Mediating Influence of Expectancy Disconfirmation

Discuss about the Mediating Influence of Expectancy Disconfirmation.

Introduction

Cultural intelligence can be defined as an individual’s capability to sensibly interact with people from different cultural backgrounds so that a healthy environment can be established in the workplace. The cultural capability encompasses the knowledge, behaviors, and skills of a person that is vital to performing organizational functions in the most respectful and appropriate way. Even though the topic seems simple, there are a number of layers that exist in the culture that must be handled delicately in order to respect the space of one another.

A video clip from the movie “Seven Pounds” has been used in the report which features an interaction between couples of characters. The report includes the summary of the interaction within the specified space and highlights the various aspects of cultural capabilities. The main objective is to understand the cultural sensitivity that people need to possess in the workplace environment so that mutual respect exists in the setting (Barakat, et al., 2015).

The scope has been designed keeping in mind the contents of the video clip so that different aspects such as empathy, awareness of body language, communication style can be effectively captured here. Since the current cultural situations include individuals from different cultures, there is a need for a healthy interaction and link between the people.

The video clip that has been used in the report is from the movie “Seven Pounds” which was released in 2008. The two-minute scene basically shows the interaction between a patient Emily suffering from congenital heart condition and Ben, an individual pretending to be an IRS field agent (Muccino, 2008). There Ben interviews her. The interaction takes place in Emily’s home which is a safe space for her but the interaction lacks any form of sensitivity.

A number of aspects have been covered by the individuals including Emily’s receipt of income from sources that are unaware by the Government, and her health condition i.e. congenital heart failure. Even though the setting seems normal, the way of interaction goes on reveals a hostile setting (Bogilovi? & Škerlavaj, 2016). During the end of the interaction, Ben informs her that she would not be able to access to her accounts until further notice.

The short clip highlights the significance of cultural capability of individuals since this element has a vital impact on the entire communication setting and ultimate outcome. The individual behavior of Ben and Emily, their tone of communication and entire interactive scenario that has been depicted in the video show that the there exists cultural safety issues in the specific setting (Muccino, 2008). The setting where the conversation takes place is Emily’s home where she seems to be pretty comfortable.

The way Ben and Emily talk to one another, it can be observed that both know each other before and they do not share a healthy rapport. The physical factors including the size and layout of space and position of individuals in the space are normal (Erez, et al., 2013). The communication factors that can be observed in the setting including Ben’s sarcastic and inconsiderate remarks like “your life is unremarkable in every way”, the tone of voice and words further makes space unsafe and uncertain (Muccino, 2008).

Thus the video clip that has been used in the report lacks cultural intelligence from Ben because he adopts an uncaring attitude while talking to Emily about her financial situation and medical condition.

The table below highlights the key observation from the video clip relating to cultural capabilities

Elements	Remarks
1. Cultural Intelligence	Completely lacking in the setting
2. Sensitivity	No sensitivity on part of Ben
3. Tone of voice	Hostility exits from either side of the parties
4. Space	Uncertain and unhealthy space of interaction

Thus the scenario that has been used here shows a situation that completely lacks cultural intelligence and makes the situation and communication outcome negative.

In the cultural setting, a number of aspects such as the cultural safety, cultural capabilities, and cultural capabilities play a significant role. The cultural intelligence is nothing but the manner in which an individual functions and manages properly in a culturally diverse setting (Huff, Song & Gresch, 2014). The cultural intelligence scenario that has been analyzed from the video clip has been categorized into different areas such as empathy, body language, cultural shock, communication style.

In the initial part of the clip, Emily showed proper cultural intelligence through a friendly tone of voice and she even offered coffee to Ben. But soon the situation turned for the worse and Ben’s attitude and insensitivity changed her attitude towards the situation.

Empathy – Empathy is a key component of cultural intelligence which has an influential power on the entire setting. The people with high level of cultural intelligence interact with much needed understanding and empathy so that so that the sentiments of the involved people are not negatively affected (K. Keung & J. Rockinson-Szapkiw, 2013).

In the particular video, it is least to say that Ben lacks empathy. The kind of remarks he makes at Emily knowing the fact that she is suffering from congenital heart failure makes the setting bitter (Li, Mobley & Kelly, 2013). He makes a few personal remarks at her which highlights the fact that he lacks compassion at least at that instance. Ben basically failed to put himself in the shoes of Emily and thus failed to analyze the situation from her perspective.

The Way of Communication

The effectiveness of a communication depends on the cultural intelligence that is exhibited by the involved individuals. In the particular video, the initial conversation was normal but these were some sort of agitation from both the parties. Then as the video moves forward, the way Ben talks to Emily gets extremely insensitive in nature. Even though he seems to be aware of the fact that she is suffering from a serious heart condition, his remarks are quite disrespectful (Malek & Budhwar, 2013). His statements and the question like “So you don’t consider yourself a good person?” shows that he lacked the minimum cultural capability that was necessary while dealing with Emily.

In a cultural setting, the body language plays a key role and influences the overall cultural environment. This aspect also influences the space in which the interaction takes place. It is necessary to properly observe the body language, facial expression, and gestures while interacting so that the setting can be improved (Rosenblatt, Worthley & MacNab, 2013).

