Using localised websites across cultures

Transcription

1 Using localised websites across cultures Are localised websites culturally adaptable? Author: Christina Jacobsen Cand.ling.merc. English IMK & PR School of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University Department of Business Communication October 2013 Supervisor: Carmen Heine Number of characters (excl. blanks): 168,216

2 Table of contents 1. Introduction Problem statement Method and empirical data Delimitation Scientific background Theoretical fundament Communication theory The SPA-model The IMC-model Intercultural communication Measurements on culture differences Hofstede Web communication The website in a communicative perspective Websites in an intercultural perspective Internationalisation, globalisation and localisation Standardised, localised and culturally adapted websites Translation for the web Cultural adaption of websites Hofstede s cultural value index applied on web communication Non-verbal aspects of website localisation Case Background The communicative situation What is Danish design and Scandinavian design? Hofstede on DEN, UK and GER cultural values The websites in the genre perspective The analysis RigTig by Stelton The homepage The company profile website The product profile website rep Erik bagger The homepage... 55

3 The company profile website The product profile website rep The product profile website rep Rosendahl The homepage The company profile website The product profile website The product profile website rep Findings RigTig by Stelton Erik bagger Rosendahl Summary The questionnaire Theoretical approach RigTig by Stelton Erik bagger Rosendahl Summary Discussion RigTig by Stelton Erik bagger Rosendahl Comparison of findings Conclusion References... 95

4 List of tables and figures Figure 1: The SPA communication model... 8 Figure 2: The IMC-model Figure 3: Context in the IMC-model. How culture relates to the situational context Figure 4: The "onion diagram" Figure 5: Aspects of web localisation, What web localisation entails Figure 6: The five fields of website localisation Figure 7: A communication model on the cultural adaption of localised websites Table 1: The five stages of website localisation Table 2: The five fields of website localisation Table 3: The meaning of selected colours in Scandinavia, the UK and Germany Table 4: Denmark, United Kingdom and Germany index scores Table 5: Score difference between the native Danish culture and the UK and Germany respectively 43 Table 6: The cultural tendencies of the UK and Germany compared to the Danish values Table 7: The cultural values on the homepage of RigTig by Stelton Table 8: The cultural values on the company profile website of RigTig by Stelton Table 9: The cultural values on the product website of RigTig by Stelton Table 10: The cultural values on the homepage of erik bagger Table 11: The cultural values on the company profile website of erik bagger Table 12: The cultural values on the product profile website of erik bagger rep Table 13: The cultural values on the product profile website of erik bagger rep Table 14: The cultural values on the homepage of Rosendahl Table 15: The cultural values on the company profile website of Rosendahl Table 16: The cultural values on the product profile website of Rosendahl part Table 17: The cultural values on the product profile website of Rosendahl rep Screenshot 1: The homepage of RigTig by Stelton (DEN) Screenshot 2: The company profile website of RigTig by Stelton (DEN) Screenshot 3: The product profile website of RigTig by Stelton rep. 1 (DEN) Screenshot 4: The homepage of erik bagger part 1 (DEN) Screenshot 5: The homepage of erik bagger part 2 (DEN) Screenshot 6: The company profile website of erik bagger (DEN) Screenshot 7: The product profile website of erik bagger rep. 1 (DEN) Screenshot 8: The product profile website of erik bagger rep. 2 (DEN) Screenshot 9: The homepage of Rosendahl - part 1 (DEN) Screenshot 10: The homepage of Rosendahl - part 2 (DEN) Screenshot 11: The homepage of Rosendahl - part 3 (DEN) Screenshot 12: The company profile website of Rosendahl - part 1 (DEN) Screenshot 13: The company profile website of Rosendahl - part 2 (DEN) Screenshot 14: The product profile website of Rosendahl (DEN) Screenshot 15: The product news website of Rosendahl rep. 2, part 1 (DEN) Screenshot 16: The product news website of Rosendahl rep. 2, part 2 (DEN) Screenshot 17: The product news website of Rosendahl rep. 2, part 3 (DEN) Screenshot 18: The product news website of Rosendahl rep. 2, part 4 (DEN)... 77

