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Cultural Intelligence: Surviving and Thriving in the Global Village
Succeed in Any Culture, in Every Situation
In today’s global economy, the ability to interact effectively across cultures is a fundamental job requirement for just about everyone. But it’s impossible to learn the customs and traits of every single culture. David Thomas and Kerr Inkson present a universal set of techniques and people skills that will allow you to adapt quickly to, and thrive in, any cultural environment. You’ll learn to discard your own culturally based assumptions and pay careful attention, in a mindful and creative way, to cues in cross-cultural situations. The authors show how to apply cultural intelligence in a series of specific making decisions; communicating, negotiating, and resolving conflicts; leading and motivating others; and designing, managing, and contributing to multicultural groups and teams.
This extensively revised third edition has been updated with new stories showing cultural intelligence in action. Thomas and Inkson have broadened the focus beyond business to include organizations of all kinds—nonprofits, governments, educational institutions, and more. And they include a reliable and valid measure of cultural intelligence based on a decade of research by an international team of scholars.
In today’s global economy, the ability to interact effectively across cultures is a fundamental job requirement for just about everyone. But it’s impossible to learn the customs and traits of every single culture. David Thomas and Kerr Inkson present a universal set of techniques and people skills that will allow you to adapt quickly to, and thrive in, any cultural environment. You’ll learn to discard your own culturally based assumptions and pay careful attention, in a mindful and creative way, to cues in cross-cultural situations. The authors show how to apply cultural intelligence in a series of specific making decisions; communicating, negotiating, and resolving conflicts; leading and motivating others; and designing, managing, and contributing to multicultural groups and teams.
This extensively revised third edition has been updated with new stories showing cultural intelligence in action. Thomas and Inkson have broadened the focus beyond business to include organizations of all kinds—nonprofits, governments, educational institutions, and more. And they include a reliable and valid measure of cultural intelligence based on a decade of research by an international team of scholars.
- GenresBusiness
216 pages, Paperback
Published March 20, 2017
67 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
About the author
David C. Thomas
15 books2 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Please see: David C. Thomas
David C Thomas (PhD University of South Carolina) is currently the Beedie Professor of International Management at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.
He is the author of ten books including the bestselling Cultural Intelligence: Living and Working Globally, (2009, Berrett-Koehler Publishers). His book Cross-Cultural Management Essential Concepts (2008, Sage Publications) was the winner of the R. Wayne Pace Human Resource Development book of the year award for 2008. In addition, he has recently edited (with Peter B. Smith and Mark Peterson) The Handbook of Cross-Cultural Management Research from Sage Publications. His research on cross-cultural interactions in organizational settings has appeared in numerous journals. He is currently the Area Editor of the Journal of International Business Studies and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of World Business, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and European Journal of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management.
His previous academic postings have included positions at the Australian Graduate School of Management, University of New South Wales, Australia, the Pennsylvania State University and The University of Auckland, New Zealand, where he was also Director of the Master of International Business Program.
Please see: David C. Thomas
David C Thomas (PhD University of South Carolina) is currently the Beedie Professor of International Management at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.
He is the author of ten books including the bestselling Cultural Intelligence: Living and Working Globally, (2009, Berrett-Koehler Publishers). His book Cross-Cultural Management Essential Concepts (2008, Sage Publications) was the winner of the R. Wayne Pace Human Resource Development book of the year award for 2008. In addition, he has recently edited (with Peter B. Smith and Mark Peterson) The Handbook of Cross-Cultural Management Research from Sage Publications. His research on cross-cultural interactions in organizational settings has appeared in numerous journals. He is currently the Area Editor of the Journal of International Business Studies and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of World Business, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and European Journal of Cross-Cultural Competence and Management.
His previous academic postings have included positions at the Australian Graduate School of Management, University of New South Wales, Australia, the Pennsylvania State University and The University of Auckland, New Zealand, where he was also Director of the Master of International Business Program.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 18, 2022
Complete garbage. If you plan to move somewhere else you better plan to adapt. This book focuses on the idea that the country must adapt to the new individual.
April 14, 2017
Something we all need to think about. Covers the basics. Easy to read.
April 14, 2025
Rating: 2.5/5 stars rounded up
I went into this book not knowing quite what to expect—I didn’t read the description beforehand—so I was surprised by how workplace-focused it was. While that emphasis didn’t always align with what I was hoping for, the book still held my interest for the most part.
What stood out most to me were the broader insights into how culture extends far beyond geographic boundaries. It pushed me to think critically about the cultural dynamics between generations, within schools, and across different professional environments. I had previously framed “culture” mostly in terms of national or regional identity, but this book challenged that and offered a much more layered perspective.
Even though I would have preferred a wider lens outside the professional setting, I appreciated the thought-provoking ideas it presented—and I walked away seeing cultural intelligence in a more nuanced and applicable way.
I went into this book not knowing quite what to expect—I didn’t read the description beforehand—so I was surprised by how workplace-focused it was. While that emphasis didn’t always align with what I was hoping for, the book still held my interest for the most part.
What stood out most to me were the broader insights into how culture extends far beyond geographic boundaries. It pushed me to think critically about the cultural dynamics between generations, within schools, and across different professional environments. I had previously framed “culture” mostly in terms of national or regional identity, but this book challenged that and offered a much more layered perspective.
Even though I would have preferred a wider lens outside the professional setting, I appreciated the thought-provoking ideas it presented—and I walked away seeing cultural intelligence in a more nuanced and applicable way.
January 28, 2019
I found it to be a very helpful book – I wish there was a better assessment for cultural intelligence than the one in the book, which is flimsy and Unhelpful. I really enjoyed all of the personal testimonies and situational stories – they help demonstrate the need for cultural intelligence, sensitivity, and awareness.
July 13, 2024
Important topic covered decently
December 29, 2022
IQ - reasoning ability
EQ - how we handle emotions
CQ - capability to interact effectively across culture
3 parts to gaining CQ: Knowledge, Mindfulness, and Skills
Knowledge - understand cross cultural phenomena
Mindfulness - continually observing and understanding cultural meanings and using that understanding for immediate action and long term learning, to interpret particular situations, paying attention to the present situation and disregarding our own rigid mental programming.
Skills - adapt behavior to act appropriately
Need to break our cultural cruise control (assumption)
Leadership - the ability to influence other people to strive willingly to reach common goals. One must understand the motivation of those being led - their willingness to exert effort toward a goal.
Concern for tasks
Concern for relationships
Leaders own style
Expectations of followers
Demand of situation
Task - directed towards the groups goal
Process - directed at examining and improving how the group goes about this task
EQ - how we handle emotions
CQ - capability to interact effectively across culture
3 parts to gaining CQ: Knowledge, Mindfulness, and Skills
Knowledge - understand cross cultural phenomena
Mindfulness - continually observing and understanding cultural meanings and using that understanding for immediate action and long term learning, to interpret particular situations, paying attention to the present situation and disregarding our own rigid mental programming.
Skills - adapt behavior to act appropriately
Need to break our cultural cruise control (assumption)
Leadership - the ability to influence other people to strive willingly to reach common goals. One must understand the motivation of those being led - their willingness to exert effort toward a goal.
Concern for tasks
Concern for relationships
Leaders own style
Expectations of followers
Demand of situation
Task - directed towards the groups goal
Process - directed at examining and improving how the group goes about this task
December 19, 2018
Muy interesante, aunque sólo prueba y error permite poner en práctica las propuestas del autor.
September 18, 2023
This is an excellent book. Very practical, applicable to anyone who works or interacts with people of other cultures.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews