poland high context culture
You may be wondering, by this point, how low-context and high-context cultures differ across different countries. Face gaining refers to the strategies a person might use to build their reputation and feelings of prestige (e.g., talking about accomplishments, active social media presence), whereas face losing refers to those behaviors someone engages in that can harm their reputation or feelings of prestige (e.g., getting caught in a lie, failing). Each of the participants (culturally diverse team) was making notes on their particular tasks as well as general goals of the project. What is important to remember when analysing these graphs is that we cant definitely say whether a culture IS a low or high context. A variety of other sports like basketball, hockey, swimming, weightlifting, boxing, etc., are played in the country. High-context cultures have a lot of unwritten rules that govern communication and interaction. When Poles are comfortable with you and you are part of their private circle, communication can be more outspoken, direct and even cynical. Let us help you make your transition easy! 45 Lien represents the confidence of society in the integrity of egos moral character, the loss of which makes it impossible for him to function properly within the community. Negotiations with new customers are going to be tougher and longer until a relationship is established. Moreover, in a collectivistic culture, there is a belief that you should do what benefits the group. Younger managers are beginning to adopt a less hierarchical, more results-driven manner of managing teams. Generally there is low tolerance for ambiguity and people require detailed explanation and understanding before making decisions. D.I.V.E. When it came to trait affection received, all four groups differed from one another. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Polish art has been a blend of European trends with indigenous influence. Geography Communication in Polish society is ' low context ', meaning that they usually speak frankly and can be very direct when it comes to saying 'no'. Femininity, on the other hand, involves characteristics like having a good working relationship with ones manager and coworkers, cooperating with people at work, and security (both job and familial). So I was talking about Asia tables (region-Asia), while my teammate was taking about Asia from the Polish team confirming their participants for a Poland table Think about a co-cultural group that you belong to. There was atime when I attended a meeting where a decision has been made on the task split and further steps of the project. Employees may be suspicious of training because of the communist legacy and may not recognize it as a perk for advancement. Dress, manner-isms, relationships, meeting setting and hierarchy all contrib-ute to the way a message may be delivered and interpreted. Households in the second quintile had incomes between $20,600 and $39,764, those in the third quintile had incomes between $39,765 and $64,582, and those in the fourth quintile had incomes between $64,583 and $104,096. The top five most masculine countries are Slovakia, Japan, Hungary, Austria, and Venezuela (the U.S. is number 19 out of 76); whereas, feminine countries are represented by Sweden, Norway, Latvia, Netherlands, and Denmark. The killing of a large section of the Polish intelligentsia by the Nazis and the Communists during and after World War II greatly reduced the rigid social stratification in the country. In fact, within the latest edition of the book examining these characteristics, Hofstede and his colleagues title the chapter on uncertainty avoidance as What is Different is Dangerous, calling out the threat factor people in high uncertainty avoidance cultures feel.31 Cultures at the high end of uncertainty avoidance include Greece, Portugal, Guatemala, Uruguay, and Belgium Flemish; whereas, cultures at the low end of uncertainty avoidance include Singapore, Jamaica, Denmark, Sweden, and Hong Kong. Jozef Chemoski was a famous Polish painter belonging to the realist school. Low vs. high context In anthropology, high-context and low-context cultures are the ends of a continuum portraying the level of explicit information and the importance of context in a given culture. Poland, and the United States. Messages are both spoken and read between the lines. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions 2023 worldatlas.com. Customers with long standing are given priority over new customers. Furthermore, individuals from more indulgent cultures tend to be more optimistic, while their restrained counterparts tend to be more cynical. To give you an example, in comparison to Asian countries such as Japan, China or Indonesia both UK and Poland could be described as rather a low-context culture. The history and customs of the country are well reflected by the Jan Matejko inspired Historicist painting of Krakw school. The goal is to work hard now, so you can have the payoff later. Documents should all be translated into Polish even if negotiations are in English. In my opinion switching from high-context culture to a low-context one is much easier, technically, than the other way around. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Today, many companies have goal-setting, 360 feedback, and training programs. You can read a short introduction to the series here. Another very important researcher in the area of culture is a man by the name of Geert Hofstede. The world's cultural diversity naturally leads to many types of communication differences from one region to the next. Collectivistic cultures tend to think about actions that might affect the entire group rather than specific members of the group. It is crucial that we compare the cultures in relation to each other on the graph. Business is business. Among the non-alcoholic beverages, the Kompot is an indigenous drink that is produced by boiling one or more types of fruits with or without the addition of sugar and spices. Hofstede refers to this as being more relationally oriented. Journal of Intercultural Communication Research, 46(2), 161-172. https://doi.org/10.1080/17475759.2017.1292944. In the 1970's, anthropologist Edward T. Hall coined the phrases "high-context culture" and "low- context culture.". In anthropology, high-context culture and low-context culture are ends of a continuum of how explicit the messages exchanged in a culture are and how important the context is in communication.The continuum pictures how people communicate with others through their range of communication abilities: utilizing gestures, relations, body language, verbal messages, or non-verbal messages. Although Poland and England are not so far away from each other on the communication scale, I had moments when low-context behaviours were annoying for me. Low-context cultures are cultures where the emphasis is placed on the words that come out of an individuals mouth. Pregnancy is kept secret as long as possible to guard against the evil eye. Its always great to get another perspective on cultural differences! and Mrs. John Smith. In feminine cultures, men and women are upheld to the same standards, and their relationships should be based on mutual friendship. Poland is also known for its electronic dance music with Vader being the most famous band performing this genre of music. While containing emotion in a business setting is respected, it is not uncommon for people to become very passionate and engaged in a discussion or negotiation. There is a certain pride in being tough and difficult to negotiate with. Summarize the importance of Stella Ting-Toomeys face and facework in interpersonal relationships. Conversely, low-context Doesnt she trust us?. High-context cultures are more likely to be intuitive, contemplative, and concerned with the collective. I would like to close this article with a recommendation as I feel like it can really be an interesting read for you. To do that, I needed to put the relationship-approach aside and realise that whether the person was sending minutes after the meeting or not had nothing to do with trust. Still, they illustrate the importance of knowing and understanding gestures in differing cultures because we do not all interpret nonverbal behavior the same way. Particularism Messages are often implied but not plainly expressed.. 7. Concerts are held and carols are sung throughout the country on New Years Day. All who are present are free to participate; however, in some cases rules of hierarchy mean that senior level people speak first and subordinates will speak when they know it is appropriate. Well, typical. Poland is bordered by 7 countries and the Baltic Sea. An effigy of Marzanna is drowned in the river to signify the end of the ills of the winter season. Emotionally Expressive As such, there is a focus on both persistence and thrift. We cannot escape it; however, some people are more prone to becoming fearful in situations that are ambiguous or unknown. Polish literature developed and evolved since the arrival of Christianity in Poland. However, because there is still a great deal of bureaucracy, deadlines are often delayed. It was simply a reflection of the need for being 100% clear in the message and avoiding any misunderstandings. Marriage plays an important role in the Polish society. President Nixon did the same thing existing an airplane in Brazil flashing his famous OK sign with his thumb and forefinger forming a circle, but this is the middle finger in that culture. The Polish also love playing volleyball and the country has a history of participation in several international competitions of this game. The terms "low-context culture" (LCC) and "high-context culture" (HCC) were created by Hall to describe how communication styles differ across cultures. Yes. #expatcoaching #expatlife #livingabroad #expatcoach #workingabroad #lifeabroad #workabroad #careerabroad #internationallife #internationalcareer #globalcareer #globallife #globalleaders #culturalawareness #selfawareness #selfgrowth #personalgrowth #personaldevelopment #culturalcompetence #movingabroad #zyciezagranica #zycienaemigracji #pracazagranica #rozwojosobisty #polacyzagranica, Yasser started out our conversation curious about coaching, but also a bit uncertain, anxious and hopeful about what it could bring. #expatcoaching #expatlife #livingabroad #expatcoach #workingabroad #lifeabroad #workabroad #careerabroad #internationallife #internationalcareer #globalcareer #globallife #globalleaders #culturalawareness #selfawareness #selfgrowth #personalgrowth #personaldevelopment #culturalcompetence #movingabroad #zyciezagranica #zycienaemigracji #pracazagranica #rozwojosobisty #polacyzagranica, Are you a global leader who has these topics on your mind recently, but not yet sure of the 'how'? There is a great blog of an American living in Poland that I would like to recommend to you as its a very interesting perspective to learn about. Around 10 to 15% of the Polish population