5 Abstract As websites have become an important intercultural communication platform for companies, there are several ways for the localisation websites. While it is generally suggested that only culturally customised websites are able to successfully communicate to target audience of foreign cultures, many companies opt for offering localised websites, which are translations of a domestic website. This thesis investigates if localised websites bear the cultural values of the sender and if localised websites can be yet adapted to the culturally influenced preferences of foreign target audiences. For answering these questions, selected websites that represented the homepage, the company profile and the product profile of Danish, English and German localised websites of three Danish companies within the tableware branch were analysed for their cultural elements. As all companies defined their products as Danish design or Scandinavian design, it was assumed that the companies would be especially experienced and aware of communicating cultural values across cultures. In addition, a questionnaire investigated the intercultural web communication approaches of the companies of the analysed websites. The theoretical part of the thesis focussed on communication theories and the role of culture and Hofstede s cultural value index was presented as a tool for measuring cultural differences. Further, the issue of intercultural web communication was elaborated and it was focussed how websites can be adapted to the cultural preferences. Here, Hofstede s cultural value served to explain culturally related preferences in web communication. The practical part of the thesis accounted for the communicative situation of the selected websites. Here, Hofstede s classification of the Danish, British and German cultures were combined to account for culturally related preferences in regards to web communication. The analysis part was introduced by a presentation of the individual companies and their websites. First, the Danish websites were analysed for their cultural elements, and then the English and German websites were analysed for differing cultural values. The results of the individual analyses were then presented for the individual companies, which accounted for the cultural values of the Danish website and whether the English and German websites were culturally adapted to the British and German cultures respectively. The analyses showed that the Danish versions of the localised websites had a great tendency to reflect Danish cultural values. Although the English and German websites included some cultural adaptions, these could not clearly be related to British and German cultural values respectively; while

6 the English websites were moderately adapted, the German websites rarely accounted for the German cultural values. The analyses showed that it is possible to culturally adapt localised websites, although it appeared that the cultural adaptions on the analysed websites were not explicitly suitable for the targeted cultures. In addition to the website analysis, a questionnaire was presented which was designed to obtain data about the intercultural web communication approach of companies of the analysed websites. The questionnaires were answered by representatives of the companies. The questionnaire allowed to explain that the domestic localised websites which overall accounted for Danish cultural values were commonly created by persons with a native Danish heritage. It appeared that a low priority of choosing native English or German translators for the adaption of the localised websites can be related to localised websites that generally do not meet the cultural preferences of the target audiences. In regards to the intercultural awareness of the companies, the questionnaire indicated that the English websites were not considered to target a British audience, but a broad rather a broad international audience. This information indicated that the companies regard the English language as a culturally neutral communication tool and not as an indicator for culturally adapted content. On the other hand, the German language was only seen in relation to a native German audience. Number of characters excl. blanks: 3610

7 Using localised websites across cultures: Are localised websites culturally adaptable? 1. Introduction Websites have become an important communication medium in business communication. The worldwide availability of the internet allows companies to use their website as portal for both domestic and international users, which makes the website an important platform for intercultural communication. According to communication theories, successful intercultural communication situations demand that the sender adapts his message to the cultural needs and values of the receiver, as the same message in a uniform style does not produce the same meaning in every country (Nacar & Burnaz, 2011, p. 274). The role of the website in a communicative perspective is manifold. While it can be seen as a culturally neutral medium for transmitting messages, it can also be seen as genre and text. In this perspective, websites, their content, visual and functional appearance, communicate cultural values, and hence websites will be influenced by the cultural heritage of their creators (Zhao et al., 2003, p. 81). However, it appears that many companies communicate to their international consumers through localised websites, which are translated versions of a domestic website, instead of culturally customised websites, which are completely adapted to the target culture (Singh et al., 2005, p. 10). Assuming that localised websites are influenced by the cultural heritage of their creators and exclude the option for cultural adaptions, while these at the same time are frequently used as communication platform for communicating across cultures, it shall be investigated if localised websites are yet able to include differing cultural approaches which would demonstrate that these are suitable as intercultural communication tools. This issue shall be exemplified by an analysis of the localised websites of three Danish companies that market their products by a highly culturally related term ( Danish design or Scandinavian design ), as it is assumed that these are especially experienced and sensitive in intercultural communicative situations. As recent localisation studies found Hofstede s cultural value index highly applicable to relate communicative preferences on websites to certain cultural values, his theory will P a g e 1 101

