90-716, Managing In a Multicultural Society
6 units
Prerequisites: None
Required for: First Year MS and MAM Students
Delivery Format: On-Campus
Description: As American society becomes more culturally diverse, its ability to function will depend on how well the nation's professionals and leaders can communicate with and manage people who are culturally different. This course will provide students with skills in these areas through a combination of lectures, discussions, and guest speakers. The course will first develop the conceptual framework for understanding intercultural interactions by examining the aspects of culture that influence the communication process. Small group interactions will be used to help students become more aware of their dependence on their own culture as a framework for human interaction and why this framework may not serve them well when communicating across cultures. The second part of the course will study the origins, traditions, and experiences of some of the many cultures that are represented in American society. By adding specific factual information about different cultures to the skills, knowledge, and sensitivities developed in the first part of the class, students should find themselves less anxious and more effective communicators in intercultural interactions. The final part of the course will complement the material taught in other organizational management courses through discussion of cases involving such management problems as motivation, discrimination, and harassment.
Last modified on May 31, 2006
