How information is perceived, obtained, and processed differs from country to country.
In low context cultures people generally regard only firsthand information that bears directly on the subject at hand as being relevant. Managers typically spend little time on small talk and tend to get to the point. In contrast, in high-context cultures people see seemingly peripheral information as pertinent and infer meanings from things said either indirectly or casually.
In monochronic cultures people prefer to work sequentially. So, for example, a transaction with one customer is completed before dealing with another. But in a polychronic culture, people often feel more comfortable working simultaneously on a variety of tasks, such as dealing immediately with multiple customers who need service.
Cultures that prefer to establish overall principles before tackling smaller details take an approach called idealism, while those that focus more on details than on abstract principles take a pragmatic approach.
Keep in mind that an individual’s approach to information processing can affect business in a number of ways. In a culture of pragmatists like the United States, for example, labor negotiations tend to focus on well-defined issues—say, hourly pay increases for a specific bargaining unit. However, in an idealist culture like that of Argentina, labor disputes tend to blur the focus on specific demands as workers tend to rely first on mass action—such as general strikes or political activities—to publicize basic principles.