Intercultural communication: Differences between Western and Asian perspective

The thesis focused differences in intercultural communication from Western and Asian perspective. The goal of this thesis was to find the differences and similarities in business communication between Western and Asian culture. The theoretical part of this thesis was titled as intercultural communication. Definition of intercultural communication, culture’s influence on perception, obstacles in intercultural communication and inter-cultural communication competences were covered in this part. A case study of Danish company in Japan, ECCO, was also examined in this part as well. All information were gathered from both pub-lished and electronic sources. For empirical research part, qualitative research was used to study the in-depth of the thesis’s goal. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews. The interviews were conducted with three working persons, who had extensive of experiences in dealing with people from different cultures. A graduated students with many experiences in studying and working in international environment was also selected for the interview. According to the research results, it could be seen that there were differences as well as similarities perspective on intercultural communication between Western and Asian culture. The research also indicated the challenges people from both cultures faced while working with others. The challenges included different working styles, different level of language, and usage of non-verbal communication. These challenges could create miscommunication and misinterpretation in intercultural communication from the interviewees’ perspective. The ways of overcoming these challenges were also included in the research results. It was necessary to have patience and good observation while communicating across cultures. Accepting the differences and looking for similarities would help create a basis of understanding for effective communication. Furthermore, based on observation, communication and behavior should be adjusted and adapted depending on the situation. Moreover, aiming for clarity when communicating would allow people to avoid misunderstanding as well