Barbara works for a subsidiary of a German corporation in the United States. Her job involves ordering products from Germany and following up on the status of deliveries. Barbara does not speak, read, or write German; however, this is not a problem, as Barbara's contact Anna speaks, reads, and writes English. Normally all of Barbara's emails, letters, and faxes from Anna are written in English. Lately, the German factory has been having difficulty, and Barbara has been sending emails to Anna with inquiries about the product delays. In her last email, Barbara asks why Germans cannot get their materials shipped on time. Barbara's answer comes in German. 

 Question

 

Discuss what nonverbal communication was being conveyed in the situation and how you would change the behavior to be more positive.

 

 

Case 2: United States representative contract negotiation with a Japanese firm

 

 

A U.S. company has sent a representative to negotiate a contract with a Japanese firm. The U.S. representative arrives at the appointed time for his meeting and is shown to the meeting room, where six representatives from the Japanese firm meet with him. During his presentation, the Japanese move their heads in an up‐and-down motion; however, they say very little. The presentation was given in English, as the representative had been told the Japanese understood English. When the representative asked if there were any questions, everyone nodded politely; however, no one said a word. After a few minutes, the representative asked if they were ready to sign the contracts. One of the Japanese said, "It is very difficult for us to sign." At this point the representative said, "Should I leave the contract with you?" The Japanese said, "Yes." The U.S. representative returned to the United States expecting the Japanese to return the contract, which did not happen. 

 

Question

 

Explain what the Japanese were really saying by nodding their heads and using the word "difficult."

 

Case 3: United States firm contract negotiation with Mexican firm

 

On his first trip to Mexico, Harry, a U.S. manager interested in negotiating a contract for his firm with a Mexican firm, was invited to a dinner party by his Mexican counterparts. The invitation indicated that cocktails would begin at 7 p.m., so Harry arrived promptly at that time. His host seemed surprised, and no one else had arrived. People began arriving about 8 p.m.; Harry knew he had read the invitation correctly but felt he had gotten off to a bad start. 

 

Question

 

What advice would you have given Harry?

 

 

Case 4: Canadian firm hiring of Ching Wu, a newcomer from China

 

Fred, the manager of a large Canadian bookstore, hired Ching Wu, a newcomer from China, as one of his clerks. In an attempt to get to know Ching Wu better, Fred invited her to join him for coffee. Throughout their conversation, he noticed that Ching Wu always looked down at the floor and never gave him eye contact. He interpreted this as a lack of respect. 

 

Question

 

Discuss the nonverbal communication differences in this situation.

 

 

Case 5: Canadian professor teaching assignment in Bolivia 

 

A Canadian professor accepted a two-year teaching assignment at a university in Bolivia's capital city La Paz. Despite the professor's guidelines for appropriate classroom conduct that had been conveyed at the first-class meeting, students continued to come to class 20-30 minutes late. In addition, instead of quietly taking a seat, they came to the front of the class and apologized to the professor and to the other students for being late. Often the reasons they gave for arriving late were related to family problems. 

 

Question

 

Explain the cultural differences involved in this situation.

 

 

Note: Use font Arial or Times New Roman size 12. You need to refer to our class materials and online research with regard to low-context and high-context cultures. You need to provide examples if possible - each answer should have 120-200 words. Please single space.