Cross cultural understanding: a handbook to understand others’ cultures

4. Discourage Herd Mentality 
Herd mentality refers to a closed and one dimensional 
approach. Such a way of thinking curbs creativity, innovation 
and advancement as people are restricted in how to think, 
approach and engage with people or challenges. 
Intercultural communication can only flourish and 
therefore contribute if people are encouraged to think as 
individuals, bring their cultural influences to the table and 
share ideas that may be outside the box. 
5. Avoid Insensitive Behavior 
People can and do behave in culturally insensitive ways. By 
attacking someone's person, you attack their culture and 
therefore their dignity. This can only be divisive.
 
Effective communication depends on the informal 
understandings among the parties involved that are based on 
the trust developed between them. When trust exists, there is 
implicit understanding within communication, cultural 
differences may be overlooked, and problems can be dealt with 

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60 | Cross Cultural Understanding 
more easily. The meaning of trust and how it is developed and 
communicated vary across societies. Similarly, some cultures 
have a greater propensity to be trusting than others. 
The development of intercultural competence itself is 
mostly based on the individual's experiences while he or she is 
communicating with different cultures. When interacting with 
people from other cultures, the individual experiences certain 
obstacles that are caused by differences in cultural understanding 
between two people from different cultures. Such experiences 
may motivate the individual to acquire skills that can help him to 
communicate his point of view to an audience belonging to a 
different cultural ethnicity and background. 
As an example, International students face this issue: they 
have a choice of modifying their cultural boundaries and adapting 
to the culture around them or holding on to their native culture 
and surrounding themselves with people. The students who 
decide to hold on to their native culture are those who experience 
the most problems in their university life and who encounter 
frequent culture shocks. But international students who adapt 
themselves to the culture surrounding them (and who interact 
more with domestic students) will increase their knowledge of the 
domestic culture, which may help them to "blend in" more. Such 
individuals may be said to have adopted bicultural identities. 

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