Perception and Attribution Kerry Hogan February 23, 2011

Communication Across Cultures by Nancy J Alder –Nancy J. Alder S. Bronfman chair at McGill University in Montreal, Canada B.A. in economics (UCLA) M.B.A. in management (UCLA) PhD in management (UCLA) Consults private and government organizations on projects in Africa, Europe, Asia, North and South America, and the Middle East (McGill University administrator, 2010)

Overview (Alder) Communicated messages are never interpreted exactly as it they are intended to be. Cultural differences exacerbate this point. –Types of Communication –Perception –Stereotypes –Misinterpretation –Effective Cross Cultural Communication

Communication (Alder) –Communication is the exchange of meaning Perception and interpretation Verbal and non-verbal Conscious as well as unconscious

Nonverbal Components of Empathetic Communication by Richard F. Haase AND Donald T. Tepper, Jr. The purpose of the study: conclude significance of verbal and von- verbal components on the communication of empathy Procedure: –48 findings –26 counselors –5 point scale Findings: –Nonverbal components accounted for nearly twice the variance judged by verbal components –Relying solely on verbal communication reduces empathy by 68% Eye contact Trunk lean Active listening

Communication (Alder) The greater the difference in background, greater difference in meaning attached to the words.

F’s? Finished Files Are the Result of years of Scientific Study Combined with the Experience of Years.

Perception (Alder) Selective Learned Culturally determined Remains consistent Inaccurate

Is Love Blind? The Effects of Experience and Infatuation on the Perception of Love by Maya Aloni and Frank J Bernieri “Are expert lovers more attuned to the love around them?”

Is Love Blind? The Effects of Experience and Infatuation on the Perception of Love by Maya Aloni and Frank J Bernieri Hypothesis: Experience with love and infatuation would increase accuracy of perceiving love among others –Couples asked to talk about things they enjoyed doing together –Splices of the tape 10 seconds long- watched 25 splices –Asked to judge the extent of love for the man and the woman –Asked how confident they were in their assumptions

Is Love Blind? The Effects of Experience and Infatuation on the Perception of Love by Maya Aloni and Frank J Bernieri Conclusion? –People who were in love or had much experience, especially recent experience, with love and infatuation, had lower accuracy in which another’s love was judged, even though they had higher confidence in their accuracy. THEIR PERCETPTION WAS INACCURATE

What do you see?

Stereotypes (Alder) Never describe individual behavior Effective stereotyping allows people to understand and act appropriately in new situations. Can be harmful when: Wrong placement Incorrectly describes group norms Inappropriate evaluation of group Confuse stereotype with individual Fail to modify stereotype

Discovering Inter-Cultural Perceptual Differences in MNE’s by John B. Kidd Sociometrics –“family” cluster – China or Japan Top-down management Saving face Networking Polychronic (parallel streams of time) –“Village Market” cluster - US or UK Do not care for hierarchy Monochromic- stick to appointments Do not find networking important More about individual rather than organization

Misinterpretation (Alder) Subconscious cultural “blinders” Lack of cultural self-awareness (pg 320) –Is it better to admit you don’t know, or to lie and pretend you do? Projected similarity Parochialism

Effective cross-cultural communication (Alder) Global managers must “know they don’t know” –Assume difference until similarity is proven Emphasize description rather than interpretation or evaluation –Interpretation and evaluation- based on culture and background See through the eyes of international colleagues Treat situations as a “hypothesis to be tested” –Treat as guess- not as certainty

References Alder, Nancy J. (2002) COMMUNICATING ACROSS CULTURES. International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior, Aloni, Maya, & Bernieri, Frank J. (2004) IS LOVE BLIND? THE EFEECTS OF EXPERIENCE AND INFATUATION ON THE PERCEPTION OF LOVE. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 28 (4), Hasse, Richard F, & Tepper, Donald T Jr. (1972) NONVERBAL COMPONENTS OF EMPATHETIC COMMUNICATION. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 19 (5), Kidd, John B. (1986) Discovering Inter-Cultural Perceptual Differences of MNE’s. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 16 (2), McGill University administrator,. (2010, September 30). Nancy J. Adler. Retrieved from