8 serve to explain whether the domestic Danish websites, as source for other localised websites, particularly represent the cultural preferences of the Danish culture and if the localised English and German language versions have been culturally adapted to the preferences of a British and German target audience respectively (cf. Schäler (2008), Singh (2011), Singh et al (2005), Marcus et al (2000), Ahmed et al (2008) and Thatcher et al. (2007)). In a more distant perspective, this investigation shall answer whether the communicative approach of these localised websites is oriented towards the native culture of the sender and if localised websites reflect the culture of the receiver, or if the localised websites account for a mix of cultural approaches. In addition, a questionnaire shall investigate the motives behind the analysed cultural approaches of the websites Problem statement Based on the assumption that localised websites bear a certain cultural heritage and avoid cultural adaptions, although these are frequently used for intercultural communication purposes, This thesis investigates if the domestic localised websites of three Danish companies account for the Danish cultural website preferences according to Hofstede s cultural value index, and if the German and English websites have been culturally adapted to suit the website preferences of the German and British cultures respectively Method and empirical data The thesis will be introduced by a theoretical fundament in paragraph 2, which focusses on communication in a general, intercultural and web-based perspective. First, a general approach of communication theories, exemplified by the comprehensive SPA (Sprog på arbejde) communication model and the marketing oriented IMC (International market communication) communication model, will be given. Second, intercultural communication will be focussed, and the complexity of culture will be highlighted. In this connection, it will be discussed how culture and cultural differences can be measured, and here, Hofstede s cultural value index will be presented. Third, web-based communication will be focussed, and it will be elaborated how a websites can be interpreted in a communicative perspective. In this connection, it will be focussed how websites are used for intercultural communication purposes. In addition, the role of translation for the web will be briefly discussed. Hereafter, it will be accounted for the cultural adaption of P a g e 2 101

9 websites, and how Hofstede s cultural value index can be related to culturally related website preferences. In this connection, alternative non-verbal aspects of website localisation shall be briefly named. After the theoretical part, the analysis section in paragraph 3 will be introduced. Here, the localised websites of three Danish companies of the tableware branch that market their products as Danish or Scandinavian design will be analysed for their cultural approach in their Danish, English and German language versions respectively. First, it will be accounted for the communicative situation. Then, the terms Danish design and Scandinavian design will be briefly elaborated, as these account for the referent of the case. Hereafter, the cultural context of the communicative situation will be described by presenting and comparing Hofstede s cultural values of Denmark, the United Kingdom and Germany as these are assumed to form the cultural background for the sender and the receivers respectively. Finally, it will be briefly accounted for the genre approach of the selected case. The analysis of the selected company websites will be arranged by company and will be introduced by a brief description of the companies. The analysis will first offer a comprehensive description of the individual websites and will then account for the cultural approaches of the domestic Danish website. Then, it will be analysed if the German and English versions differ in their cultural approaches. The cultural approaches will be described by relating the available website elements in accordance to Hofstede s cultural values, and these will be categorised by four different main areas of website localisation, which were identified and described in the theoretical part. The analysed cultural values of the websites will then be compared to the cultural values of the Danish, British and German cultures. In this way, it will be elaborated whether the Danish website accounts for typically Danish website preferences, and if the English and German websites are adapted to the website preferences of British and German receivers. Finally, common and individual preferences of the website analyses will be discussed. As a supplement to the theoretical investigation, a questionnaire that has been answered by representatives of the companies whose websites have been analysed, will be presented in paragraph 4. The questionnaire investigates if the companies are aware of intercultural web communication issues, and in this way, the questionnaire seeks to answer the question whether the analysed cultural approaches of the websites were intended or not. First, the individual answers will be presented and it will be accounted for eventual common statements. Finally, the statements of the questionnaire will be related to the results of the website analysis. First, the results of the website analysis and the questionnaire will be discussed for the individual companies. Finally, common approaches will be elaborated and general tendencies will be discussed. P a g e 3 101

10 1.3. Delimitation The websites that shall be investigated in this thesis are chosen due to their localised appearance in their Danish, English and German language versions. All companies are located in Denmark, belong to the tableware industry and market their products as Danish and/or Scandinavian design respectively. The size of the company as well as their national and international market position are not considered. The English and German websites are only related to cultural values of the United Kingdom and Germany respectively, although other countries with English and German official languages might have been considered as potential target cultures. Due to the limited extend of this thesis, it was not possible to obtain data about the actual perception of recipients of the targeted markets. Instead, this thesis relies on the cultural description of Hofstede s cultural value index, as his cultural theory allowed to compare the selected nations as such. This thesis especially focusses the role of the sender in the intercultural communicative situation. Therefore, the theoretical findings of the website analysis are extended by a questionnaire which researches the sender s practical approach of web communication. For offering a detailed description of the case of this thesis, the theoretical findings of the website analysis and the questionnaire follow a qualitative approach. Regarding the website analysis, this means that only three company websites have been chosen and that not the entire websites will be analysed. Instead, certain website types will be selected to account for general tendencies of the websites cultural approach. Further, the analysis will only focus on content that can be interpreted culturally. The analysis will not focus on translation related communicative adaptions, such as the quality of language or general linguistic features of the texts. Likewise, the technical realisations of website localisation will not be considered Scientific background This thesis follows an inductive approach, accounting from specific observations to broader generalisations. Thus, scientific knowledge is obtained through testing and systemising of empirical data. Further, this thesis accounts for a hermeneutic approach, which seeks to obtain knowledge through the systematic interpretations of actions or texts (Baran & Davis, 2012, p. 13). Looking for hidden or deep meaning in people s interpretation of different symbol systems, as for example in media texts, P a g e 4 101

