Key Points Of The Conversation Culture - Case Study Example

Key Points Of The Conversation Culture Introduction Michael Agar, one of the renowned names in the field of socio-cultural ethnology, anthropology and linguistics, authored this excellent guide ‘Language Shock: Understanding the Culture of Conversation’ on the basics of language and its relation with different human cultures. He enlightens new facts on the scope of language and how to employ it for best results. About the author, Michael Agar is a PhD in the field of linguistic anthropology from the California University, Berkeley. An honorary member of Woodrow Wilson fellowship programme, recipient of the NIH Career Recognition (being the prime investigator of a 7-yr NIH project on illicit drug abuse) and a Fulbright Specialist (Sr.), Dr. Agar is a professor emeritus at Maryland University, College Park, while serving adjunct for the ‘Speech Communication & Comparative Literature’ (SCCL) and ‘International Institute of Qualitative Methodology’ in Alberta University. He is also an Antropokaos associate at Buenos Aires University, Argentina. Dr. Agar is also involved extensively in the field of qualitative research of social servicing organizations and the application of complexity theory in the field of business management. He is working with the Ethknoworks LLC on ethnography, language and complexity theory on organization management. He is also involved with the Redfish Group of Santa Fe on a project regarding the incorporation of ethnography and computer visibility. He has worked for several research and advisory groups including some public health teams in NY and Kentucky, with brief stints at the Mysore University (India), Johannes Kepler University (Austria), Surrey (UK) and Vienna. He was awarded the Award of Leadership for Qualitative Inquiry from IIQM. He has written several other informative articles, journals and books on varied subjects of psychology, psychiatry, oral history/folklore, sociology, linguistics, anthropology, ethnology, intercultural communication, complexity theory, business management, public policy, drug abuse and so on. One of his many books on linguistics and ethnology is ‘Language Shock: Understanding the Culture of Conversation’ published from the California University journals in the year 1994. In this book, Michael Agar takes the readers on a humorous yet extremely educative ride on to the uncharted fields of human linguistics patterns and its relation to ethnical diversity all over the world. Using personal experiences as extrapolating sources, Agar gives a prime for the people non-familiar with the various topics of socio-cultural linguistics. Philosophical View of the Author In this book ‘Language Shock: Understanding the Culture of Communication’, Michael Agar goes beyond the Berlitz notion of fixed language patterns where there’s a fixed phrase for any particular situation or query, and purports that language is more than just vocabulary, phonetics and grammar. Equivalent to the dynamism of a culture is the fluidity of language and its reach. He coined a new phrase for his linguistics anthropological concept, called ‘languaculture’. He tried to intertwine both the fields of study into one. He used various frivolous yet edifying examples that remonstrated the way language works across boundaries of nations, religions and cultures. In ‘Language Shock’, he strives to prove how our very own social identity depends on our language and how deeply the linguistics and ethnology are convoluted with one another. He shows that just by exposure to a different culture, you not only learn about the culture but also get an in-depth understanding of the local language as well. The same phrase which is a formality in Mexico might not be so when you use that in India. As a matter of fact, every translator or interpreter has encountered a problem where they don’t find the suitable word when they translate from one language to another language. This is because of the connotation of the language with the cultural aspect. Different cultures mean the same thing with some different set of words, which forms its language. This is the concept of ‘languaculture’ (Agar). This is exactly the opposite of what the concept of linguistic determinism entails. Going by the ‘Sapir-Whorf hypothesis’ (derived from its original supporters, Edward Sapir (linguistic anthropologist) and his student, Benjamin Lee Whorf), language provides you with several ways of saying the same thing and that your language cannot be correlated with your culture. Moreover, your language determines your thought process. But more number of linguists espouses the concept of linguistic relativity. It says that language basically gives you the way to conceive of ideas and values that you see around you every day. Though you do have the chance to make effort and find out some other patterns of words meaning the same thing but some specific patterns of words are used to convey a particular meaning in one culture. And Michael Agar was a great proponent of the theory of linguistic relativity. According to Michael Agar, language is a room. You might be wont to a room but you can get to know another. It just takes time and effort. In other words, this book with lots of descriptive funny illustrations proffers you with a basic understanding of the relation between the language and the culture, and how they work in sync with one another. Before we move on to anything, we must first understand the importance of language and business management. When it comes to business, the first thing that any MBA student learns is the importance of presentation and communication. Whether he’s in the sales and marketing department, the technical department or finance