Abstract:Globalization of national economy and business has had a great impact on capital, technology and trade flows. It has also had a major impact on national values, beliefs and behaviors. However, no global strategy can be effective without a communication program that drives the global theme throughout the organization and into the marketplace. Therefore, intercultural communication becomes more significant. Owing to cultural differences, business negotiators can hardly avoid committing misunderstanding. Distance and time were once the biggest obstacles to doing business internationally. They are now among the least of concerns for any organization that has decided to go global. Today, international businessmen and businesswomen increasingly find themselves working in multi-cultural environments, dealing with real differences from communication styles to social etiquette to core values. While many international business travelers may not be able to give a definition of what constitutes culture. Therefore, a great number of communicative failures occur when they communicate with each other. In order to improve efficiency in doing business, it is necessary to conduct an in-depth analysis of intercultural barriers. This thesis mainly adopts the methods of classification and exemplification to investigate the categories and causes of cultural barriers. Firstly, the author tells the definitions of culture and intercultural communication. Meanwhile, the author list factors which can cause cultural barriers. Secondly, the author put a focus on cultural differences in doing business throughout the world. People from different countries have different values, and understanding the basics of etiquette is an important skill. It can instill an individual with confidence to handle almost any culture, allowing a businessperson to concentrate on the deal at hand rather than worrying about such peripheral distractions as which fork to use or which hand to use for passing food. At the same time, it is essential to understand the religions and languages in other countries and to be familiar with the business style of the foreign companies. People coming from different countries have different negotiation styles based on their cultural background, value and experience. During the process of negotiation, we need to take cultural sensitivities into consideration in order to enhance the chances of reaching an agreement and forming a business relationship.
Then building on the previous analysis, the author proposes some constructive suggestions as to how to avoid misunderstanding when doing business. At last, it comes to the conclusion that negotiators should raise their cultural awareness and respect different values, religions and behaviors.
Key words: Culture, cultural barriers, intercultural communication
摘要:各国经济和商务的全球化对资金、技术和贸易往来有着很大的影响力。不仅如此，还影响着当地人的价值观、信念和行为。然而，如果没有一种交流渠道去把这种全球化的主流思想传播到企业和市场当中的话，任何一种全球化策略都不会凑效。因此，跨文化交际变得越来越重要。由于文化的差异，双方的商务谈判者难免会不理解对方的说法。距离和时间曾经是国际贸易的最大阻碍，而如今这两个因素渐渐被实行全球化战略的公司淡化。现在国际贸易人员越来越发现他们正处于多文化的工作环境中，面对着从沟通方式、社交礼仪到核心价值各方面的差异。很多从事国际贸易的出差人员不能对文化作出定义，所以交流的过程中仍然会出现很多误解。为了提高对外贸易的效率，我们必须对跨文化障碍有深入的分析。这篇论文主要采用分类法和举例法来探索文化障碍的不同情况和原因。首先，作者会对文化和跨文化交际作出定义。同时，作者也列出导致跨文化障碍的不同因素。其次，本文着重说明国际贸易过程中的文化差异。不同国家的人们有着不同的价值观，而对礼仪的基本认识是作为国际贸易人员的一个重要的技能。同时，必须理解其他国家的宗教和语言，并且熟悉不同外贸公司的经营方式。来自不同国家的人们由于有自身的文化背景、价值观和经验，会采用不同的谈判方式。在谈判的过程当中，我们需要对不同文化有充分的了解，这样是为了促进达成共识和建立合作关系。
基于以上的分析，作者提出一些建设性的建议，例如如何避免交易过程中的误解。最后，总结：谈判者应该提高自身的文化意识，并且尊重不同的文化价值观、宗教和行为。
关键词：文化； 文化障碍； 跨文化交际