The body language that has been exhibited in the video clip is casual and changes depending on the manner in which the communication moves forward. Physically the environment is safe but due to the callous attitude of Ben, the shock in Emily can be easily observed in a couple of occasions. This facial expression change should have been observed by Ben as well and he could have changed his approach while talking to Emily (?ahin, Gurbuz & Köksal, 2014).

Relational skills

Relational skills in the cultural intelligence setting can be described as the manner in which individuals interact with one another. In both personal and professional backdrop, this skill is vital since it strengthens the cultural intelligence and ultimate result of an objective.  In any environment, the proper relationship is the key to make the communication or interaction a success (Thomas, et al., 2015). But the example that has been considered here shows a lack of relational skill on part of Ben.

The clip shows that Ben lacked in the relational skill department. While discussing the financial issues of Emily he ignored the fact that she was suffering from a medical condition and needed an understanding and compassionate individual to talk to (Wood & St. Peters, 2014).

The video clip has been thoroughly analyzed in order to ascertain the level of cultural intelligence that is observed in the particular scene. The scenario that has been created shows that the lack of cultural capabilities can lead to the failure of a communication even if two rational individuals are involved in it.  Ben lacked empathy, his way of communication was insensitive, and he lacked relational skills (Yitmen, 2013). Emily’s tone, facial expressions and body language indicate the shock that she feels due to his lack of cultural sensitivity. Thus the video is an apt example that shows the significance and relevance of cultural intelligence in current times.

Recommendations

The recommendations have been designed based on the analysis that has been carried out after observing the video.

In order to strengthen the safety model of the scenario, Ben could have adopted a compassionate and understanding attitude towards Emily so that she could feel comfortable.

No insensitive remarks should have been used by him regarding her health since it could have further deteriorated her health condition.

There should be no personal attack on any individual during a conversation and this is a basic necessity of cultural intelligence. This attitude automatically puts a person in a defensive model which has an adverse impact on the purpose of the communication.

Ben needs to develop his empathy while dealing with sensitive clients. Emily is special client since she is having financial issues and is suffering from a medical condition as well. Thus a healthy setting must be created so that the conversation can be carried out smoothly.

Conclusion

The report revolves around cultural intelligence and touches upon a number of key areas including empathy, safe places, relational skill, etc. In order to make a place safe and secure, the individuals must possess the minimum level of compassion and sensitivity so that the cultural aspects of others are respected. The video that has been used as the framework in the task highlights a scenario where one of the key characters totally lacks cultural intelligence. The recommendations have been designed keeping in mind the scenario of the video so that Ben can strengthen his cultural capability and such situations can be avoided in future.

References

Barakat, L. L., Lorenz, M. P., Ramsey, J. R., & Cretoiu, S. L. (2015). Global managers: An analysis of the impact of cultural intelligence on job satisfaction and performance. International Journal of Emerging Markets, 10(4), 781-800.

Bogilovi?, S., & Škerlavaj, M. (2016). Metacogonitive and motivational cultural intelligence: Superpowers for creativity an a culturally diverse environment. Economic and Business Review, 18(1), 55-76.

Erez, M., Lisak, A., Harush, R., Glikson, E., Nouri, R., & Shokef, E. (2013). Going global: Developing management students' cultural intelligence and global identity in culturally diverse virtual teams. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 12(3), 330-355.

Huff, K. C., Song, P., & Gresch, E. B. (2014). Cultural intelligence, personality, and cross-cultural adjustment: A study of expatriates in Japan. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 38, 151-157.

Keung, E., & J. Rockinson-Szapkiw, A. (2013). The relationship between transformational leadership and cultural intelligence: A study of international school leaders. Journal of Educational Administration, 51(6), 836-854.

Li, M., Mobley, W. H., & Kelly, A. (2013). When do global leaders learn best to develop cultural intelligence? An investigation of the moderating role of experiential learning style. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 12(1), 32-50.

Malek, M. A., & Budhwar, P. (2013). Cultural intelligence as a predictor of expatriate adjustment and performance in Malaysia. Journal of world business, 48(2), 222-231.

Rosenblatt, V., Worthley, R., & MacNab, B. (2013). From contact to development in experiential cultural intelligence education: The mediating influence of expectancy disconfirmation. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 12(3), 356-379.

?ahin, F., Gurbuz, S., & Köksal, O. (2014). Cultural intelligence (CQ) in action: The effects of personality and international assignment on the development of CQ. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 39, 152-163.

Thomas, D. C., Liao, Y., Aycan, Z., Cerdin, J. L., Pekerti, A. A., Ravlin, E. C., ... & Moeller, M. (2015). Cultural intelligence: A theory-based, short form measure. Journal of International Business Studies, 46(9), 1099-1118.

Wood, E. D., & St. Peters, H. Y. (2014). Short-term cross-cultural study tours: impact on cultural intelligence. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(4), 558-570.

Yitmen, I. (2013). Organizational cultural intelligence: A competitive capability for strategic alliances in the international construction industry. Project Management Journal, 44(4), 5-25.