，请在正确的表述前括号中标示F。

1. （T ）Culture is all men’s medium; there is no aspect of human life that is not touched and altered by culture. 2. ( F ) Verbal communication is not as clarified and efficient as other ways of communication, e.g. written communication. 3. (T ) A simple eye gesture might be interpreted in a diversity of meanings across cultures. 4. ( F ) How closely people position themselves to one another during a discussion or

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talk cannot communicate what type of relationship exists between them. 5. (F ) Where individualism id high, the society emphasizes the role of the group. 6. (T ) In high-context communication the listener is already “contexted” and so does to need to be given much background information. 7. ( F ) Some businesspersons maintain that American humor is helpful to export and appreciate. 8. ( T ) Taboos often are rooted in the beliefs of the people of a specific region or culture and are passed down from generation to generation. 9. (F ) Japanese negotiators tend to put more emphasis on the literal meanings of words used in negotiation and less emphasis on the relationships established before negotiating begins. 10. ( T ) Culture serves to create a general consensus on fundamental issues and facilitates decision-making during crises.

答案：

<是非判断题一>

1. T 2. T 3. F 4. F 5. T 6. T 7. F 8. T 9. T 10. F

<是非判断题二>

1. F 2. T 3. T 4. T 5. T 6. T 7. F 8. F 9. T 10. F

<是非判断题三>

1. T 2. T 3. F 4. F 5. T 6. F 7. T 8. T 9. F 10. F <是非判断题四>

1. T 2. F 3. T 4. F 5. F 6. T 7. F 8. T 9. F 10. T

<匹配题一>

答题说明：请将以下表述与表中的概念对应，并将选项写在表述前的括号中， 每个选项只能使用一次。 A. uncertainty avoidance B. nonverbal communication C. personal territory D. taboos E. culture F. low-context culture G. verbal communication H. customs I intercommunication J. memo 1. ( E ) The total accumulation of beliefs, customs, values, behaviors, institutions and communication patterns that are shared, learned and passed down through generations in an identifiable group of people.

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2. ( G ) It is carried out either in oral or in written form with the use of words. 3. ( C ) It refers to the space that people have for their own activities.

4. ( I ) The communication between people from different cultures when a member of one culture produces a message for consumption by a member of another culture.

5. ( A ) The degree to which the society is willing to accept and deal with ambiguity and uncertainty.

6. ( J ) It is a hard-copy document, used for communicating inside an organization, usually short.

7. ( B ) The process by which nonverbal behaviors are used, either singly or in combination with verbal behaviors, in the exchange and interpretation of messages in a given situation or context.

8. ( F ) It refers to groups of cultures that value individual orientation and overt communication codes and maintains a heterogeneous normative structure with low cultural demand characteristics.

9. ( D ) Practices or verbal expressions considered by a society or culture as improper or unacceptable.

10. ( H ) They are behaviors generally expected in specific situations and are established, socially acceptable ways of behaving in given circumstances.

<匹配题二>

答题说明：请将以下表述与表中的概念对应，并将选项写在表述前的括号中， 每个选项只能使用一次。 A. personal territory B. kinesics C. high-context culture D. communication E. superstitions F. proxemics G. intercommunication H. teamwork I. negotiation J. individualism 1. ( D ) A process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior, or the exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing or behavior. 2. ( G ) The communication between people from different cultures when a member of one culture produces a message for consumption by a member of another culture.

3. ( B ) The nonverbal behavior related to the movement of the body or part of the body.

4. ( J ) The degree to which individual decision-making and action is accepted and encouraged by the society.

5. ( A ) It refers to the space that people have for their own activities. 6. ( F ) The study of people’s perception and use of space.

7. ( C ) It refers to groups of cultures that value group identity orientation and covert communication codes and maintains a homogeneous normative structure with low cultural demand characteristics.

8. ( E ) Beliefs that are inconsistent with the known laws of science or what

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society considers to be true and rational.

