“People underestimate the Philippines!” This
comment made to me by a trainer here many years ago has resonated ever
since. Both Filipinos and expats tend to
underestimate the cultural adjustments required by intercultural communication
in these islands.
From the foreigner’s side, arriving in the
Philippines doesn’t seem so strange.
Manila is a big city like many others, and all the signs you see are in
English. People have a bit of an accent,
but their English is quite understandable, and everyone seems so friendly – you
can’t imagine not fitting in here!
From the Filipino’s side, there are also
some reasons to underestimate cultural difference and adjustment
complexities. Filipinos are very
cosmopolitan – many have traveled or have family members scattered all over the
world, and Filipinos take pride in their adaptability and cultural
know-how. And rightly so. Manila has been a global seaport and trade
center since its establishment in the 1500’s.
By 1600, observers said you could buy goods here from every country in
the world. By the 1700’s there was
hardly a ship sailing in European waters without at least a few Filipino
sailors on board. Manila has been called
“the world’s first global city”.
Moreover, Filipinos place a high value on
hospitality, and they want a newcomer to feel comfortable and at home in their
land. Filipinos tend to believe that
they can and will adapt to whatever the foreigner needs, and they don’t expect
their guests to have to do any adjusting or adapting.
Unfortunately, that’s not quite
enough. There are deep cultural
undercurrents and hidden springs of Philippine culture that neither the native
nor the newcomer is naturally equipped to analyze. And sometimes what we do know about
cross-cultural communication, if incompletely understood, can create its own
barriers to true cultural competence.
For example, a lot of people know that
Western cultures tend to be more individualistic and Asian cultures are
supposed to be “collectivistic”. But
what does that mean? It doesn’t mean
that all Asians “like working in groups” or that Americans always want to have
their own way. First of all, there are
varying degrees of individualism found in different national and sub-national
cultures. There is not really such a
thing as “Asian” or “Western” culture.
Then, it’s not a matter of “liking” to work
in groups. Rather, people in more
collective cultures take their sense of personal identity from the groups they
belong to. However, this process is not
automatic beyond the most basic family and clan level. A university, employer, or urban neighborhood
has to earn the newcomer’s loyalty by demonstrating loyalty to the
members. And a newcomer has to
demonstrate their own trustworthiness before being considered part of the
“in-group”.
One interesting feature of individualism
vs. collectivism that has immediate practical implications for work teams and
employers is that people
at the collectivist end of the spectrum are expected to be able to find things
out even if they are not explicitly stated.
Individualists, it is said, rely on the speaker to make the message
clear, while collectivists rely on the listener to pick out the cues and clues
from what is said to figure out what the clear message is supposed to be. This
seemingly simple difference is responsible for many, perhaps most of the daily
misunderstandings that can crop up between Filipino and North American
colleagues.
“Why
didn’t you tell me…?” is the frequent anguished cry of the foreigner who
finally finds out some information that the Filipino thought was obvious to
all. “But everybody knows…” is
the equally surprised and unhappy response.
Filipinos
are not trying to hide information, they genuinely believe that you can pick up
the “vibes” the way they are used to doing in their own environment. It’s hard for them, especially if they have
not traveled themselves, to realize how much of what they know is unstated and
invisible to an outsider.
Seemingly
simple differences like these actually go deep inside each one of us. You never want to underestimate how hard it
is to change the way you perceive the world you live and work in.
