Question

Rhonda May was transferred to London three months back to oversee the opening of a new branch of the retail chain she worked for. Rhonda, who had never been to London, adjusted well with her British colleagues but received quizzical looks from many of her British colleagues every morning in the initial weeks in London. After asking one of her subordinates to explain what caused her colleagues to look at her in that strange way, she discovered the reason. When her British colleagues greeted her saying "how are you today?" every morning, she typically replied saying "I'm good" while Britishers typically say "I'm well" in response to this greeting. This is because "I'm good" can have multiple meanings like "I'm not a bad person" or "I'm suitable" while "I'm well" only gives a sense of mental and physical well-being. Rhonda then realized how subtly cultural barriers can operate. From the information provided in the scenario, this is an example of barriers caused by ________. A) tone differences B) semantics and connotations C) intolerance toward other cultures D) situational and physical cues E) power distance

Answer 1

This is a barrier caused by:

B) semantics and connotations

Step-by-step explanation:

Here, one can see clearly that the reason the person is facing a cultural barrier is not because she is not entirely familiar with their culture but due to subtle difference in the way the people talk.

This greeting is a subtle difference, however it reveals quite a lot about a person and here it betrays that she is not a native.

This barrier is thus caused by the semantics of her common language that can differ from Nation to nation.