DIFFERENCES IN COMMUNICATION PATTERNS ACROSS NATIONAL CULTURES

This study investigated the potential for differences in cultural characteristics to influence the cross-cultural communication process in the business environment. Based on previous research on cultural differences between Americans, Germans, and Brazilians, we proposed five hypotheses related to various work-related situations where managers and employees are communicating. The hypotheses were tested based on data collected among college students in the three countries, and partial support was found for three of them. While it is clear that there are differences in the way the three cultures view work-related communication, and that managers have to approach cross-cultural interactions with the necessary care, additional research is needed to examine their potential impact on the way business is conducted in a multicultural scenario.