11 hermeneutics can be categorised as interpretive theory approach. In this thesis, it will be interpreted how the content of localised appearing websites include cultural elements and how these reflect the cultural values of the intended targeted audiences. In this relation, the dialectic process of this thesis also follows the hermeneutic circle, which asserts that the part (i.e. the text or elements of the text) can only be understood from the whole (i.e. the cultural context), while the whole, in turn, can only be understood from its parts ( (Prasad A., 2002) as cited in (Prasad P., 2005, p. 34f)). Thus, the individual analyses outcomes of the three company websites are interpreted and understood in relation to each other. The analyses therefore offer data for a deeper understanding of the entire investigated issue. This includes, that the smallest cultural elements of the websites are understood in terms of a large cultural context (cf. (Cohen M. Z., 2000, p. 72ff). The interpretive nature of hermeneutics also implies that the outcome of the research is influenced by the subjective knowledge and the cultural context of its interpreter. However, I will seek to reduce the present subjectivity by constantly offering the reader theoretically founded background knowledge for reflecting on the issue of this thesis. Although this thesis is led by a hermeneutic objective, it is inspired by a positivistic approach, as a clear, precise and constructive investigation of a given issue shall contribute positively in a societal manner. In the positivistic perspective, reality is not simple and unchangeable but complex and thus, theories that seek to investigate elements of reality need to embrace this complexity (Langergaard et al., 2006, p. 96ff). In this thesis, there will be used several theoretical approaches in order to form complex theoretical approaches. For instance, theoretical approaches of communication will viewed in an intercultural perspective and this knowledge will be used to discuss the role of intercultural aspects in terms of web communication. Further, theories on website localisation will be combined with general cultural theories for then being able to create a model for analysing the cultural approaches on websites. Finally, the theoretical findings of this thesis will be supported by empirical data which is obtained through a questionnaire. On the first view, this method accounts for a quantitative approach, as the questionnaire includes standardised questions which shall be answered by all respondents. However, the overall approach is qualitative: First, the three selected participants function as representatives of the companies whose websites have been analysed. Second, the questions have been formulated as open questions, offering the respondents to answer without presented or implied choices. As this thesis in general, the questionnaire follows an inductive approach, which implies that the obtained issue of intercultural communication issues on the web, implied by localised websites, is the source for the questionnaire. Further, the questionnaire follows a naturalistic inquiry, as there is no P a g e 5 101

12 attempt to manipulate the selected participants for the purpose of evaluation. Relying on a naturalistic inquiry, the collection of qualitative data combined with an inductive approach, the questionnaire can be categorised as exploratory evaluation research. It seeks to understand the outcomes, and to consider which outcomes may be important to identify key variables, which then could be further researched by quantitative methods (Patton, 1987, p. 37). Following a holistic approach, the questionnaire is interpreted as a qualitative method to understand situations as a whole (Patton, 1987, p. 17f). In this perspective, it is assumed that the description and understanding of an issue s social and political context is essential for the overall understanding of the given issue. By focussing on the complexity of a situation, the holistic perspective avoids to offer an evaluation, which is isolated, unrelated and out-of-context. Thus, the questionnaire serves as a supplement to the results of the theoretical analysis. P a g e 6 101

13 2. Theoretical fundament The content of the following section will build the theoretical fundament of the thesis. First, I will give an overview of the terms culture and intercultural communication. In this connection, I will investigate how cultural differences can be measured and compared. Hereafter, I will focus on web communication and how websites can be culturally adapted. In this connection, I will examine the concepts of globalisation, glocalisation and localisation. I will then look on the website as a genre for investigating common structures of websites Communication theory The following section will give an overview of communication theories, by accounting for a general communication model (the SPA-model) and a communication model on international market communication (IMC-model). The focussing on general communication models shall illustrate the role of culture, and this basic knowledge shall later be used to account for intercultural communication issues on websites The SPA-model The Sprog på arbejde (SPA) communication model has been created to illustrate relations and connections between text, message, sender and receiver in a dynamic situational perspective of communication and can therefore be categorised as a relational communication model. It was inspired by other relational oriented communication models, such as from Bühler, Jakobsen, Henriksen and Togeby, and in this way, the SPA-model unites the elements of a range of popular communication models and functions hence as a representative communication model. (Ditlevsen et al., 2007, p. 62f) The central element in the model is the text, as all acts of communication are made through or via texts (Ditlevsen et al., 2007, p. 34). The Latin derivation of the word text, textere or textum which means (to) weave, highlights the importance of the cohesion of a text s elements. Regarding a text as sign, in a semiotic perspective the coherence of a text can explained from a syntactic, semantic and pragmatic perspective, which account for the relation between signs, the relation between sign content and sign expression and the relation between signs and their interpreters. P a g e 7 101

