Intercultural dating tips

Rigid adherence to categories may lead to false assumptions. Lewis, author of When Cultures Collide: Managing Successfully Across Cultures (London: Nicholas Brealey, 1993), divides cultural characteristics into three groups: “linear active”, “multiactive” and “reactive”.

He argues that people of different nations exhibit characte- ristics from each of these groups to different degrees.

These cultural differences can lead to serious misunderstandings not only about the topic of negotiations, but about what it actually means to negotiate.

Fast travel, international media, and the Internet have made it easy for us to communicate with people all over the world.

The process of economic globalisation means that we cannot function in isolation but must interact with the rest of the world for survival.

Kishan Rana, former Indian ambassador to Germany, points out that categorising cultures offers both advantages and disadvantages.

Looking for categories is a useful tool for analysis and the training of diplomats, and can be used as initial device in preparing for cross cultural encounters.