After reading the chapter on high and low context cultures, it immediately occurred to me how easily you can spot these in our day to day society. It’s also very cool to notice that whether you are at a small party with friends or at a family get-together or even at church, these same characteristics are all taking place. These are all examples of high context, informal cultures. If we take a look at low context cultures which are much more formal and rule oriented, we can all tell which one is the most appealing to us. However, can it really be that hard to turn low context cultures into high context cultures? And aren’t there already many similarities between the two? Let’s take a look at the characteristics:
Low context:
- Rule oriented -> Are you really that rule-oriented when you are in a cafeteria?
- More knowledge is public -> I don’t see how knowledge gets more public than at a party with friends?
- Knowledge is more often transferable -> Do I really need to answer this one?
The only big difference between the two is the way tasks and activities happen. It’s true that when you go on excursion with a travelling group, there are many formalities and a lot of administration that needs to be dealt with where as a party with friends can be arranged with a few 20 second phone calls.
It seems to me that since everyone is much more comfortable in high context cultures, that these should be taking place much more often.
What are your suggestions for turning low context cultures into high context cultures?
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