Cross-Cultural Training and Cross-Cultural Adjustment

Cross-cultural training and cross-cultural adjustment

The objective of cross-cultural training is to educate members of one culture to interact effectively with members of another culture, and to predispose them to a rapid adjustment to their new positions (Waxin & Panaccio, 2005, citing Brislin & Petersen, 1986; Mendenhall & Oddou, 1991). Brislin (1979)states that there are three techniques that can be used in cross-cultural training, which are cognitive, affective and behavioral. The cognitive approach corresponds to a dissemination of information, using non-participative sessions on a foreign cultural environment (Waxin & Panaccio, 2005). The affective method aims to provoke individual reactions so the trainee can learn to deal with critical cultural incidents relating to the culture in which he or she intends to interact with. The behavioral method focuses on improving the trainee's ability to adapt to the host-country's communication style and to establish positive relationships with members of another culture (Waxin & Panaccio, 2005). A number of researchers have used Brislin's model and have included situational variables, such as hardness of the culture and hardness of the communication (Tung, 1987), function and role of the manager (Black, Gregersen, & Mendenhall, 1992), duration of expatriation (Mendenhall & Oddou, 1986), and individual variables (personal learning objectives (Ronen, 1989) degree of active participation (Black et al., 1992)), to study adjustment. According to Tung (1981), there are five basic training programs that can be used in cross-cultural training. They include: (1) didactic training, (2) culture assimilator, (3) language training, (4) sensitivity training, and (5) field experience. Tung (1981) suggested that the training method should be chosen according to the type of assignment and should be contingent upon two determinant factors: the degree of similarity