Intercultural Communication within a Chinese Subsidiary of a Western MNC: Expatriate Perspectives on Language and Communication Issues

Autor/inn/en	Wilczewski, Michal; Søderberg, Anne-Marie; Gut, Arkadiusz
Titel	Intercultural Communication within a Chinese Subsidiary of a Western MNC: Expatriate Perspectives on Language and Communication Issues
Quelle	In: Multilingua: Journal of Cross-Cultural and Interlanguage Communication, 37 (2018) 6, S.587-611 (25 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0167-8507
DOI	10.1515/multi-2017-0095
Schlagwörter	Intercultural Communication; Immigrants; Corporations; International Trade; Business Communication; Polish; Chinese; Language Proficiency; Comprehension; Barriers; Socialization; Social Isolation; Work Environment; Stress Variables; Negative Attitudes; Participative Decision Making; Teamwork; Communication Problems; Interpersonal Communication; Employees; Foreign Nationals; Sociolinguistics + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Interkulturelle Kommunikation; Immigrant; Immigrantin; Immigranten; Unternehmen; Trade; International relations; Handel; Internationale Beziehungen; Unternehmenskommunikation; Polnisch; China; Chinesen; Language skill; Language skills; Sprachkompetenz; Verstehen; Verständnis; Socialisation; Sozialisation; Soziale Isolation; Arbeitsmilieu; Negative Fixierung; Kommunikationsbarriere; Interpersonale Kommunikation; Employee; Arbeitnehmer; Beschäftigter; Ausländer; Ausländerin; Soziolinguistik
Abstract	This study investigates Polish expatriates' stories of encounters with local personnel in a Chinese subsidiary of a Western multinational company. A narrative analysis of the stories produced important insights into Polish-Chinese communication in an intra-subsidiary context. Low proficiency in the host language was a serious obstacle to expatriate socialization and a source of expatriates' exclusion and social isolation in the workplace, which often led to stress, frustration, and negative attitudes toward collaboration with local personnel. Language-related issues prevented the expatriates from acquiring information from Chinese superiors, learning about problems within a team, and participating in decision-making. The findings of this case study relate to communication challenges in the Chinese subsidiary, expatriates' accounts of how they overcame communication difficulties, and their reflections on what fostered and hampered intercultural communication. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01