department, communication and networking is an integral part of any business organization and everyone needs to deliver their part in varying degrees. Clear yet restrained communication skills marks for a good businessperson and any member of business needs to possess a standard level of communication ability to be able to fulfill the role he’s supposed to as an incumbent. It must be remembered that language is just not a tool to convey someone’s thoughts and ideas, but it can properly wielded to forge cultural ties, friendships and business associations. Throughout history, the importance of language has been championed. The famous linguistic anthropology student Benjamin Whorf believed language shapes a person’s perception of the reality and thus, his personality. John S. Mill said that ‘language is the light of mind’ while the Quebec historian, Lionel Groulx stated something like ‘Chacun retient toutefois que la suprême révélation du génie national, la clef magique qui donne accès aux plus hautes richesses de la culture, c’est la langue.’ For Edward Sapir, the linguist of Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, language is not a conveyance of one’s feelings, thoughts and ideas, but is an inherent trademark of a certain community. It’s a remarkable expression of someone’s social identity. Furthermore, it not only demonstrated the recognition of the community but also corroborated the unity and solidarity of the community. Learning a new language not only open’s one up to a new culture and world, but also enhances his tolerance and furthers his knowledge of the whole world. He starts to appreciate the beauty of others and sometimes, finds relation between them and himself even if they and he is from different cultures and religion. It instills a sense of goodwill and thus, facilitates the process of globalization. Communication is carried out through language. If that is so, how is communication done? What is the different means of communication? Language that is used for communication is basically of two types, viz. verbal and non-verbal. Verbal entails everything that you can hear, that means if someone is speaking in French, he is engaged in a French verbal communication method. But apart from that, it does include the tonality, the pace and the volume of the speaker. If the tonality is baser, it sounds more authoritative and dominant whereas a squeaky voice will give you the impression of a weak person. If the opposite person is speaking very fast, it can seem as a signal of nervousness and lack of confidence, whereas a slightly slower one would probably score better in terms of business communication. You obviously don’t want to shout but you don’t want to sound too low either. Achieving that optimum level where you exude confidence without being a try-hard is very important. Another part of the verbal or auditory language of communication is the use of suggestive predicate. Suggestive predicate basically refer to phrases, which has a deeper undertone to them. Let’s say when you attend an interview and at the end of the interview, you are not very sure of what the result might be. At this moment, the examiner says, ‘we will contact you very soon’. Are you sure you are selected? No, because that couple of weeks may never come and they are just finding a more understated way of saying ‘we don’t need you’. On the other hand, it can also mean that they are actually going to call you in the coming few days. In certain cases of business communication, suggestive predicate usage leaves the person on the opposite end thinking, facilitating in the process of a positive outcome. What is the non-verbal language of communication? Non-verbal is everything that is not verbal or spoken, which is easily understandable. Non-verbal language or communication can generally be of three kinds, viz. proximity, facial expressions, body language, smell and kinesics. The way you smile, the way you look, the posture you hold, all seem to participate in the process of communicating your current disposition to the other person. Whether you have a tight pouted lip, a naughty wink in your eyes, an undulated eyebrow movement, a body slightly angled away, will tell the other person, how you are feeling presently. Apart from that, your body smell can also communicate a lot of information about yourself, that is, what social class you belong to, how much you value yourself or how healthy you are. Apart from these, a most important part of non-verbal communication is the proximity. Proximity works on the basic assumption that every culture has a prefixed notion of how much distance one should keep from another person, as determines the intimacy between the two persons. A person normally maintains a personal bubble or personal space around him, which can be perforated into by another person on permission. Otherwise it is not welcomed. This is the theory of proximity. If you were a girl and a boy starts grinding with you on the first meet, it would feel weird and you might avoid the boy from the next time. You should maintain a proper distance from the other person, depending on the level of your intimacy as demanded by the theory of proximity. This proximity theory works in case of business communications as well. A proper distance that marks professionalism yet shows a bit of informality is a recipe of success in sales and marketing meetings. This is different in every culture yet in a multinational working environment, it gets reconfigured most of the time. Another part of the non-verbal communication is the kinesics. What is the kinesics? Kinesics means touch. The way you touch a person can reveal a lot to the person. The way you hold the hand of your girlfriend is obviously different from the