9. ( I ) A discussion between two or more disputants who are trying to work out a solution to their problem.

10. ( H ) The cooperation among employees and employers.

<匹配题三>

答题说明：请将以下表述与表中的概念对应，并将选项写在表述前的括号中， 每个选项只能使用一次。 A. individualism B. memo C. corporate culture D. intercommunication E. uncertainty avoidance F. proxemics G. communication H. culture shock I. personal territory J. etiquette 1. ( G ) A process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior, or the exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing or behavior. 2. ( B ) It is a hard-copy document, used for communicating inside an organization, usually short.

3. ( D ) The communication between people from different cultures when a member of one culture produces a message for consumption by a member of another culture.

4. ( I ) It refers to the space that people have for their own activities.

5. ( E ) The degree to which the society is willing to accept and deal with ambiguity and uncertainty.

6. ( A ) The degree to which individual decision-making and action is accepted and encouraged by the society.

7. ( H ) This term expresses the lack of direction, the feeling of not knowing what to do or how to do things in a new environment, and not knowing what is appropriate or inappropriate.

8. ( C ) The look, the feel, the atmosphere of an organization and people within it.

9. ( J ) It refers to manners and behavior considered acceptable in social and business situations.

10. ( F ) The study of people’s perception and use of space.

<匹配题四>

答题说明：请将以下表述与表中的概念对应，并将选项写在表述前的括号中， 每个选项只能使用一次。 A. culture B. superstitions C. memo D. ethnocentrism E. high-context culture F. taboos G. personal territory H. individualism I. proxemics J. kinesics 1. ( D ) The belief that your own cultural background, including ways of analyzing problems, values, beliefs, language and verbal and nonverbal

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communication, is superior.

2. ( A )The total accumulation of beliefs, customs, values, behaviors, institutions and communication patterns that are shared, learned and passed down through generations in an identifiable group of people.

3. ( H ) The degree to which individual decision-making and action is accepted and encouraged by the society.

4. ( C ) It is a hard-copy document, used for communicating inside an organization, usually short.

5. ( G ) It refers to the space that people have for their own activities.

6. ( E ) It refers to groups of cultures that value group identity orientation and covert communication codes and maintains a homogeneous normative structure with low cultural demand characteristics.

7. ( B ) Beliefs that are inconsistent with the known laws of science or what society considers to be true and rational.

8. ( I ) The study of people’s perception and use of space.

9. ( F ) Practices or verbal expressions considered by a society or culture as improper or unacceptable.

10. ( J ) The nonverbal behavior related to the movement of the body or part of the body. 答案

<匹配题一>

1. E 2. G 3. C 4. I 5. A 6. J 7. B 8. F 9. D 10. H

<匹配题二>

1. D 2. G 3. B 4. J 5. A 6. F 7. C 8. E 9. I 10. H

<匹配题三>

1. G 2. B 3. D 4. I 5. E 6. A 7. H 8. C 9. J 10. F

<匹配题四>

1. D 2. A 3. H 4. C 5. G 6. E 7. B 8. I 9. F 10. J

<名词解释> 1. Stereotype 2. Individualism 3. Etiquette 4. Negotiation

5. Corporate culture

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6. Ethnocentrism

7. Nonverbal communication 8. Globalization

9. Uncertainty avoidance 10. Cultural Patterns 11. Paralanguage 12. Melting pot

13. High-context communication 14. Power Distance

答案：

1. Stereotype is perceptions about certain groups of people or nationalities,

existing with nearly all of people which live in different cultures. It is a complex form of categorization that mentally organizes people’s experiences and guides people’s behaviors toward a particular group of people.

2. Individualism is defined as the degree to which people in a country prefer to

act as individuals rather than as members of groups. In individualistic culture, values of individual achievement, freedom and competition are stressed.

3. Etiquette refers to manners and behavior considered acceptable in social

business settings.

4. Negotiation refers to a process in which two or more entities discuss common

and conflicting interests in order to reach an agreement of mutual benefit.