14 Regarding a text as a tool for reaching a certain objective, a text can also be said to bear certain functions, which the German linguist Bühler categorised as expressive, appellative and informative ( (Bühler, 1934/1982) as cited in (Ditlevsen et al., 2007, p. 39f)). These three functions are directly related to the actors of the communicative situation, namely the sender, the receiver and the referent. Due to this connection, all of the three function will always be present in any communicative situation, and this linkage is has been highlighted by connecting lines in the SPAmodel. Due to their direct relation to the actors of the text, all three functions will always be present in any text (though some functions will be dominating). Context Genre Sender Text Receiver Referent Figure 1: The SPA communication model SOURCE: Ditlevsen et al, 2007, p. 34 The text is surrounded by the context, which refers to all elements that surround the communicative situation and that have an influence on the text. The three main elements, which have a dominant influence on the text in the communication process are the sender, the receiver and the referent. To the left, there is the sender. He is the initiator of the text, and he is hence responsible for the formation of the text. To the right, there is the receiver of the text. He is the part that is influenced the most by the text, as he registers, processes and retains the text. While a first view on the model would suggest that there is only one receiver, it is crucial to distinguish between the intended and actual receiver, which might not always correlate. P a g e 8 101

15 Besides the sender and the receiver, also the referent plays an elementary role in the communication model. Representing the element to which the text refers, the referent is a passive element in the production and reception process. Other elements of the context that influence the communicate situation, but which are not explicitly highlighted in the model are the influences of time, space and persons. In addition, the context is influenced by factors of text publicity, status differences between sender and receiver as well as presuppositions. In this model, also the medium is counted as part of the context. Finally, the role of genre, which Bathia defines as an instance of a successful achievement of a specific communicative purpose using conventionalized knowledge of linguistic and discoursal resources (Bathia, 1993, p. 16) is highlighted. In the communicative situation of the SPA-model, genre is surrounded by striped lines for highlighting that it unites all elements of the communication model; the text, the three actors and the context. Thus, genre also has an important influence on the structure and actual appearance of a text The IMC-model The international market communication (IMC) model has been created by Frandsen et al and is a communication model which focusses on business communication (Frandsen et al., 2005, p. 51ff). Although the model on the first view seems to include the same elements as in the SPA-model, there are some major differences, which allow to view the action of communication from a more culturally focused perspective. First, the model places the sender as the initiator of the text, which is explicitly highlighted by the production process. In this way, the model also indirectly differs between text-internal and textexternal senders or even primary and secondary senders, as these can be counted as actively influencing the production process of the text. In the same way, the model places the receiver as the actor that is responsible for the reception of a text, and therefore receivers can be categorised as text-internal and text-external as well as primary and secondary in nature. The text is placed as central element in the model that is structured by rhetoric strategies, which are to a certain degree influenced by genre, media as well as context and culture. In the IMC-model, the referent is highlighted as the product or brand, and its denotative and connotative meanings. P a g e 9 101

16 CONTEXT / CULTURE MEDIA GENRE Sender PRODUCTION (Code) TEXT (Rhetoric strategies) Referent RECEPTION Receiver Figure 2: The IMC-model SOURCE: Frandsen et al, 2005, p. 52 In comparison to the SPA-model, the context element in the IMC-model has been supplemented by the element of culture. In this way, the model distinguishes between the situational context and culture, which influences the situational context (see Figure 3). Culture Situational context Figure 3: Context in the IMC-model. How culture relates to the situational context SOURCE: Frandsen et al, 2005, p. 64 The IMC-model illustrates that context and culture have an influence on the choice of medium which in turn influences the genre. In this way, the model emphasises that the medium functions as link between context/culture and genre, as it is argued that the media will have an influence on the communicative characteristic of the text. In turn, genre is not only influenced by the medium, but P a g e

