Abstract
Globalization promises a world without boundaries that will increasingly necessitate the exchange of international and intercultural business communication. In this globalization process, a significant proportion of future economic growth (and the exchange of messages associated with this development) is projected to be centered in Asia, with a shift in such growth and power away from the United States and Europe. Following Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore, mainland China and, to a lesser extent, India are moving to upscale positions on value-added chains in global industries. New major Asian players (e.g., countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) are replacing the United States and Europe, who are taking on downscale positions. In addition, the Middle East, because of global dependence on it for oil, is a critical player in international business.
With this shift in global trading patterns, we must focus on Asia in order to gain an up-to-date understanding of business communication in global contexts. But previous research and theory have been directed toward business communication in the United States and, to a lesser extent, in Europe. Some scholars claim that this emphasis has given the literature a Western bias. This special issue attempts to correct this imbalance in business communication research and theory. It also moves toward establishing a framework to guide future research and theory building. The time has come to update the research and theory on Asian business communication in order to form a comprehensive understanding of the evolving patterns of international and intercultural business communication.
Asia encompasses a huge geographical area and is widely diverse in its languages, cultures, and stages of economic development. This diversity within Asia further complicates differences that exist between Asia and other world regions. Variables such as culture and language use and proficiency can affect the communication process. This special issue captures the diversity and the changing nature of Asian business communication. Specifically, it shows how cultural factors and language use interactively affect Asian business communicators as they communicate in different professional contexts. We need to take these factors into account if we are to gain a comprehensive understanding of the different patterns that are developing in Asian business communication. Previously, Asian cultures have been lumped together in collectivistic and high-context culture categories. Research presented in this issue supports these identifying categories but suggests that refinements are needed to better define the cultural differences that exist between Asians who use both their first language and their second language (usually English) in global business communication. Their English-language proficiency levels vary between countries, but Asians’ English-language proficiency is generally lower than that of Europeans (especially Northern Europeans). The research presented here confirms and further describes how the language used and proficiency in using the language affect the exchange of messages.
The five articles in this special issue focus on two areas of Asian business communication: interpersonal communication (three articles) and communication with external constituencies (two articles). The three articles on interpersonal communication describe the interchange between communicators from the same Asian culture (mainland Chinese), between communicators from different Asian cultures (Japanese and Hong Kong Chinese), and between communicators from Asian and European cultures (mainland Chinese and Finnish). Long, Kuang, and Buzzanell describe the telework communication of mainland Chinese employees who work from their homes. Such work is becoming more common and increasingly accepted, but these employees still have to be concerned about guanxi and career development within their organizations. Du-Babcock and Tanaka examine the communication behaviors between Japanese and Hong Kong Chinese business professionals. Their findings reveal that these communicators maintained their high-context communication style but that the Hong Kong Chinese were more direct in their interactions, especially in their handling of disagreements in English. These findings suggest that high-context and low-context communication should be considered on a continuum, with both the Hong Kong Chinese and the Japanese existing on the high-context side but with the Hong Kong Chinese located closer toward the low-context end of the continuum. Lu and Kankaanranta examine the English-language communication between mainland Chinese and Finnish business professionals who are employed in Finnish multinationals. The findings suggest a convergence toward low-context communication as reflected by the directness and openness of their interactions.
The two articles on communication with external constituencies focus on public relations (PR) in mainland China and advertising in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). These articles examine this communication process from the perspective of senders (PR in mainland China) and receivers (advertising in the UAE). Hou, Zhu, and Bromley examine the changing nature of PR in mainland China. Based on interviews with PR agency consultants, in-house PR practitioners, and media journalists and industry association officers, the authors conclude that multiple and competing logics confer “reconciled identities on Chinese PR.” Chinese cultural characteristics, including guanxi, also affect the nature of PR in mainland China. Nickerson and Crawford Camiciottoli compare language use by reporting Emirati consumers’ attitudes toward two equivalent advertising texts in the UAE, one in English and the other in Arabic. The findings indicate that the use of English advertising text is generally acceptable in Arabic culture, but that Arabic may be preferred because of cultural reasons.
To conclude, we would like to express our appreciation to David Russell, editor of the Journal of Business and Technical Communication, for his trust and support in giving us the opportunity to publish this special issue. Our special thanks also go to Lori Peterson, managing editor, for her editorial assistance. As the guest editors, we greatly appreciate the assistance we received from the ad hoc editorial reviewers, who gave us constructive suggestions and comments on articles submitted to this special issue. Their efforts have contributed to the high quality of this special issue. The following is the list of individuals who reviewed articles for this special issue (listed in alphabetical order):
Jolanta Aritz, University of Southern California, USA
Linda Beamer (emeritus), California State University in Los Angeles, USA
Patrice M. Buzzanell, Purdue University, USA
Dan Douglas, Iowa State University, USA
Valerie P. Goby, Zayed University, UAE
Daphne Jameson, Cornell University, USA
Winni Johansen, Aarhus University, Denmark
Leena Louhiala-Salminen, Aalto University School of Economics, Finland
Gina Poncini, University of Milan, Italy
Priscilla S. Rogers, University of Michigan, USA