High context and low context cultures

As identified by Edward T. Hall in 1976:

High context transactions feature pre-programmed information that is in the receiver and in the setting, with only minimal information in the transmitted message. Low context transactions are the reverse. Most of the information must be in the transmitted message in order to make up for what is missing in the context.

In other words, high context culture focuses more on preexisting information and setting that the communicators are in. As such, it does not focus so much on the communicated message in contrary to the non-verbal cues, background and setting the communicators are in.

Low context culture on the other hand, focuses on the transmitted message between the communicators, with extra emphasis on verbal messages. It regards speech as a tool of expression and clarification. Non-verbal cues do not play as a big of a role as they do in a high context culture; as such, silence is taken as a sign of incomprehension.

Using the aforementioned classification, the majority of the East can be seen as adopting the high context culture, while the majority of the West adopts the low context culture.

In Asian countries like Japan, the culture is one of very high context. A conversation between two Japanese people may not make much sense to one of a low context culture. There is lack of clarity in their words and it is very hard to derive meaning from them. That’s because the Japanese rely on long-term and underlying meanings known by both because of their shared cultural background. They are also highly attuned to non-verbal communications and derive meaning from the speaker's facial expressions and body language. They view direct verbal communication as rude and insensitive.

On the other hand, in countries like the U.S. and Canada, one can clearly understand the meaning of a conversation held by people of a low context culture. Conversations will be direct, structured and to the point. The value of direct verbal communication will be much higher than that delivered by non verbal cues. As such they view indirect communication as deceptive and of questionable integrity.

With these stark contrasts in culture and perception it is no wonder that there has been many misunderstandings between low context and high context cultured countries. And as we all know, misunderstandings are the main causes of problems. Therefore it is important to understand a person's background and culture before confronting them.