4.2 Introduction

People's attitude towards engaging with each other as well as their social behaviour can differ greatly. In the first session, for example, we examined the relationship between students and professors and how students approach superiors. The case study of a German businessman negotiating with his Chinese counterparts showed us how differences in the pace of negotiations can influence behaviour. When he openly accused his business partners of having a malevolent intention, this was clearly perceived as inappropriate. 

In order to understand our own cultural self when we interact with others, we will develop our personal cultural profile and use this to understand behavioural differences. Through this we will analyse the expectations that people may have of us and the assumptions they make when they interact with us.

With this in mind, the aim of this session is to analyse key behavioural orientations. This will provide us with insights into how behaviour may differ and what our own behavioural orientation might be with regard to culture, context and the people involved. By developing our own cultural profile along several parameters we will be able to use it to detect potential differences as well as commonalities with cultural others.