Culture Workshop – ITALY EESL536 Chihye Kang

Contents General Information Italian Values & Attitude Communication Style Culture Learning Activity

General Information Location: Southern Europe Ethnic Make-up: Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north/ Albanian- and Greek-Italians in the south) Religions: predominantly Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community Language: Italian (93% of population-native Italian speakers, 50% speak a regional dialect, many dialects are mutually unintelligible)

Italian Values & Attitudes Power Distance 50, medium ranking Hierarchy should be respected and inequalities amongst people are acceptable. It is normal for a high level manager to have special benefits that his subordinates have not. (i.e. a reserved parking place, a larger office) Age is an important factor for one’s career. In southern Italy, PDI is more obvious.

Italian Values & Attitudes Individualism 76, an individualistic culture “me” centered in the big cities of the North Having their own personal ideas and objectives in life is very motivating and the route to happiness is through personal fulfillment. In Southern Italy, less individualistic, the family network and the group one belongs to are important social aspects.

Italian Values & Attitudes Masculinity 70, a masculine society Highly success oriented Children are taught from an early age that competition is good and to be a winner is important in one’s life. Italians show their success by acquiring status symbols such as a beautiful car, a big house, and a yacht.

Italian Values & Attitudes Fashion Appearances matter in Italy. The way you dress can indicate your social status, your family’s background, and your education level. First impressions are lasting impressions in Italy.

Tips for Classroom Activities Individualistic culture Promote their self-fulfillment. Even in a group activity, carefully design to reveal their personal dedication and success. Masculine society Use their competitive spirit. Do games or activities to compete one another, then their participation and passion will be aroused.

Communication Style .

Communication Style High context culture People derive much information from nonverbal and environmental cues and less information from the words of a message. Very animated and dramatic (sometimes overly) during conversations Large displays of emotion, often it may appear that people are arguing when in fact they are just having a conversation.

Communication Style Personal space & Touching Eye contact An arm’s length distance or a bit less Considerably less between friends and family Tend to touch quite a bit during conversations Eye contact Direct eye contact tends to be the norm. Not looking someone in the eyes when speaking, especially when shaking hands is usually considered extremely rude.

Communication Style Non-verbal cues Non-verbal cues Avoidance Interest Avert eyes Cross arms Lean back Close mouth Non-verbal cues Eye contact Raised brows Lean in Smile

Communication Style Greeting When meeting an Italian for the first time, be ready to shake hands, but if they come at you be ready to air kiss. Air Kiss: simply pressing your cheek to someone else’s Starting with the right cheek and moving to the left Lips contact is not necessary, but ok.

Culture Learning Activity Greet, Dress, Talk like Italians! Divide into groups of 3. Read the handout for more information. Decide the role (two Italians and an observer). Choose a proper set of a place and clothes. Two greet and talk each other like Italians. One gives feedback to the two based on the checklist, and share opinions. Change the roles till all take the role of an observer.

References http://geert-hofstede.com/italy.html http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global- etiquette/italy-country-profile.html http://www.culturecrossing.net/basics_business_stud ent_details.php?Id=8&CID=102 http://www.yourguidetoitaly.com/dressing-tips- while-traveling-in-italy.html http://www.slideshare.net/SNash53328/culture- and-nonverbal-communication-in-italy