Most of us appreciate the rich variety of food , music , color as well as the seemingly endless variety of plants , birds and animals but somehow our appreciation of variety does not always carry over to people who do not think and act in the same way we do ; at times even allowing these differences to become points of contention . Nevertheless , by focusing on the positive aspects of diversity , our expectations will not be disappointed .
WHAT TIME IS IT ?
Our culture also may govern how we view time . We could define a cultural concept of time as the “ importance a culture places on time and its philosophy toward the past , present , and future .”( iii ) In intercultural communication , a person ’ s concept of time influences communication behavior . “ Often , there are not widely accepted facts that people can call on to decide whether an intercultural behavior is appropriate or not ,” notes the book Improving Intercultural Interactions .” “ Rather ,” it continues , “ people in a culture have informal guidelines that make certain behaviors appropriate , and that these informal guidelines are the ‘ knowledge ’ that they call on .
For example , many business people who find themselves on international assignments are from cultures where punctuality is valued . Appointments scheduled for 11:00 a . m . are expected to begin on the hour !”( iv ) One can imagine how frustrated these business people are when , in other countries , their 11:00 a . m . appointment doesn ’ t begin until 12:15 p . m ., with no apologies offered ! Our businessman may have become extremely frustrated waiting for his 11:00 a . m . appointment .
Alternatively , he may have used this “ waiting ” time wisely by developing good interpersonal relationships with ( perhaps ) the secretary or other people in the office , thus avoiding unnecessary frustration . It depends on one ’ s point of view .
“ Most North Americans and Northern Europeans see time as a tool — something to be divided , used , or wasted ,” notes Basics of Intercultural Communication .