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Since North American business practices tend to follow low-context norms, most of us are more familiar with this system than we are with high-context cultures. Because of this, many features of cultural behavior in high-context cultures, such as individual roles and expectations, do not need much detailed or thought-out explanation. Nonetheless, the contexting model simply cannot be described as an empirically validated model. A simplified example mentioned by Hall is that scientists working in "hard science" fields (like chemistry and physics) tend to have lower-context cultures: because their knowledge and models have fewer variables, they will typically include less context for each event they describe. 231 lessons. According to Hall's theory, the Chinese and Korean samples represented higher-context cultures while the American sample represents a lower context culture. Anchor Press/Doubleday. Hall and Hall proposed a "spectrum" of national cultures from "High-Context cultures" to "Low-Context Cultures. To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member. The general terms "high context" and "low context" (popularized by Edward Hall) are used to describe broad-brush cultural differences between societies. low-context communication is "the mass of information is vested in the explicit code". In high-context cultures, people are said to prefer symbolic, artful language that is implicit. Examples of high and low context cultures It can be helpful to consider a few examples of high and low context cultures. The reverse holds true for High (Collectivistic) Context Cultures. The cultural context. In. [10] In low-context cultures, relationships are not viewed as important figures to identity. For example, if you have ever been to a family gathering, then you have experience with a high-context culture. Create your account. However, there are some other characteristics also. - Effects & Types, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs): Definition, effects & Types, Trepanning: Tools, Specialties & Definition, What is Pseudoephedrine? Explain the differences between high- and low-context cultures, giving examples of each. Most of the cultural behavior aspects are not open for the reason that many of the members are aware of what to do and what thoughts to engage in. What is high and low context culture examples? Required fields are marked *, This Article was Last Expert Reviewed on January 24, 2023 by Chris Drew, PhD. Type of paper: Research Paper. Websites catering to high-context audiences had a lot of animation & images. Effectively communicating within this culture, therefore, requires messaging that is perceived as objective, professional, and efficient. Examples of low-context cultures include the United States, Australia, and many European countries. High-context cultures are those that communicate in ways that are implicit and rely heavily on context. You can find his work on The Print, Live Wire, and YouTube. India and Japan are typically high-context, highly collectivistic cultures, where business is done by building relationships and maintaining respectful communication. They also are AT-CTI certified. Both often take many aspects of the other's cultural communication abilities and strengths into account. Guffey et al. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We have close, personal relationships with our relatives. The high and low context cultures in this concept refers to how important contextual cues are in interpreting a message. I feel like its a lifeline. A few examples of high-context cultures include China, Japan, South Africa, Argentina, and Spain; While low-context cultures are found more dominantly in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Focusing on tradition creates opportunities for higher-context messages between individuals of each new generation, and the high-context culture feeds back to the stability hence allows the tradition to be maintained. Communicators in low-context cultures (such as those in North America, Scandinavia, and Germany) depend little on the context of a situation to convey their meaning. Lower-context culture: United States, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Canada and other European nations. [6] For example, it could be argued that the Canadian French language is higher context than Canadian English, but lower context than Spanish or French French. These are some important high-context culture characteristics to look out for. Overall, this study provides further evidence to support the high versus low-context culture concepts with Chinese, Korean, and American participants. Typically a high-context culture will be relational, collectivist, intuitive, and contemplative. the study of body movement including gestures, hand, arm, and leg movements, facial expressions, eye contact, and stance or posture Low-context message a message where the message is encoded in the words used or in the verbal expression and not as much in the context Masculinity-Femininity It further attempts to draw parallels between face-to-face communication and communication on the web by looking at communication rules and patterns in high-context cultures and comparing and contrasting them to the . In a low-context culture, communication occurs through explicitly spelled out and defined words, and listeners just have to interpret spoken or written words as they are. A high-context culture is a culture or society that communicates dominantly through the use of contextual elements, such as specific forms of body language, the status of an individual, and. Low context can describe situations, environments and cultures. One approach to gaining such an insight is through the use of the high and low context culture framework, which was established by anthropologist Edward T. Examples of low context cultures are countries such as China, Brazil or Saudi Arabia. A high-context culture is one in which communication may be more unspoken rather than explicit - for example, much attention is paid to body language, facial expressions, and other non-verbal cues in order to discern a speaker's meaning. - Definition & Assessment, Bipolar vs. Borderline Personality Disorder, Atypical Antipsychotics: Effects & Mechanism of Action, What Is a Mood Stabilizer? We cite peer reviewed academic articles wherever possible and reference our sources at the end of our articles. A high-context culture is a culture or society that communicates dominantly through the use of contextual elements, such as specific forms of body language, the status of an individual, and the tone of voice employed during speech. This concept was introduced by Edward T. Hall, an anthropologist back in 1976. Since understanding every culture has its level of complexity, it is hard for other country people to determine what is the