17 plays an own active part by influencing the text. This activity is explicitly named as coding, referring to how signs are arranged in order to create meaning, and hence coding influences text production and text reception. As the use and perception of codes are culturally influenced, the issue of coding becomes especially interesting in an intercultural perspective, as it bears the potential to imply misperceptions between two different cultures. The following section will therefore focus on the issue of intercultural communication; what culture implies and practical methods for understanding cultural differences Intercultural communication Viewing communication as a process of sharing meanings, intercultural communication occurs when the people that create shared meanings have different cultural perspectives and values (Sadri & Flammia, 2011, p. 10). In other words, any communication between two persons that do not share the same cultural background can be described as an act of intercultural communication. As culture shapes a certain group s shared attitude of what is perceived as normal and appropriate behaviour, it also affects common expectations to what is perceived as normal communication. In fact, the role of communication and culture are undeniably interlinked as it is argued that culture, its views and rules, are learned through communication (Wood, 2006, p. 160). Generally, culture is described as a construct but its definitions vary. In this way, culture can be described as a system of behaviours, meanings, mental characteristics, artefacts or a combination of those elements (Minkov & Hofstede, 2013, p. 16f). While it is argued that the preference for the definition of culture depends on an author s own cultural background (also known as an ethnocentric perspective), this cultural research of this thesis shall be based on a culture definition which is widely accepted among international scientists. For this reason, the definition of the cultural scientist Geert Hofstede will be used, who defines culture as the collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from another. The element mind denotes an individual s thinking, feeling and acting, and hence the mind effects an individual s beliefs, attitudes and skills, which form the predominantly invisible part of culture, namely values. On the other hand, the visible aspects of culture are symbols, heroes, rituals (as illustrated in Figure 4): Symbols are defined as words, gestures, pictures, and objects that carry often complex meanings recognised as such only by those who share the culture (cited in (Hofstede, 2001, p. 10) referring to (Cohen M., 1974, p. 23) and (Griswold, 1994, p. 19)). P a g e

18 Heroes are defined as persons, alive or dead, real or imaginary, who possess characteristics that are highly prized in a culture and thus serve as models for behaviour (Hofstede, 2001, p. 10). Rituals are defined as collective activities that are technically unnecessary to the achievement of desired ends, but that within a culture are considered socially essential, keeping the individual bound within the norms of the collectivity. (Hofstede, 2001, p. 10) Symbols Heroes Rituals Values Figure 4: The "onion diagram" SOURCE: Hofstede, 2001, p. 9 The relation between the visible and invisible elements of culture are illustrated in Figure 4, Hofstede s onion diagram. Here, the practices of symbols, heroes and rituals are visible for an outside observer, while the meaning of these actions are represented as values that are invisible for an outside observer. Depending on the variation of elements of this construction of culture, cultures differ from each other. Keeping in mind that Hofstede s culture definition denotes a group or category of people (see above), the term culture is often used in relation to describe national cultures. In this connection, the following section will account for the systematic description of cultural differences, with a special focus on Hofstede s cross-cultural index Measurements on culture differences For explaining cultural phenomena, various scientists have implied systems which allow to compare cultural behaviour and preferences. These studies are commonly based on quantitative researches whose results are then interpreted for making sense of the observed data. Most existing indexes that P a g e

19 are designed to be used for comparing phenomena across societies rely thus on the collection of comprehensive data from a high range of societies, which ensures the scientific reliability 1. (Minkov & Hofstede, 2013, p. 62ff) For this thesis, the well-known cultural index by Geert Hofstede has been chosen to explain cultural differences, as his work allows to compare cultural differences by nation Hofstede Geert Hofstede s cultural value indexes are among the most cited theories for the measurement of cultural differences. His study can be classified as directly across societies study, which assigns scores to societies on a variable. The societal indicators are then used for constructing dimensions of national culture (Minkov & Hofstede, 2013, p. 68). His indexes are based on a comprehensive attitude study on attitudes. From 1967 and 1973, Hofstede collected over 116,000 answered questionnaires by the employees in 20 language and 72 countries of the multinational corporation IBM (Hofstede, 2001, p. 41ff). Based on the analysis and results of the questionnaire, Hofstede accounted for four cultural dimensions on which cultures differ: Power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism vs. collectivism and masculinity vs. femininity (later also long-term vs. short-term orientation, which seeks to explain Eastern and Western cultural preferences. However, these shall not be focussed in this thesis). The power distance (PDI) dimension is an indicator of how people handle human inequality (Hofstede, 2001, p. 79). Hofstede defines power distance as the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organizations within a country expect and accept power is distributed unequally (Hofstede, 2001, p. 98). In this way, the power-distance index illustrates to which degree people of a given society accept inequality, and serves as indicator of how power, prestige and wealth are distributed in a society (Jandt, 2007, p. 172f). Power distance is one of the cultural values which are learned at an early stage of life. For example, in high power distance cultures, children are expected to be obedient towards their parents whereas children in low power distance cultures are treaded as equal persons. Likewise, the relation between persons of low and high status are also represented in the overall society. In high power distance cultures, high status persons are more respected and tend to have a greater influence on issues than persons of a lower status. In this way, countries of high power distance cultures also tend to be more authoritarian. On the other hand, low 1 This approach can also be described as nomothetic approach, focussing to offer a generally applicable approach. P a g e

