Title: French-Canadian Business Philosophies in Corporate America: A Cross-Cultural Approach.
Abstract: A cultural profile of the French-Canadian business community of Quebec is presented, focusing on seven aspects of business communication: language; environment and technology; social organization; degree of contextual understanding; authority conception; nonverbal behavior; and temporal conception. The history of French and English language use in Quebec is chronicled, and the eventual adoption of English as the lingua franca of the business community is explained. Export patterns and the role of technology are briefly outlined. Social organization is sketched in terms of family and church roles, and of the culture and group identity within business organizations. The French-Canadian society is characterized as a high-context one, in which a high level of mutual understanding exists and communication is less verbal than in a low-context society. Conception of authority in Canadian organizations and resulting communication patterns are examined. Nonverbal behavior is found to be similar to that in the United States, but with greater use of hand gestures. The French-Canadian conception of time is seen as more flexible than that of the United States. These aspects of business communication are then illustrated in the communication patterns and leadership style within a Quebec pulp and paper company. Contains 28 references. (MSE) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ********************************************************************** _ French-Canadian Business Philosophies in Corporate America: A Cross-Cultural Approach
Publication Year: 1995
Publication Date: 1995-04-01
Language: en
Type: article
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