5. Corporate culture is the set of important understanding that members of a

community share in common. It represents a common perception held by the organization’s members.

6. Ethnocentrism is the belief that one’s own cultural background, including

ways of analyzing problems, values, beliefs, languages, and verbal and nonverbal communication is correct.

7. Nonverbal communication refers to nonword messages such as gestures,

facial expression, interpersonal distance, touch, eye contact, smell and silence.

8. Globalization is defined as the growing economic interdependence of

countries through increasing volume and variety of cross-border transactions and international cash flows, and also through the more rapid and widespread diffusion of technology.

9. Uncertainty avoidance is defined as the extent to which people within a

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culture are made nervous by situations which they perceive as unstructured, unclear, or unpredictable, situations which they therefore try to avoid by maintaining strict codes of behavior and a belief in absolute truths.

10. Cultural Patterns can be defined as a system of beliefs, attitudes and values

that work in combination to provide a coherent, if not always consistent, model for perceiving the world.

11. Paralanguage is related to oral communication; it refers to the rate, pitch,

and volume qualities of the voice, which interrupt or temporarily take the place of speech and affect the meaning of a message.

12. Melting pot means a sociocultural assimilation of people of different

backgrounds and nationalities and the term implied losing ethnic differences and forming one large society or macroculture.

13. High-context communication is one in which most of the information is

already in the person, while very little is in coded, explicit, transmitted part of the message.

14. Power Distance is defined as the degree to which a country accepts the fact

that the differences in its citizens’ physical and intellectual capabilities give rise to inequalities in their well-being. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

<问答题>

The United States has long been called a melting pot. What does this term mean? Explain the concept of cultural values and its characteristics.

Define cultural shock and explain the five stages of cultural shock.

Identify differences between gift-giving and bribery in the culture of United States.

Define the term subculture and macroculture and explain their relations. Explain how people in Japan and in U.S. interpret silence.

Explain functions culture fulfill in international business management. What is international English and explain cultural factors.

What are the differences in the approach of negotiation in Western countries and in Asian countries?

<答案>

1. Melting pot means a sociocultural assimilation of people of differing backgrounds and nationalities; the term implies losing ethnic differences and forming one large society or macroculture. As large a number of immigrants come to America each

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year, America has been referred to as a melting pot.

2. Cultural values are shared ideas about what is true, right, and beautiful and those underlie cultural patterns and guide society in response to the physical and social environment. Cultural values have many characteristics. Values help determine how people ought to behave. Values are shared. Values are learned and transmitted by a variety of sources. Values are programmed early in our lives.

3. Cultural shock is the trauma people experience when moving into a culture different their home culture. Cultural shock is basically a communication problem that involves the frustrations accompanying a lack of understanding of the verbal and nonverbal communication of the host culture, its customs, and its value systems. Culture shock generally goes through five stages: excitement or initial euphoria, crisis or disenchantment, adjustment, acceptance and reentry.

4. Gift giving is an art and is considered as an integral part of building intercultural and social relationships. Bribery is the giving or promising of something, often money, to influence another person’s action. In business world, the purpose of gift giving is to build good will while the purpose of bribery is to gain a business advantage. In America, the value of gifts needs to be considered because gifts with great value may be associated with bribery. According to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the value of the gift should be limited to $25. If the value is more than the limit, it will be considered as bribery.

5. Macro culture is defined as the dominating culture within a society, with the implied meaning of losing ethnic differences and forming one large society. Subcultures are groups of people possessing characteristic traits that set apart and distinguish them from others within a larger society or macroculture. All subcultures will have similarities to the macroculture but will also have some differences.

6. In America, people are uncomfortable with periods of silence and they use fillers such as comments on weather to avoid silence; while the Japanese is quite comfortable with silence and used it as a bargaining tool. In Japan, people who converse with no pauses are viewed as having given little thought to what they are saying and that their thinking lacks focus.

