The content of this e-textbook has been translated using AI. Please let us know if you find any errors in this file.

Due to the foundations of communication, we can divide cultures into protransactional and pro-partnership. This distinction is especially important in the business sphere, where ignorance of the partner’s culture, especially in this dimension, can have tangible consequences.

Representatives of protransactional cultures are primarily focused on the tasks they need to accomplish, while people with a pro-partnership orientation will tend to focus on people and relationships with them. Of course, relationships with people are important in every culture, but as Gesteland notes, it is always a matter of scale [1].

Contact between people from these different types of cultures can cause conflicts. For example, representatives of pro-partnership cultures may perceive their interlocutors or business partners from protransactional cultures as rude, overconfident, or even aggressive [2]. These communication cultures differ in many features, which is why they will be briefly discussed.

This type of culture is also referred to as pro-relational culture. In such a type of culture, people expect deep and lasting relationships from others. This has consequences in many areas of life. For example, in intercultural business communication, initiating cooperation with someone you do not know will be a significant difficulty [3]. Intermediaries will be needed to organize or initiate such a meeting, because representatives of such cultures are absolutely not inclined to do business with strangers. Support from an embassy, a well-known institution, or even professional intermediaries, etc., may prove helpful. In this type of culture, the network of contacts is extremely important. In business matters, it often determines the success or failure of a venture [4].

In relations with representatives of pro-partnership cultures, it should be remembered that personal relationships are extremely important, so building trust requires appropriate time. Establishing a good and friendly relationship is important, which is why conversations often include small talk and discussions about personal matters. Representatives of pro-partnership cultures first meet with a potential contractor several times socially, and during these meetings, the conversations are dominated by trivial, non-binding topics. Only after getting to know the potential contractor and establishing a closer relationship do they arrange to discuss the details of potential business contacts [5].

In pro-partnership cultures, avoiding conflicts and maintaining harmony among people, as well as saving face, are very important, as losing face is a threat and dishonor not only for the individual but for the entire group, e.g., family or clan. People from pro-partnership cultures strive for harmony and pleasant relationships, so it is difficult for them to speak directly when they are forced to refuse—they do not use the word ”no,” instead they will say ”it’s difficult,” ”maybe,” ”I’ll think about it.” Such behavior is typical, for example, in Japan [6].

Communication in pro-partnership cultures is often high-context communication, where understanding the message depends on a broad context. It is therefore not surprising that this is the type of culture where people prefer personal, face-to-face contacts.

Example 1: Pro-partnership cultures

Among the countries where pro-partnership culture dominates are: Muslim countries, Africa, South America, Asia.

This is a type of culture where communication between people consists of clear and simple messages, because understanding each other is extremely important, so messages are usually spoken directly, without the need to denote the entire social context. Additionally, most matters, especially those concerning joint interests, can be arranged and resolved more often by phone or via email than at face-to-face meetings. In protransactional culture, the arrangements that have been made are binding, and there is rarely an opportunity to renegotiate them.

In the business sphere, introductions and references, although always potentially helpful, in this type of culture it is generally possible to contact a potential client or partner directly. Importantly, during business meetings, they move on to the main point after just a few minutes of general conversation. In the case of misunderstandings, reliance is placed on written contracts, not on personal relationships. In protransactional culture, contractors get to know each other during formal meetings, during which they discuss formal matters such as: prices, deadlines, transaction details [3].

Example 2: Protransactional cultures

This type of culture dominates in: the northern part of Europe, North America, Australia, and New Zealand. Additionally, it is worth mentioning moderately protransactional cultures, which occur in: the United Kingdom, Republic of South Africa, Romance European countries, Central Europe, Chile, southern Brazil, northern Mexico, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Exercise 1:

Exercise content:

Try to determine what characteristics the culture of Poland, considered moderately protransactional, has. What will distinguish it from a protransactional culture?

Example 1: Pro-partnership cultures

Example 2: Protransactional cultures

Exercise 1:

Exercise content:

Bibliography