Understanding the Arab Culture: A Practical Cross-cultural Guide to Working in the Arab World (Working With Other Cultures)

150 Pages·2008·1.46 MB·English

by  Al-Omari Jehad

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The right of Dr Jehard Al-Omari to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
© 2008 Dr Jehad Al-Omari
First published 2003
Second edition 2008
First published in electronic form 2008
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978 1 84803 302 3
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Contents
Preface ix About the author xiii Acknowledgements xv Introduction xvii
1 A CROSSCULTURAL PERSPECTIVE 1
The place of generalizations 2
The dangers of stereotying 7
Emerging with common sense 9
The role of the crosscultural theory 11
Exaggerating the role 13
2 TEN CROSSCULTURAL REALITIES 15
Recognizing the complexity of culture 15
Going beyond visibles 17
Holding your judgement 18
Appreciating Gandhi’s dilemma 20
Accepting culture shock 21
Knowing yourself 23
Seeing yourself as others see you 24
Working with stereotypes 26
Mentoring and solving problems 27
Packing your sense of wonder and humour 29
3 THE ARAB CULTURE IN A GENERIC CONTEXT 31
Writing about culture 31
The four cultural determinants 32
Relationships in collective cultures 34
Business practices in collective cultures 35
Hierarchy in power distant cultures 39
Business practices in high power distant organizations 41
Communicating with high context cultures 44
Communicating across cultures 46
Business tips for high context cultures 50
Managing time in polychronic cultures 51
Business Tips for Working with Polychronic Cultures 53
4THEBUSINESSPYRAMID 56
Increased complexity 56
Building a communications strategy 57

v vi / U N D ERSTANDING T H E A RAB CULTURE
Managing meetings effectively 61 Doing business and negotiating 67
5 AN ARAB PERSPECTIVE 70
The Arab world 70
TheArabLeague 71
Sources of unity 73
Terms of Reference 76
The Arab peoples 78
The levels of diversity 80
The Arabic language 82
Learning the language 83
Learning tips 85
Translating into Arabic 86
Some useful phrases 88
Arabic numbers 90
6 FIRST ENCOUNTERS WITH ARABS 92
Cultural quiz 92
Before you travel 93
Getting there 95
What’s in a name? 96
The rules of formality 98
Understanding family names 99
Interpreting body language 101
Establishing eye contact 103
Reading the tactile culture 103
Appreciating gender differences 104
Increasing women’s roles 106
Aspects of dress code 107
7 VALUES AND ATTITUDES 110
The position of hospitality 110
Sampling Arabic coffee 114
Hospitality tips 116
The role of the family 118
Making conversation 120
Conversation tips 121
8 EXPERIENCING ARABIA 124
Socializing with Arabs 124
Attending weddings and festivals 125
Visiting the Majlis 128
Going on desert outings 130
CONTEN TS / vii
Sampling Arabic food 132
Shopping and bargaining 135
Getting out and about 136
Living conditions 138
9 ISLAM: AWAY OF LIFE 140
Islam in the world 140
Islam today 141
The meaning of Islam 144
The oneness of God 146
Mohammed (PBUH): Seal of the Prophets 147
The belief system 149
Family code 149
A way of life 150
The meaning of Shari’a 151
Praying – Salah 152
Fasting during Ramadan 153
Pilgrimage to Mekkah – Hajj 155
Useful tips 156
10 DOING BUSINESS 159
The business environment 159
Business is personal 162
The spoken word 163
The meeting 164
Circular meetings 166
Pleasantries and small talk 167
Organized chaos 168
Flow and tempo 170
Breaking bad news 171
Punctuality 173
Inshaalah 176
Confrontation avoidance 177
Decisionmaking 178
Waasta and favours 179
Exercise – making a presentation 181
Epilogue 185
Recommended reading 202
Index 203
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Preface
One who knows about oneself and about others will recognise: Orient and
Occident can no longer be separated.
To move comfortably between both worlds,
Between the East and the West, that is the best.
J. W. von Goethe
How do you define culture and who are the Arabs? Is it possible to
exaggerate the role of culture, and can we generalise about the Arabs? Is it
possible to write about your own culture and remain unbiased? Where do
generalizations end and stereotypes begin in a work like this? Can a book of this
type give the Arab culture some justice in the eyes of the Arabs themselves and
in terms of its usefulness to non-Arabs? Where does this book fit in the overall
global environment which every nation is supposedly undergoing? How does
this book contribute to the overwhelming need for a better understanding of the
Arab culture and Islam in view of recent events?
I believe that all the above questions are legitimate questions in assessing a
book of this type. However, as important as these questions may be, they are not
in themselves questions that this book pretends to answer. In writing this book, I
had one objective in mind: to better inform Western expatriates and business-
people who are relocating to the Arab World about some facets of the Arab
culture which are of great relevance to them, in a simple, practical and concise
manner.
In writing this book, it was inconceivable to ignore the bigger picture that
underpins the choice of subjects and angles of discussion: namely the
crosscultural theory, its objectives, tools, limitations and failings. The book
addresses the key issues that

