My social circle is mainly made up of Chinese friends and there is usually no taboo in our conversations. Occasionally, we will unintentionally spurt out comments that maybe offensive to the other races. However, I have since learnt to be more conscious of the people around me during our conversations after the incident below.
I have a group of Chinese friends that I often meet up with. On one gathering few years back, one of my friends came back from overseas and brought along her boyfriend to meet us. Her boyfriend was a muslim. At that time, I did not realize the difference of having a muslim friend in our gathering. Initially, we had decided on a Chinese restaurant but my friend reminded us that we need to go to a Halal restaurant. The situation was awkward as I could see that her boyfriend was quite embarrassed and he kept apologizing that we have to change the dining location because of him. Throughout the dinner, we have to converse in English instead of Mandarin, our usual conversation language. In addition, I had to be constantly mindful of whatever I said in case he interpreted it as a racist remark against him. However, after a few more gatherings with him, we became more confortable with each other and were soon able to hit off well.
Singapore is a multi racial and multi cultural country and it is inevitable that we will meet people of different cultural backgrounds especially in the working society. It is important to observe the verbal language and non-verbal cues of other people and be more sensitive to them. Through this, we are able to bridge any cultural differences and communicate more efficiently.
I have a group of Chinese friends that I often meet up with. On one gathering few years back, one of my friends came back from overseas and brought along her boyfriend to meet us. Her boyfriend was a muslim. At that time, I did not realize the difference of having a muslim friend in our gathering. Initially, we had decided on a Chinese restaurant but my friend reminded us that we need to go to a Halal restaurant. The situation was awkward as I could see that her boyfriend was quite embarrassed and he kept apologizing that we have to change the dining location because of him. Throughout the dinner, we have to converse in English instead of Mandarin, our usual conversation language. In addition, I had to be constantly mindful of whatever I said in case he interpreted it as a racist remark against him. However, after a few more gatherings with him, we became more confortable with each other and were soon able to hit off well.
Singapore is a multi racial and multi cultural country and it is inevitable that we will meet people of different cultural backgrounds especially in the working society. It is important to observe the verbal language and non-verbal cues of other people and be more sensitive to them. Through this, we are able to bridge any cultural differences and communicate more efficiently.
5 comments:
Hi Qiyuan,
I am able to relate to you in that I have some close Muslim friends as well. Indeed, it can be difficult to choose a Halal restaurant each time we meet up. However, it always the company that matters more than the food and the Chinese guys in our clique are always happy to compromise. There are times when we may start conversing in Mandarin and more often than not, I will always remind other friends to speak in “Channel 5” instead. Of course, there is always the odd insensitive remark by some of my Chinese friends, but the Muslim guys would always laugh it off, knowing that we never mean it in the wrong way. As always, effective communication is two- way, and being friends that is even more important, especially coming from different cultural backgrounds.
Cheers
Ho Teck
It is good to hear from you that you guys managed to bridge the communication gap between Chinese and Muslims. However, we should be mindful that language difference (in your case here) is not the only difference between cultures that can affect intercultural communication.
Other differences we need to consider will include power distances, masculine and feminine cultures, collectivism and individulism.
Hi Qiyuan,
I agree with Mei Jie that language difference is not the only barrier to intercultural-interpersonal communication. Hence, it is important to be alert to all kind of cultural distances. One should be more mindful of his/her nonverbal cues which are more easily misinterpreted during intercultural communication.
Singapore is a multi-cultural city-state with several ethnic groups so it is inevitable that we will meet people of different cultural backgrounds. When intercultural interaction takes place, one should be versatile, adjust his/her communication strategies and play by ear to manage intercultural interaction more effectively.
Hey Qiyuan!
It's great that you made the effort to make him feel welcomed in the group. I can certainly understand what it feels like if I were with a group of people who would start speaking in Mandarin, having such limited command of the language myself. This just goes to show how important it is to have the ability to understand and adapt to different situations as and when they arise. We must be mindful of the needs of others within the group
Hi Qiyuan, it is true that no one is immune from the impact of globalization in today’s world. Singapore is a good example, having 4 major ethnic groups originating from various countries. It is no longer the case where one would interact with people speaking the same language and practicing the same culture. The demands of this changing environment present a complex set of challenges that require a shift in focus and emphasis in the people. It is vital that we practice tolerance and exhibit understanding in order to avoid conflicts.
Though it is good that you are being considerate to your friend, perhaps you shouldn’t be too mindful of your behavior and speech and just continue to be yourself. Furthermore, it is heartening to hear that you all actually mix well and the new friend did not feel awkward and leave the group. That shows that your social circle of friends is actually very accommodative to new friends and understanding towards other cultures. Way to go Qiyuan!
ES2007S
Jimmy Group 2
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