Cultural capital is the set of skills, behaviors, and knowledge that an individual can use to show cultural competence. With several companies going global in a fast-changing business environment, the days have gone when the development of intercultural communication skills was only applicable to business executives only because they had to go through national borders for international assignments. This means that for the purposes of succeeding at any organization today as well as be in a position to carry out overseas assignments, it is necessary to anyone to develop cultural capital.
Cultural capital enables effective intercultural communication in the modern world. Communication can be explained to mean the process of passing an intended message or meaning from one person or entity to another via the use of mutually comprehensible signs and semiotic rules (Toh & Leonardelli, 2012). On the other hand, culture refers to a whole complex of beliefs and practices that characterize a certain society or social group (Kawar, 2012). The implication of this is that culture shapes the manner in which things are done in the society. Therefore, intercultural communication can be described as a form of communication between individuals of dissimilar cultural backgrounds (Wood, 2011). Probably, research has established that intercultural communication will surely remain to be a significant precondition for human co-existence on other. Based on the above description, cultural capital is important for anyone to thrive in modern organizational settings
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Cultural capital entails the examination of communication across different cultures. Essentially, it is applied to address a wide range of communications processes and issues that are common in a particular social make up of individuals from diverse social, cultural, religious, ethnic and educational backgrounds. It makes it possible to understand how people from these diverse cultures act, communicate or even perceive the entire world ( Issa et al., 2015 ). The finding on intercultural business communication has it that culture is a strong determinant of how individuals encode the message(s), what channel they choose to convey such messages and the means through which such messages are interpreted. Therefore, it is possible to assert that intercultural communication stretches beyond language to include social attributes, the patterns of thinking and cultures of diverse groups of people in an organization. Miscommunication is undoubtedly a key source of intercultural discomfort as well as conflict and for this reason, communication should go past what is written or expressed ( Pate & Sharafa, 2015 ). Since the process of communication varies from cultures, how, when and why a message is said remains critical. Otherwise, in a world which is highly characterized by an ever-increasing number of contacts arising from communication among people of diverse cultures, women and men are not immune to certain barriers, issues or problems that they encounter as managers following their interactions with cultures.
The expectations regarding the attributes as well as behaviors of both men and women are influenced by culture. A proper understanding of what cross-cultural management entails is hereby essential. This is because; it attempts to provide an explanation of how people behave in the organizations across the world as well as showing how managers and employees can work in an organization with people from different cultures (Reynolds & Valentine, 2011). Women and men managers must equip themselves with cultural capital if they are to live and work in harmony with people from diverse cultures
Cultural capital provides a very effective way of analyzing the interaction and exchange of information between or among people of different cultures. It entails the visualization of a reality that will strengthen or support the simultaneous macrocosm of oneness and diversity. Besides, it provides a platform upon which various voices can be heard in their distinctiveness and in synergistic harmony.
References
Issa, A.A., Yanusa, M. & Garga, F.Z. (2015). ‘The Meaning and Theories of Intercultural Communication.’ Working Paper · DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.14026.36806
Kawar, T.I. (2012). ‘Cross-cultural Differences in Management.’ International Journal of Business and Social Science , Vol. 3, No. 6, pp.105-111.
Pate, U. & Sharafa, D. (2015). ‘ Cross-cultural Communication, Peace Education in Nigeria.’ In: The Online Journal of Communication , Vol. 1, No. 1
Reynolds, S., & Valentine, D. (2011). Guide to Cross-cultural Communication. (2 nd ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Toh, S.M. & Leonardelli, G.J. (2012) . ‘ Cultural Constraints On The Emergence Of Women As Leaders.’ Journal of World Business, pp.1-8.
Wood, J. (2011). Gendered Lives: Communication, Gender, and Culture. Wadsworth.
