American

Culture Directness/Indirectness 2 Giving Advice 10 ways we give advice are: Why dont you You could You should If I were you I would I think you ought to I advise you to Perhaps it would be a good idea to You had better How about+ ing You really must Can you put them in order of strength? Can you add any more to this list? Polite Criticism Here are some ways of criticising someone tactfully I think XXXX was good/OK/fine but I was wondering why you didnt. I was wondering if XXXX would have been more effective I can see why you did XXXX but would it have been better to do Wouldnt it have been better to do YYYYYYY? Introducing polite advice or criticism Dont get me wrong but . Dont take this personally but I really feel (not think) you could/should have. May I make a suggestion / small criticism Perhaps / maybe / Do you think you could / should have done. Just one thing, actually Practice Give tactful advice to a classmate in the following situations. (Please use you imaginations to fill out the details). 1. A classmates report to you has factual errors and typing mistakes in it. 2. A classmate has failed to pass on vital information to you causing you to be criticised by your professor. 3. You are unhappy with your underclassmans standard of dress. 4. You are working on a group presentation. You are unhappy with the way a classmate has handled a small complaint from another group member. 5. Youre in the English club. Your clubs president never gives you enough warning about club meetings which often means you are unprepared.

Instructor: Joe Milan

American Culture Directness/Indirectness 2 Now you think of some more situations which might be typical of your working life. Combining Language and culture 1. Go back over the language we learned on pg. 1. In Korean, is the language similar or different for giving advice/giving complaints? 2. Do you think the language from pg. 1 represents Direct or Indirectness? So what are your feelings? Read the following examples about directness and indirectness. Directness Indirectness In your culture, being direct is the You believe indirect communication is the way to communicate and interact. If best way to respect others integrity and there are problems, it is important to allow them to save face. If you are facing a have face-to-face conversations to problem with another person, you might ask resolve them. If you are not direct, a third party to intervene or you might leave you feel you are doing the other subtle clues that there is a problem. A direct, person a disservice. You are also face-to-face confrontation would be seen as concerned that you might be seen as rude and offensive. You assume people will dishonest if you are not forthright. extract meaning from the context of the Trust in your culture is based on situation and dont need to be told to their direct, open, person-to-person face about an issue. The indirect approach communication. gives people more latitude to respond and maintains the harmony of the community. There are two lines below. The first is for Korean Culture. The second is your personal belief. Mark an X on the line for where you think you think each belongs between Directness and Indirectness. Korean Culture Directness Indirectness Personal Belief Directness Indirectness

Instructor: Joe Milan