7. Culture fulfills four functions in international business management:

Integration: Culture serves to create a general consensus on fundamental issues and facilitates decision making during process.

Coordination: Shared values and norms can help to coordinate actions.

Motivation: Culture imparts meaning and satisfies basic need and increases motivation within the company and legitimizes external actions.

Identification: Culture offers ways of identifying with the organization and creates a “we-feeling.”

8. International English is English for businesspeople that either deal with other cultures whose native language is not English or for whom English maybe a second language. In order to utilize international English, three cultural factors are important: an understanding of business communication in the other culture or

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residence in the other culture, an idea of how business communication is taught in the other culture, and a knowledge that content errors are more difficult than language errors for another culture to discern.

9. Westerners prefer the direct approach, as American culture emphasizes communication as a tool for articulating specific goals in order to accomplish them. This approach focuses on particulars, especially unresolved ones and addresses them one by one. However, in Asian countries, people are not comfortable with direct and explicit talks, as communication is used to encourage harmony, preserve face, and develop long-term relationship. In Asian countries, a simultaneous, not sequential approach is adopted, in which negotiators look at unresolved issues as potentially resolved because of developing relationship between the two sides.

<案例分析题>

1. Ned Ferguson was a successful manager at a plant in Singapore. Lately, a series of incidents took place and the American staff and the local supervisors had different opinions on how to cope with the trouble. Read the following case carefully, analyze the cultural conflict and provide a solution.

What Caused the Conflict?

For the past three years, Ned Ferguson has served quite successfully as the manager of a U.S.-owned manufacturing company in Singapore. Shortly after Ned’s arrival in Singapore, he instituted a number of changes in the plant operation that increased both production and workers’ satisfaction. However, within the last several months, a series of what seemed to Ned to be unrelated incidents have occurred. First, there had been a fire in the warehouse, which fortunately was contained before too much damage had been done. On the following day, the wife and two children of the local plant supervisor were killed in a spectacular automobile accident. Finally, within the past several weeks, there had been a rash of minor accidents on the assembly line, quite uncharacteristic given the plant’s excellent past safety record. Ned heard rumors were running rampant about the plant being caused by evil spirits, and absenteeism had increased dramatically. To try to deal with these problems, Ned called together his chief supervisors. The American staff recommended that some experts from the insurance company come in to review the safety procedures, which, they argued, would show the workers that the company was taking their safety needs seriously. But Singaporean supervisors considered this step to be inadequate and instead suggested that a local spiritualist be brought in, during work time, to pray for the workers and ward off any evil forces. Ned and his U.S. staff thought that such an action would do nothing but give official support to superstition. The meeting ended without any substantial agreement between the U.S. and Singaporean supervisors.

2. Read the following case and analyze reasons why Peter was angry and refuse

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to take Chen’s apology.

How Can You Still Smile?

Peter is the general manager of an American company in China. Recently, Chen Jun, one of the Chinese managers made a mistake at work that required a lot of effort to fix. Chen Jun was very upset about what had happened, and came to Peter’s office to make a formal apology.

“Peter, I’ve been feeling very upset about the trouble I’ve caused to the company. I’m here to apologize for my mistake. I am terribly sorry about it and I want you to know that it will never happen again.” Chen Jun said, looking at Peter with the smile he had been wearing since he walked into the office.

Peter found it hard to accept the apology. He looked at Chen Jun, and asked, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m very sorry and I promise this won’t happen again,” Jun Chen said, with a smile even broader than before.

“I am sorry I just can’t take your apology. You don’t look sorry at all! ” Peter said angrily.

Chen Jun’s face turned very red. He did not in the least expect Peter to take it negatively. He was desperate to make himself understood. “Peter,” he managed to smile again. “Trust me, no one feel any sorrier than I do about it.”

Peter was almost furious by now, “If you’re that sorry, how can you still smile?”

3. Analyze the following case carefully and find a way to help Jim better understand the following situation.

Are the Problems Right There or Not?