20 power distance cultures are characterised by a more equal distribution of power, prestige and wealth. (Jandt, 2007, p. 172ff) The uncertainty avoidance index (UAI) is defined as the extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by uncertain or unknown situations (Hofstede, 2001, p. 161). This feeling is expressed through nervous stress and hence, persons that are influenced by a high uncertainty avoidance tend to demand written and unwritten rules for being able to predict the future. High uncertainty cultures can be described as active, aggressive, emotional, compulsive, security seeking and intolerant, while low uncertainty avoidance cultures are contemplative, less aggressive, unemotional, relaxed, accepting personal risks and relatively tolerant (Jandt, 2007, p. 174). The individualism index (IDV) describes how people define themselves and their relationship with others. In this way, individualism refers to a society in which the ties between individuals are loose: Everyone is expected to look after him/herself and her/his immediate family only. Thus, in these cultures the individual interest is more in focus than the interest of a group. On the other hand, collectivism refers to a society in which people from birth onwards are integrated into strong, cohesive in-groups, which throughout people s lifetime continue to protect them in exchange for unquestioning loyalty. Thus, these cultures value the interests of the group over the interest of the individual. (Hofstede, 2001, p. 225). The masculinity index (MAS) describes how a culture s dominant values are assertive or nurturing by focussing on the social role of men varies across cultures (Jandt, 2007, p. 159ff). Masculinity stands for a society in which social gender roles are clearly distinct: Men are supposed to be assertive, tough, and focused on material success; women are supposed to be more modest, tender, and concerned with the quality of life. Femininity stands for a society in which social gender roles overlap: Both men and women are supposed to be modest, tender, and concerned with the quality of life. (Hofstede, 2001, p. 297) Web communication During the last years, websites have evolved from being a communication supplement to a main communication element in business communication (cf. (Mast et al., 2005, p. 331)). The advantages of websites in businesses relations are that these account for a considerable low-cost communication channel with a worldwide availability, which offers the possibility to combine texts with entertaining multimedia elements. While these are generally created to target a certain target audience, the global reach of websites entails the potential of reaching audiences that were not initially intended. This is especially true for English websites, as these today still account for the dominant language on the web. However, the increasing amount of non-native speakers of English that are accessing the P a g e

21 World Wide Web challenges translators and web localisers, as there is an increasing demand for websites that are available in other languages than English. This is especially true for the European region, which on the one hand is a characterised by a large number of people with internet access; on the other hand, these people differ widely in their native language. On this basis, this section will first account for the website in a communicative perspective. Hereafter, it will be focussed how websites can be culturally adapted and the differences between standardised, localised and culturally adapted websites will explained. In addition, the role of translation for the web will be discussed. Then, it will be accounted how certain website preferences can be related to Hofstede s cultural value indexes. Finally, the issue of visual website localisation will be briefly named The website in a communicative perspective Regarding the communicative position of websites, websites can be seen as text, genre and medium (Askehave & Nielsen, 2004, p. 1). These perspectives shall be briefly introduced. First, the website can be viewed as a text. This perspective would place the website as the central element of a communicative situation, which can be best described by an analysis of the syntactic, semantic and pragmatic characteristics, as well as the language functions (cf. paragraph 2.1). In this connection, Cheung et al defined website functions, which he categorised as: Company overview/ info, products/services, what s new, search, employment opportunities, interactive feedback, customer service/assistance, index/directory, financial acts, links to other sites, online business services/ utilities, guest book, FAQ, and messages from the CEO (Cheung & Huang, 2002, p. 380f). While these functions shall not be further discussed, this view highlights that the website as a text does not only account for one text, but for a composition of several texts with different functions. Regarding a website as a medium, it can be said to be characterised by three main properties (Askehave et al., 2004, p. 11f). First, the web is characterised by intertextuality, as websites and their texts are surrounded by other texts by link connections. This relation of web texts is commonly known as hypertext, which can be seen in two perspectives: On the one hand, a content-oriented perspective sees hypertexts as a type of network by regarding it as a non-sequential text system. On the other hand, hypertext can be defined by analysing how they are accessed by the reader, focussing on the reading-process of hypertexts (Askehave et al., 2004, p. 13f). Second, the web is characterised by its global reach, which makes websites potentially immediately available for any internet user in the world, making messages available for intended but also unintended receivers. Third, the web is characterised by a certain immateriality, as web texts in comparison to texts in print P a g e