ix x / UN DERSTANDIN G T HE ARAB CULTURE
arise from my years of experience in the crosscultural field and which every
visitor needs to know either to eliminate uncertainty or to satisfy basic human
curiosity. It is an attempt to help these visitors and sensitize them to common
taboos and faux pas.At the same time, it would be pretentious to suggest that this
book applies to every Arab you will meet irrespective of their age, sex,
education and nationality.
The driving force behind this book and behind a lifetime commitment to
crosscultural issues is threefold. As an Arab living in the West, I was gradually
becoming fascinated by observing my own culture from a distance. The idea of
comparing ‘Arab’ and ‘Western’ cultures became intellectually appealing, and
witnessing changes in one’s own attitudes was interesting, as well as being, on
some occasions, painful. Furthermore, crosscultural training gave me more
impetus when facing ‘real hunger’ for more information about the Arab region
and more importantly when witnessing dramatic transformations in perceptions
and attitudes towards the Arab world. Finally, this book is underpinned by the
belief that crosscultural dialogue will definitely help avoid many future
international conflicts, or at least help us manage them better.
The fact that this book was first published at the same time as the invasion
of Iraq owed itself to coincidence rather than timing (good or bad). Nonetheless,
the fact that this book had something to say about crosscultural dialogue was
important in the face of world events where real dialogue did not seem to have
happened. Events in Iraq, as elsewhere, in the last few years have not
disillusioned me, but rather refreshed and strengthened the belief that better
understanding between East and West is now more essential than ever.
PRE FACE / xi
In summary, this book aims to give guidelines and practical tips, to inform
and raise questions, build bridges and demolish barriers, and finally, clarify a
few misconceptions about the Arabs, their culture and attitudes. In writing this
book I tried to combine theory with practice, to be user friendly without drifting
into triviality. I have also made the assumption that my target audience is largely
Western. I pray to the Almighty God that this modest book has succeeded in
achieving what it set out to do.
Dr Jehad Al-Omari This page intentionally left blank
About the Author
Dr Jehad Al-Omari is an experienced
CrossCultural Management
Consultant and has been training
Western executives on Arab affairs
and crosscultural matters since 1986.
A regular lecturer and speaker with
international institutions such as
Farnham Castle, Cranfield School of
Management, the Netherlands
Institute of MBAStudies and Canning,
he also holds a number of consultancy posts with numerous multinational
firms operating in the Arab World. Dr Jehad Al-Omari currently divides his time
between Europe and the Arab World where in addition to teaching on training
programmes he supervises MBA students and is engaged in a number of
expatriation and repatriation studies in the Middle East. He can be contacted by
e-mail at [email protected]
Testimonials
‘Dr Al-Omari thinks deeply, is a wise man and a good teacher.’ Richard Pooley,
Canning International Training and Development
‘Dr Al-Omari’s seminars are world class. He has been one of the most
professional consultants that we, as a company, have ever worked with (and our
standards are very high).’ Hans van der Linden, Managing Director, TMA Ltd
‘Dr Al-Omari’s seminars have broadened our view of the Arab world.’ Nancy
Helledie, Borealis A/S
‘Dr Al-Omari balances the theory with practical application and
xiii
real-life examples.’ Garth GF Ward, Cranfield University
‘Dr Al-Omari’s teaching and communication skills are very high.’ Sean Rickard,
Cranfield University