is composed of the nobles or the gentry called the szlachta. Some cultures, notably the French and Italians, tend toward deductive arguments, focusing on theories and complex concepts before presenting a fact, statement, or opinion. The way people act with one another may be based on relationship, hierarchy and other contextual cues. When we look at only the two however, it turns out that even though UK and Poland are so close to each other on the scale, you can still feel the difference in the communication style. To show one's disagreement and anger in public is tantamount to admitting loss of control and face, because what is being said is taken personally which may have an influence on interpersonal relationships. Notice that the U.S. does not make it into the top five or the bottom five. Its important to understand that for an American for instance (America is located to the very left of the scale, by the low-context), both British and Polish cultures may seem very high-context and combining that with a tendency to use sarcastic humour cultural shock guaranteed! Homes are generally very small, so there is not a great deal of personal space in the home. A high-context culture relies on implicit communication and nonverbal cues. But the Brazilian culture presents some particularities that McDonald's marketing team seem very aware of. However, many of these beliefs and observances have currently vanished from modern Polish society but are still prevalent in the conservative households in the country. This post is a part of the series where Id like to share some of my cross-cultural experiences and stories. High-context cultures: Much of the society's communication takes place through . yes it is a high context culture! Always, and I hate travelling that often and being tired Is it worth it for these relationships? Dismissal is governed by the laws of the EU. Think through Geert Hofstedes six categories used to evaluate differing cultures and apply Hofstedes ideas to your co-culture. Exchanging business cards is an important business ritual. Compare and contrast two countries and their levels of context. Working with people from low context culture . Poles are also used to less personal space in public, and they offer help to one another on trams, busses and in other public locations. Finally, individuals from indulgent cultures tend to be more extraverted and outgoing as a whole, whereas individuals from restrained cultures tend to be more neurotic. 33 The sixth cultural characteristic is called indulgence vs. restraint, which examines issues of happiness and wellbeing. High-context cultures, on the other hand, are cultures where understanding a message is dependent on the cultural context and a communicators nonverbal behavior. 2023 IOR Global Services. In high-context communication, a message cannot be understood without a great deal of background information. The earliest culture of Poland traces its origin to the culture of the Early Slavs who settled in the country. High-context: "Good communication is sophisticated, nuanced, and layered. Don't hesitate to ask clarifying questions if the intent is not clear or the message sounds confusing. However, nuclear families are more common now and so are families with single parents. Small enterprises have the flexibility to move more quickly. India, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, low-context approach in business might create additional misunderstandings. Why do you think context is such an important cultural characteristic? Legal. What I do remember is that my environment was generally very supportive, I didn't feel like I was leaving with some bad emotions between any of the close family and friends. The dances evolved from a peasants style of dancing to ballroom style dancing by the addition of ballet flavors following the annexation of Eastern Europe by Napoleon. Can be very slow. Its a real life example from my first job in London where I was a campus recruiter and was organising an international event for students studying in the UK but wanting to work for our office in other parts of the world. Admittedly, in Hofstedes research, there does tend to be a difference between females and males on these characteristics (females tend to be more relationally oriented and males more assertive), which is why Hofstede went with the terms masculinity and femininity in the first place. The same is true of thrift. High-context cultures will use communication that focuses on underlying context, meaning, and tone in the message, and not just the words themselves. As the cities in Poland grew during the Middle Ages, the food markets of the country flourished and culinary exchange of ideas also grew. Decisions come from the top, but only after managers can demonstrate consensus has been reached by their teams. People from high-context culture communicate in an allusive way, body language is very important because the interlocutors use non-verbal signals to a large extent. But they pay attention to the volume of their voices and tend to speak quietly in business and in public. Poland is definitely a culture of a higher context than UK. Use titles and surnames until invited to use first names. In the past, men and women who crossed their marriageable age (twenty for women and late 20s for men) were subjected to mockery. The rest of the world tends toward high-context communication. In such a culture, conformism, the. More simplistically, face is essentially a persons reputation and feelings of