22 media can be changed within a short amount of time. Finally, the accessibility and virtuality of the web makes it hard to distinguish between the roles of the actual senders and receivers of a given message. Despite hypertexts, another important character of websites is its multimedianess, which has the ability to combine and unite different kinds of mediums (text, images, sound and animations) into one format (Askehave et al., 2004, p. ff). In addition, Okazaki highlights the importance of interactivity and classifies two major categories of interactivity, namely reciprocal communication and personalised choice and/or attention (Okazaki, 2004, p. 85). Accordingly, in a reciprocal communicative situation, the customers active responses are encouraged through ing, questionnaires or data registration device, while personalised choice/attention refers to the function that allows consumers to pinpoint the particular information that interests them, or to identify their problems and access trouble-shooting suggestions. As the focus of this thesis lies in the cultural adaption of websites, this focus on the interaction between sender and receiver of websites will not be further described. Viewing a website as a genre, the focus lies on the structuring of a text (here: website), and how this structuring is influenced by the sender, receiver and the context (cf. paragraph and Figure 1). Besides the purposive nature of genre, it is influenced by conventionalised verbal and visual rhetorical strategies. Thus, the construction of the website as a genre will highly depend on societal and cultural perceptions, and hence, a website has a great potential of misperception in regards to intercultural communication, as meaningful interpersonal can only appear when members of a culture jointly construct and maintain genres (cf. (Eggins, 2004, p. 50)). Generally, genre is analysed by three main constituents, namely a communicative purpose, a move structure and rhetorical strategies ( (Swales, 1990) as cited in (Askehave et al., 2004, p. 3f)). The communicative purpose shapes the genre. In regards to websites as a genre, a website s receiver (a user) would have certain expectations towards the layout and content of a website. In this connection, Cheung et al identified four major business purposes of websites, namely general publicity, customer support, online information exchange and www sales (Cheung & Huang, 2002, p. 380). Move structure account for the rhetorical moves which give genre its characteristic cognitive structure. In this way, every move serves a typical communicative intention, which in turn are realised by verbal and non-verbal rhetorical strategies (Bathia, 1993, p. 30) (cf. (Askehave et al., 2004, p. 17ff). Despite conventionalised structures of certain moves, it appears that a website s moves are not fixed but rather flexible in regards to their order, and likewise, Askehave et al state P a g e

23 the website genre exploits the entire spectrum of rhetorical creativity (Askehave et al., 2004, pp. 5f, 24). In connection with rhetorical strategies, register should be named as it describes the variety of language (syntax) that is influenced by the characteristics of the situation in which it is used. It can be analysed by the dimensions of field, tenor and mode (Collins & Hollo, 2000, p. 259); Field refers to what a text (here: the website) is about and hence often relates to lexis, the language used. Tenor refers to the social relationship between the interactants. Mode refers to the possibilities of immediate feedback between interactants. (Andersen, 2012, p. 9)appendix 1. However, as this thesis is focussed on the communicated cultural values of localised websites and not on the linguistic structure, register will not be further focussed. In any way, the interpretation of the website s role in a communicative situation is a complex issue, as all three functions are applicable to any communicative context. Relating to the IMC-model, a website can therefore account for a text, as the central element in a communicative situation which is influenced by all present factors, or as part of the context, namely as media and genre which function as influencer on the central text element (cf. Figure 2: The IMC-model). In any perspective, a website will be culturally influenced, as culture influences the context which in turn surrounds all elements in a given communicative situation. In this thesis, websites will be regarded in their genre and text perspective, as these are culturally influenced. In this way, websites will be focussed in a genre perspective, as it is assumed that a website s structural and rhetorical realisation is culturally influenced, and at the same time, this thesis will mainly focus the website as a text, as the culturally influenced structural and rhetorical approaches are realised here Websites in an intercultural perspective Due to the internet s global reach, many companies are using websites for communicating to international audiences for e.g. attracting new potential customers. Recognising the cultural differences of their consumers, there are various options for companies for adapting their products and communication to the needs of customers of a foreign culture Internationalisation, globalisation and localisation When targeting customers of foreign cultures, businesses have several options to reach their new customers. The very concept of extending the trade of a product or service outside the domestic market is commonly known as internationalisation, which is defined as the process of generalising a product P a g e