Module Assignments: Please answer the following questions from your textbook
readings, and submit your detailed responses via the Module 1 dropbox as ONE
Word document. Please cite your information resources if you use sources besides
your textbook. Turnitin is used as a resource in this class and other graduate
classes. Label each question with its corresponding number please.
1. In Chapter 1 of your text, Andrew Solomonâ€s book, Far from the Tree, is
discussed and he says that children share some traits with their parents or
caregivers. He calls these “vertical identities” which are passed down
through strands of DNA and cultural/family traditions. Solomon cites skin
color, language, religion, and nationality as examples. There are also
acquired traits which he refers to as horizontal identities which are different
from oneâ€s parents are acquired from a peer group. How do you feel about
these concepts? Do you have examples or research to base your thoughts
and opinions on? Please explain.
2. How would you define the word “Culture”? Is your definition the same as
your textbook authors†definition? Explain.
3. How do traditions impact your life? Our nation? Other nations? How did Dr.
Geert Hofstede identify dimensions of national character?
4. Review Schmitz ten concepts for a cultural profile given in your text. Are all
concepts equal? Please summarize your understanding of these concepts.
5. When confronted with cultural differences, why do we often dig in and
believe our way is right rather than listen?
6. The questions listed from “So Youâ€re Going Abroad: Are You Prepared?” are
questions that will be very useful for all of your cultural research reports.
Are you finding details such as these listed when you are researching your
group? Do you think this is a good guideline for your research? Why or Why
not?
7. How do you distinguish between “Listening” and “Hearing”?
8. Most researchers say at least 80% of what we communicate is nonverbal
communication. Share some nonverbal communication errors or traits that
you have recently observed that spoke louder than the actual words. Body
language, facial expressions, and gestures are examples.
9. Negotiating across cultures is a process that many in our society will face
often in our careers. What needs to be considered when analyzing the
process as well as what are some typical assumptions made about those we
are negotiating with? Weiss and Stripp believe there are 12 variables in
every international negotiation; please summarize those variables. Helpful
site for the 12 variables: http://weissnegotiation.com/wp-
content/uploads/2010/04/Negotiating-with-Fgn-Busi_persons.pdf
10. As a negotiator, list your strengths and your weaknesses. Write a short
action plan to become a more skillful negotiator.
11. If you could be a person from a culture other than your own, what culture
would that be? Why?
12. If you were working as an expatriate in another culture, do you think you
would have an ethnocentric, polycentric, or geocentric mindset? Offer
evidence from the way you behave in the present with people you that you
know, to support your view. In addition to your text, you may also find this
site helpful: https://businessjargons.com/ethnocentric-approach.html
Required Textbook:
Managing Cultural Difference, 10 th Edition, Moran, Abramson,
and Moran. ISBN: 9781138223684