prestige within multiple spheres, including the workplace, the family, personal friends, and society at large.49 For our purposes, we can generally break face down into general categories: face gaining and face losing. Some interesting findings associated with indulgence include experiencing higher levels of positive emotions and remembering those emotions for more extended periods. It triggered a lot of thoughts and memories when I was reading it. The LibreTexts libraries arePowered by NICE CXone Expertand are supported by the Department of Education Open Textbook Pilot Project, the UC Davis Office of the Provost, the UC Davis Library, the California State University Affordable Learning Solutions Program, and Merlot. in with awareness or stay confused. The final characteristic of cultures is a new one first reported on in the 2010 edition of Cultures and Organizations. Management in high-and low-context cultures - Poland and Korea in the light of empirical research. US is the most low-context culture followed by Australia, Canada, Netherlands, Germany, UK. Communicators in high-context cultures pay attention to more than the words spoken - they also pay attention to interpersonal relationships, nonverbal expressions, physical settings, and social settings. Accessibility StatementFor more information contact us atinfo@libretexts.orgor check out our status page at https://status.libretexts.org. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Krzysztof Komeda was a famous Jazz musician from the country who composed several movie soundtracks. The danger here is that a person from a direct culture may come across as insensitive and ill-mannered, while the person from the indirect culture may appear scattered and shifty. When it came to trait affection given, the United States participants reported giving more affection than any of the three other countries. The United States ranks 64th out of 76 countries analyzed (Singapore was number 76). Trait affection given and received: A test of Hofstedes theoretical framework. With class, many cultures have three clear segments low, middle, and upper. Family provides the foundation for endurance andperseverance, Each family member must take responsibility for self andfamily, Hierarchy helps structure roles and reduce uncertainty, Traditionally male dominated society, slowly changing. Older, more traditional managers have technical skills but may lack management skills. Men usually wait for women to offer their hand first. In masculine cultures, women are the caretakers of the home, while men are to be healthy and wealthy. Lets laugh together - what are some of your stories of language misunderstandings? How did your friends react to your decision of moving abroad? In my opinion Polish sarcasm is however very often related to some linguistic games or is bound to historic events or leaders. Lien is both a social sanction for enforcing moral standards and an internalized sanction.46 On the other hand, mien-tzu stands for the kind of prestige that is emphasized in this country [America]: a reputation achieved through getting on in life, through success and ostentation.47 However, David Yau-fai Ho argues that face is more complicated than just lien and mien-tzu, so he provided the following definition: Face is the respectability and/or deference which a person can claim for himself from others, by virtue of the relative position he occupies in his social network and the degree to which he is judged to have functioned adequately in that position as well as acceptably in his general conduct; the face extended to a person by others is a function of the degree of congruence between judgments of his total condition in life, including his actions as well as those of people closely associated with him, and the social expectations that others have placed upon him. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Which of the following countries is considered a high context culture? Most business entertaining takes place in restaurants. 6: Cultural and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication, Book: Interpersonal Communication - A Mindful Approach to Relationships (Wrench et al. Foreigners are expected to be punctual, and there is a value on being on time. People in cultures with high uncertainty avoidance can view this ambiguity and lack of knowledge as threatening, which is one reason why people in these cultures tend to have higher levels of anxiety and neuroticism as a whole. The other countries did not differ from each other with regard to trait affection given. Looking forward to hearing your story! Other regions of Poland have their own folk costumes with most involving a display of vibrant colors, embroidery, ornamentation, lace aprons, beaded jewelery, and elaborate headgears. The results also indicated that trait affection given was significantly associated with the individualism-collectivism, masculinity-femininity, and uncertainty avoidance dimensions of cultures. A high-context culture relies on implicit communication and nonverbal cues. One of the biggest differences between cultures is the method by which we communicate. International. High-context communicators tend to expect to be noticed for their hard work, sacrifice, and achievement, without ever having to verbalize themselves. #expatcoaching #expatlife #livingabroad #expatcoach #workingabroad #lifeabroad #workabroad #careerabroad #internationallife #internationalcareer #globalcareer #globallife #globalleaders #culturalawareness #selfawareness #selfgrowth #personalgrowth #personaldevelopment #culturalcompetence #movingabroad #zyciezagranica #zycienaemigracji #pracazagranica #rozwojosobisty #polacyzagranica, Lets laugh at language misunderstandings together! Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. We had tables for each region or country and coordinating the event preparation and lists of invitees with our recruiting colleagues from the participating offices. Recruiting is done through executive search firms and through the internet. Communication within a family or close-knit group is high context in almost any part of the world. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Furthermore, there tend to be higher levels of prejudice and higher levels of ideological, political, and religious fundamentalism, which does not allow for any kind of debate. Wincenty Kadubek, Gallus Anonymus, and Jan Dugosz were some of the famous Middle Age Polish authors. Anxiety about the future based on: a history of beingtaken over by neighboring countries; and the legacy ofbeing under communist rule from 1945-1989. From years of research examining both extraversion and neuroticism, we know that extraverted individuals have more successful interpersonal relationships than those who are highly neurotic. "The Culture Map Persuading. The United States is number one on individualism, according to Hofstedes data.27 Americans are considered individualistic. Face-negotiation theory ultimately concerned with three different types of face: self-face (concern for our face), other-face (concern for another persons face), and mutual-face (concern for both interactants and the relationship).39 As you can see from Ting-Toomeys last assumption in her theory above, individuals who are competent in facework can recognize when facework is necessary and then handle those situations appropriately, effectively, and adaptively. If you can find so much value in a one-hour meeting, imagine how much you can achieve if you put in that kind of work into yourself consistently!! In other words, we think about ourselves as individuals rather than the collective group. Individualistic, but with a large emphasis on family as an extension of the individual. The Drowning of Marzanna is a festival held to bid farewell to winter and welcome spring. The St. Stephan's Day is celebrated the next day. One of the earliest researchers in the area of cultural differences and their importance to communication was a researcher by the name of Edward T. Hall. Jan Kochanowski was a renowned Polish poet of the time. Meyer defines them as follows: Low-context: Good communication is precise, simple and clear. However, it is sometimes challenging for outsiders to understand the real message in the communication because people may talk around the main issue and expect the real meaning will be understood. These are some important high-context culture characteristics to look out for. In the past, HR was seen as a channel for instilling the goals of the communist party. Hofstede also refers to these tendencies as being more assertive. Poles are good listeners, and may listen thoroughly before responding. The Polish version of Santa, Mikolaj visits children on Christmas Eve or on December 6th to shower them with gifts. But making decisions may take longer than in some fixed time cultures because of the emphasis on maintaining relationships and building consensus. In 2017, Daniel H. Mansson and Alds G. Sigurardttir set out to examine the concept of trait affection in relation to Hofstedes theoretical framework. It can be served hot or cold. For understanding culture, Hofstede acknowledges that this distinction ultimately has a lot to do with work goals.28 On the masculine end of the spectrum, individuals tend to be focused on items like earnings, recognition, advancement, and challenge. In my eyes however thats nothing in comparison to what the Polish are capable of. I know these are not malicious comments, we all know that, don't we? #expatcoaching #expatlife #livingabroad #expatcoach #workingabroad #lifeabroad #workabroad #careerabroad #internationallife #internationalcareer #globalcareer #globallife #globalleaders #culturalawareness #selfawareness #selfgrowth #personalgrowth #personaldevelopment #culturalcompetence #movingabroad #zyciezagranica #zycienaemigracji #pracazagranica #rozwojosobisty #polacyzagranica. With time after the move, some innocent guilt-tripping began too. One of Halls most essential contributions to the field of intercultural communication is the idea of low-context and high-context cultures. According to a 2013 report from the U.S. Census department (using income data from 2012), here is how income inequality in the U.S. looks: Households in the lowest quintile had incomes of $20,599 or less in 2012. People in more indulgent countries are going to be happier than their restrained counterparts, and people within indulgent cultures show lower rates of cardiovascular problems commonly associated with stress. Interpersonally, long-term oriented countries were more satisfied with their contributions to Being attentive to daily human relations, deepening human bonds in family, neighborhood and friends or acquaintances when compared to their short-term counterparts.32. It includes a broad literature review that describes management styles in Poland and draws some comparisons to other countries. When it comes to external business communication however, my experience is that the British are closer to the low-context end of the scale.