way you shake hands with your boss. The feeling that you transmit in each case is different and thus the language can be deemed to be different as well. Author’s Interpretation to the Approach of Qualitative Research In ‘Language Shock’, Agar strives to explore the approach of qualitative research on this specific field: relation between linguistics and culture. What is qualitative research? Qualitative research is the process of finding out ‘why’ from the exhaustive analysis of current accurate data researched and found. It doesn’t rely on stat surveys or numbers but more on feedbacks, responses, interviews, emails, videos, photos and so more. Qualitative research gains insight into people’s behaviors, attitudes, values, beliefs, concerns, needs, motivations, lifestyles and culture, or in short, the unconscious and the subconscious mind. This type of study is used to formulate new policies or determine the specific course of action, whether in a small business concern or in a big multinational governmental organization (Agar). Qualitative research basically entails three processes: noticing, collecting and thinking. Noticing data means making observations, taking down field notes, acquiring interview feedbacks or email forms, studying insightful videos or audios, etc. When you notice data, you ‘code’ them. Coding them simply entails recognizing and naming them for future use. Once you notice and code, you have to assemble and collect them. Collecting is another term for assortment of the data into their proper places. But apart from naming and sifting of the data, there’s another important step to it and that’s thinking. Now, thinking may be a broad term but it actually denotes the function of making sense of the data and deducing new theories from it. It demands that you examine the pieces and find out relationships between them. You should know how to break them into details and then unify them again to form a related bigger picture that explains the phenomenon. This is the process of qualitative research. Key Points of Qualitative Research Process Some basic factors that play important role in construing the accuracy of the qualitative research: 1. How well the assessment was. If the questions were vague and extraneous, the answers can never be apposite, can it be? 2. How well the qualitative method chosen was suited for the purpose. Your direction of journey depends on where you want to go. 3. Was the data collected suitable for the job? If you are searching for habits of Asian Indian women and collect samples of British Indian women, then results will obviously be wrong. 4. Was the researcher biased? What one believes in can steer the whole course of action. 5. What methods were used to collect data and if they were detailed. Ask yourself, ‘am I given enough data? If yes, are these complete?’ 6. What methods were used to analyze the data and if any quality control step was adopted. If proper methods were employed, it is very possible that the data collected will not be appropriate. It is always significant to check the quality of the data. 7. Whether the results are credible, accurate and relevant. Are the results relevant? Do they go with the common sense? 8. Whether the conclusions inferred are justified. This simply means to conclude from the results but also see to the fact if the conclusion goes with the normal perspective. 9. Can the results be used in another study? If they are implemented with care being taken towards the perfect quality criteria, it should be able to be used in other researches as well. Critical evaluation of the author’s approach The effect of linguistics in qualitative research is very crucial. Just imagine a certain instance. A googly in cricket wisdom means ‘an off-break disguised as leg-break’. Now, if someone gives you a googly, can you still understand what he means if you are not an ardent follower of cricket. According to Michael Agar, language is relative to culture. So, let’s say when you are conducting a multinational study and collecting data from all parts of the world. Is it not possible that some of the data collected might be misjudged and thus, wrong? This can be huge deterrent in the success of the qualitative research study and result in erred conclusions. And this is amply demonstrated in the whole course of the book by Michael Agar. He should how linguistics, culture and global network is interconnected and how proper linguistics practice in qualitative research procedures can enhance the accuracy of the results. So, to summarize it, linguistics and ethnology can play a big part in case of qualitative research since it doesn’t depend on quantitative data but rather on effective communication that renders insight into the psychology of the sample participants. Having said this, this book ‘Language Shock’ is still worth reading for any person curious about linguistic anthropology and its relation with other branches of study. Conclusion The book ‘Language Shock’ is a complete portrayal of definitive approach towards business management which is related to the various languages spoken by people from different social strata. It shows the correlation between linguistic anthropology and business strategies which should be carefully designed according to the definitive cultural diversities. The qualitative research is directly related to this concept described and explained in the book. Michael Agar has successfully mentioned all aspects of the linguistic based business decisions in this book which is a must read for any person curious about the implementation of strategies in business ventures. References: Agar, Michael H.. Language Shock: Understanding The Culture Of Conversation. Brattleboro: Harper Paperbacks, 1996. Print. Read More