Face Concerns in Intra- and Intercultural Business Communication

ABSTRACT

This study examined the impact of communication context on face concerns in business interactions. In previous research face concerns were studied across cultures, but here for the first time compared within intra-and intercultural business communication settings. The study aims at investigating whether the priority of face concerns is the same or different in intracultural and intercultural face-threatening business communication. We hypothesized that managers would apply different face concerns in response to face threatening acts in interactions with either their compatriots or people from foreign cultures. We surveyed 380 Russian business professionals working in international companies. To measure face concerns we adapted the questionnaire by S. Ting-Toomey and J. Oetzel to the Russian sample. We compared two contexts using t-test and rmANOVA. Results showed a significant difference between face concerns in managers behaviour in intercultural and intracultural communication. Managers tend to employ either self-face or mutual-face rather than other-face concern in intracultural communication. On the contrary, they prefer mutual-face rather than self-face or other-face concerns in intercultural communication. These results provide empirical evidence that Russian managers create public image in business interactions considering cultural differences and modify their behaviour to fit the context.

KEYWORDS:

• Face
• communication
• intercultural communication
• business negotiations
• face concern

Biographical note

Mrs Ekaterina Vasilyeva, Research intern in the Centre for Sociocultural Research, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation. ORCID: 0000-0002-7814-953X, phone: [phone]. Address: 20 Myasnitskaya Ulitsa, Moscow, Russian Federation

Ms Maria Bultseva, PhD, Research Fellow in the Centre for Sociocultural Research, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation. ORCID: 0000-0002-5899-9916. Address: 20 Myasnitskaya Ulitsa, Moscow, Russian Federation

Dr Nadezhda Lebedeva, Doctor of Sciences, Director, Chief Research Fellow of the Centre for Sociocultural Research, Professor, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation. ORCID: 0000-0002-2046-4529. Address: 20 Myasnitskaya Ulitsa, Moscow, Russian Federation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Aggregated data available on request from the authors.

Notes

1. Around 50% of the participants, recruited from their companies, took part in these master classes.

Additional information

Funding

The article was prepared within the framework of the HSE University Basic Research Program