Cultural Foundations of Communication

*A Complex Systems Perspective of Communication from Cells to Societies*

[109] Archibald JM, Rogers MB, Toop M, Ishida K-I, Keeling PJ. Lateral gene transfer and the evolution of plastid-targeted proteins in the secondary plastid-containing alga *Bigelowiella natans*. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2003;**100**(13):7678-7683. DOI: 10.1073/

pnas.1230951100

fcimb.2012.00161

of Hertfordshire; 2016

[110] Keen EC. Paradigms of pathogenesis: Targeting the mobile genetic elements of disease. Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology. 2012;**2**:161. DOI: 10.3389/

[111] Burgos AC. Information-Theoretic Models of Communication in Biological Systems. Hertfordshire, UK: University

**30**

**33**

**Chapter 3**

Studies

**Abstract**

*Cheryl Marie Cordeiro*

addressed through a systems perspective of research.

**1. Introduction: culture in international business**

1900s [7] where the authors spoke of 'group norms'.

**Keywords:** global challenges, culture collective behavior, communication management, international business, research methodology, system theory

Biology and culture coevolve. The gene–environment coevolution has been established as foundational knowledge in different disciplines from language and cognitive studies [1, 2], social biology [3], sociology [4], philosophy [5] and systems theory/perspective of life that views all biological, cognitive, social aspects of human and animal behavior in an ecological dimension [6]. When it comes to human communication and social organization, the concept of organization 'climate' was discussed and studied mainly in the field of psychology in the early

Toward a Systems Perspective of

Culture and Communication in

the Field of International Business

Biology and culture co-evolve, affecting collective social behaviors in the way we interact with others and with our environment. The working assumption in this study is that biology and culture provide the environment in which individuals interact/communicate. Human communication is thus both created and circumscribed by culture. Cultural values differ between different groups of individuals. This relativity in culture is illustrated by various social artifacts and resulting differences in socio-communicative behaviors that often leads to miscommunication between individuals of different cultures. This inherent relativity of culture has also posed a methodological challenge for researchers who study culture and thus communication management, particularly within the field of international business (IB) studies, where transactional behavior makes up for much of human behavior. Global challenges and a changing business environment due to converging technological platforms place increasing pressure on the need to revisit the cultural dimensions construct. The aim of this chapter is to give readers an overview of current frameworks of how culture is studied within the field of IB and how this perspective can be broadened with ideas drawn from other disciplines including social-biology, quantum theoretical physics and psychology. It revisits current culture research strategies and suggests a model in which relativity in culture can be

## **Chapter 3**