state of culture of the country they visit as a traveller. However, no country is low-context or high-context in absolute terms; instead, there is a mix of explicit & implicit communication everywhere. Verbal message is explicit. An error occurred trying to load this video. High-context communications typically take place in a collectivist setting, or within a large group of people who share similar goals, values, or norms (ingroups). London: Routledge. Low-context communication is often seen in Western, more individualistic cultures (i.e., U.S., Australia, some European countries) where communication is direct, to the point, and one doesn't have to guess the meaning or intention behind what is being said. Want to create or adapt books like this? High-context defines cultures that are usually relational and collectivist, and which most highlight interpersonal relationships. Some recognized examples include: Higher-context culture: China, India, Korea, Japan, other Asian countries, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Mauritania, Oman, and Yemen, African countries such as Tanzania, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Nigeria, Latin America, the Pacific islands, France, Greece, Finland, Ireland, Italy, and Russia. A low-context culture is a culture in which people communicate explicitly. In high cultures, much of the communication is understood by the group either by non-verbal coding, which refers to common body language; distinct in-groups and out-group's, which refers to the cohesiveness of the group; and covert and implicit messages, which refers to what we refer . Many low context cultures are individualist so people openly express their views, and tend to make important information obvious to others. [31], Between each type of culture context, there will be forms of miscommunication because of the difference in gestures, social cues, and intercultural adjustments; however, it is important to recognize these differences and learn how to avoid miscommunication to benefit certain situations. Beyond Culture. Intercultural communication. Hofstede, G. (1984). Cultures and communication in which context is of great importance to structuring actions is referred to as high context. High context is where the groups of people or societies in which individuals have had close links in the course of a long period. Members of ingroups usually share many characteristics and experiences. For the processing of complex messages, the perspective of context theory is very relevant. Low context cultures emphasize individuality and tasks. If you want to appear polite, you need to be willing to greet strangers and thank . From each culture, 96 business managers were surveyed for the American and Chinese sample and 50 managers were surveyed from Korea. Sourabh Yadav is a freelance writer & filmmaker. In this article, we will give you examples of high and low context mediation. In low-context cultures, gestures and facial expressions are never the primary means of communication; they only serve to clarify or complement a point. They are not simply complementary but are often used as the primary means of conveying a message and require the members to have greater cultural understanding. They rely less on the shared values/assumptions of the group and the context of the situation. Depending on the amount of information conveyed, cultures are classified as being high-context and low-context. This is in direct contrast to low-context cultures, in which information is communicated primarily through language and rules are explicitly spelled out. Your email address will not be published. ", Last edited on 27 February 2023, at 23:13, http://db19.linccweb.org/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/rowmandasj/high_context/0, "Intercultural Communication on Web sites: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Web sites from High-Context Cultures and Low-Context Cultures", "The Influence of High- and Low-Context Communication Styles On the Design, Content, and Language of Business-To-Business Web Sites", "The Influence of High-/Low-Context Culture on Perceived Ad Complexity and Liking", "Communication Style and Cultural Features in High/Low Context Communication Cultures: A Case Study of Finland, Japan and India", 10.1002/(SICI)1520-6793(199809)15:6<507::AID-MAR2>3.0.CO;2-A, "Communicational Features in High/Low Context Organizational Culture: A Case Study of Romania and Russia", "low-context and high-context communication", https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/dictmedia/communication_intercultural_communication/0, "Communication: intercultural communication", "Managing conflict in global teams: 4 keys to leveraging cultural differences in diverse teams", "International communication 101: staying on the right side of culture", "Individualism, Collectivism, High And Low Context", "Discovering cultural differences (and similarities) in facial expressions of emotion", "The Human Face as a Dynamic Tool for Social Communication", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=High-context_and_low-context_cultures&oldid=1141991389, This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 23:13. Wurtz studied McDonalds online advertising in various countries such as Japan, Germany, the United States, etc. Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you Examples of low- and high-context cultures are those based in the following culture clusters: High-context cultures The Sub-Saharan Africa Cluster The Middle East Cluster The Latin Europe Cluster The Eastern Europe Cluster The Latin America Cluster The Southern Asia Cluster The Confucian Asia Cluster Low-context cultures The Anglo Cluster Their communication is less-task oriented, and their decision-making is driven by relationships, shared experiences, and emotions. Learn more about our academic and editorial standards. For example, resemblance is a significant trait in cultures with a high level of context. For example, in one country a cow is seen as leather, in another one - as a deity and in another one as dinner. Messages can be contextualized by assuming that the audience would think in the same manner and will follow the underlying meaning implied in someone's speech or writing as a result of these common experiences. [30][32], Families, subcultures and in-groups typically favour higher-context communication. Pages: 3. This also means that low-context communication may fail due to the overload of information, which makes culture lose its screening[definition needed] function. People from low-context cultures value logic, facts, and directness. For an outsider, it is easier to enter into low-context cultures because one does not need to be aware of the shared history/values of the group. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall first discussed high-context culture in his 1976 book titled Beyond Culture. In, Meyer, C. (2017). Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values. ; it is the way we communicate, do business and see the world. Table 2 shows a classification of countries in low and high context, their characteristics and the expected role . Meanwhile, in low-context cultures, more explicit speech is needed in order to allow the listener to fully understand the message. People have many acquaintances they have fewer close friends. [18], Therefore, higher-context cultures tend to correlate with cultures that also have a strong sense of tradition and history, and change little over time. It describes the level of explicit information and the importance of context in a given culture, indicating the range of communicative abilities (verbal messages, gestures, etc.) [30] The diversity within a main culture shows how the high and low scale differs depending on social settings such as school, work, home, and in other countries; variation is what allows the scale to fluctuate even if a large culture is categorized as primarily one or the other. Cultural differences in advertising and marketing may also be explained through high- and low-context cultures. [41] One study on McDonald's online advertising compared Japan, China, Korea, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and the United States, and found that in high-context countries, the advertising used more colors, movements, and sounds to give context, while in low-context cultures the advertising focused more on verbal information and linear processes. What are the effects on the communication process? [2] High-context cultures often exhibit less-direct verbal and nonverbal communication, utilizing small communication gestures and reading more meaning into these less-direct messages. It can imply understanding or agreement, but it can also mean their conversea lack of certainty. It is important to note that while a nation or society may be widely considered a high-context or low-context culture, certain events occur in the opposite context regularly (such as family gatherings in the United States). Devon has tutored for almost two years. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. The following are illustrative examples. For example, families typically engage in high context communication whereby they can communicate much with subtleties such as a glace. We'll also look at how they're different and what that means for your work in global business. Conflict Styles and HighLow Context Cultures: A Cross-Cultural Extension. Characteristics of Low Context People behave according to rules Preference is given to knowledge sharing and transfer Relationships do not last longer On purpose relationships [35], The concepts of collectivism and individualism have been applied to high- and low-context cultures by Dutch psychologist Geert Hofstede in his Cultural Dimensions Theory. Some common characteristics of high-context cultures include: Though the United States has a low-context culture, we have all been placed in situations that are considered high-context. This can be quite confusing to an outsider, especially someone from a low-context culture who is used to communicating via explicit messages. [15] In contrast, scientists working with living systems need to include more context because there can be significant variables which impact the research outcomes. The theory of High and Low Context Cultures puts how people communicate in a dimension. The results found that U.S. participants used communication for pleasure more often than Mexican participants. We know that the way in which we say things at these gatherings is more important than what we say. [39][40] In high-context cultures, facial expressions and gestures take on greater importance in conveying and understanding a message, and the receiver may require more cultural context to understand "basic" displays of emotions. Teachers can illustrate the differences between high- and low- context cultures by providing examples of behaviors. Low-context cultures are less stable than high-context cultures as they are not founded upon any shared background. Hall, E. T. (1976). (2013)[2]explain the concept of cultural context: Cultural context is a concept developed by cultural anthropologist Edward T. Hall. China, Japan, Turkey, and Mexico are some countries that lean towards high-context. In the United States, Native Americans and Hawaiian islanders are also considered high-context. Low-context communicators dont need to be provided with much background information, but they do expect messages to be professional, efficient, and linear in their logic. High-context cultures are related to connotation. "[28] In such cultures, people are highly perceptive of actions. High-context cultures also value group harmony above individual achievement. Low-context culture refers to a culture that communicates explicitly. All the advice on this site is general in nature. Initially, high culture rejects these outsiders but eventually embraces them or appropriates . These rules of communication are understood without being explicitly stated. [2] Collectivist societies prioritize the group over the individual, and vice versa for individualist ones. On the other hand, low-context culture does not have any such shared background. The study suggests that in high-context cultures, such as China and Korea, people tend to be more socially oriented, less confrontational, and more complacent with existing ways of living compared to people from low-context cultures like the US.[23]. High-context communications, as well as low-context interactions, are important to understand from many perspectives. About The Helpful Professor Ramos, D. C. (2014). Two Types of Reflective Writing Assignments, Additional Resources for Improving Writing, Consistency in comparatives and listed elements: Parallelism, Hofstede Insights country comparison tool, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oYfhTC9lIQ, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQvqDv4vbEg, https://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/42958_2_The_Cultural_Context.pdf, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, Tend to prefer indirect verbal interaction, Tend to understand meaning at one level only, Tend to understand meanings embedded at many sociocultural levels, Are generally less proficient in reading nonverbal cues, Are generally more proficient in reading nonverbal cues, Communication in highly structured messages, provide details, stress literal meaning, Communication is simple, sometimes ambiguous, messages; understand visual messages readily, Define cultural context (Guffey et al., 2013, p. 64), Contrast communicate styles for low-context and high-context cultures (Meyer, 2017, p. 59), Explain how cultural differences can affect workplace communication (Lavin Agency Speakers Bureau, 2014).