Reading between the Lines: Teaching Direct and Indirect Communication Styles in Business English Seminars

Abstract

In today's globally operating business environment, successful communication hinges not only on linguistic proficiency but also on cultural awareness. Out of the numerous implications understanding cultural awareness has, in the present research, we have opted to focus on the challenges raised by correctly identifying direct and indirect communication and tailoring one's messages accordingly. We will look into how contrasting expectations about how a businessperson is supposed to communicate can lead to misinterpretation and total interaction breakdown; in particular, we will explore the challenges raised by interactions between representatives of low-context and high-context cultures. Using four case studies from Craig Storti's Cross-Cultural Dialogues, the paper examines how young Romanian business students interpret dialogues between American professionals and their French, Greek, or Japanese counterparts. In light of our findings, we will also dwell on the following paradox: although Romania is traditionally considered a moderately high-context culture, the students' views and interpretations consistently align with the American, low-context communication style—likely influenced by Western education models, English-language media, and business training that prioritize clarity and directness over implicitness and nuance. We strongly believe that, by analysing these scenarios in the classroom, students learn to decode implicit or multifaceted messages and enhance their cultural sensitivity with a view to successfully participating in future cross-cultural encounters.