Intercultural Competence

4.1 Characteristics of Intercultural Conflict

Conflict is usually defined as involving a perceived or real incompatibility of goals, values, expectations, or outcomes between two or more interdependent individuals or groups. An example of intercultural conflict can be seen between people sorting or assembly plants along the Mexican – U.S. border. Because Mexicans and U.S. Americans work alongside one another, intercultural conflict inevitably occurs. For example, some Mexican managers think that the U.S. American managers are rude in their dealings with each other and with the workers. While both Mexican and U.S. American managers have common goals, they also have some different expectations and values, which leads to conflict. The Mexican managers expect the U.S. American managers to be more polite and to value harmony in their relationships. The U.S. American managers expect the Mexicans to be more direct and honest and not to worry so much about the “face” and feelings of other managers and workers. These conflicts have roots in the history of U.S. - Mexican relations, a history characterized by economic and military domination on the part of the United States and by hostility and resentment on the part of Mexico.

There is often a great deal of ambiguity in intercultural conflicts. We may be unsure of how to handle the conflict or of whether the conflict is seen in the same way by the other person. And the other person may not even think there is a conflict. However when we encounter ambiguity, we quickly resort to our default style of handling conflict – the style we learned in our family. If your preferred way of handling conflict is to deal with it immediately but you are in a conflict with someone who prefers to avoid it, the conflict may become exacerbated as you both retreat to your preferred styles. Thus, the confronting person becomes increasingly confrontational, while the avoider retreats further.

Language issues may be important ones. Language can sometimes lead to intercultural conflict, and it can also be the primary vehicle for solving intercultural conflict. When you don’t know the language well, it is very difficult to handle conflict effectively. At the same time some silence is not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes it provides a “cooling off” period during which the participants can calm down and gather their thoughts.

Date: 2015-01-02; view: 965