Jim Ellis, vice president of a North Carolina knitwear manufacturer, was sent by his company to observe firsthand how operations were proceeding in their Korean plant and to help institute some new managerial procedures. Before any changes could be made, however, Jim wanted to learn as much as possible about the problems that existed at the plant. During his first week he was met with bows, polite smiles and the continual denial of any significant problems. But Jim was enough of a realist to know that there will be no manufacturing operation that doesn’t have some problems. So after some research, he uncovered a number of problems that the local manager and staff were not acknowledging. None of the problems were particularly unusual or difficult to solve, but Jim was frustrated that no one would admit that any problems existed. “If you don’t acknowledge the problems,” he complained to one of the managers, “how do you expect to be able to solve them?” And then to further exasperate him, when a problem was finally brought to his attention, it was until the end of the workday when there was no time left to solve it.

4. Read the following case carefully and explain your understanding of informality as well as reasons why GE benefits from informality.

GE’s Informality

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At GE, informality is more than just an absence of managers parading around the factory floor in suits, or of reserved parking spaces and other trappings of rank and status. It is deeper than that. At GE, it’s an atmosphere in which anyone can deliver a view, an idea, to anyone else, and it will be listened to and valued, regardless of the seniority of any party involved.

One of GE’s management tenets has been the belief that business must be, or become, number one or number two in their market places. But, this began to lead management teams to define their markets more and more slowly. Then GE took a mid-level company management conference, in which some members point out, without shyness or sugar-coating, that cherished management idea had been taken to nonsensical levels. They told the high-level management that GE was missing opportunities, and limiting their growth horizons, by shrinking their definition of “the market” in order to satisfy the requirement to be number one or number two.

The fresh view shocked high-level management, and then shocked the system. Leaders began to redefine their markets. Rather than the increasingly limited market, they now had their eyes widened to the vast opportunity that lay ahead for their product and service offerings. This simple but very big change and their willingness to see it as “the better idea” was a major factor in their acceleration to double-digit revenue growth rates.

<答案>

1. This case illustrates the high value Americans place on science, logic and rational thought. Since there were no logical links between any of these unfortunate happenings at the plant, Ned and his fellow Americans concluded that they were just an unfortunate yet unrelated series of accidents. The local workforce, on the other hand, believed that sinister forces were at work which required the service of a spiritualist. Unfortunately, Ned and his colleagues got caught in their own value system and missed the major point: It makes little difference whether the belief in evil spirits is true or false. What Ned and his American staff failed to understand was that a) the workers did believe that evil spirits were at work and b) this belief, whether true or false, was causing a major problem for the company.

2. It may be difficult for Westerners to believe that smiling for the Chinese not only means that someone is happy, but also that he is sorry. It is desirable for a Chinese to apologize with a smile, which indicate humbleness and embarrassment. Instead of thinking that Chen Jun was not really sorry for the mistake, Peter might actually take the smile as smirking, a sign of disrespect. A westerner in Chen Jun’s situation would probably keep his eyes lowered, especially during the time he was apologizing. A westerner would expect the employee to look him in the eye and definitely not to smile. The mistaken perception of smile made an awkward situation worse.

3. International English is English for businesspeople that either deal with other cultures whose native language is not English or for whom English maybe a second language. In order to utilize international English, three cultural factors are important:

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an understanding of business communication in the other culture or residence in the other culture, an idea of how business communication is taught in the other culture, and a knowledge that content errors are more difficult than language errors for another culture to discern.

4. Informality is an operating philosophy as well as a cultural characteristic in GE. By opening to views and ideas from mid-level and high-level company staff, and by valuing and implementing pertinent and practical advice, GE broke the limit imposed by its old management tenet and advanced to new achievements. This truly reflects the value of the informal culture of GE—a culture that breeds an endless search for ideas that stand or fall on their merits rather than on the rank of their originators, a culture that brings every mind into the game.

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