Cultural diversity in people's understanding and uses of time

The global economy and international business ventures have brought many occasions for the development of interpersonal relationships among people who were socialised into different cultures. People's use of time, according to Hall, is a "silent language" that affects their everyday behaviors. The authors identify ten concepts that summarise how culture affects intercultural interactions that are part of international business dealings: 1. Clock and event time: Do people follow set schedules or let the event take its natural course before moving to another event? 2. Punctuality: How sensitive are people to deviations from appointed times? 3. The relation between task and social time during the workday; 4. Whether people do one activity at a time or do many at once; 5. Efficiency vs. effectiveness; 6. Fast and slow paces of life; 7. How people deal with long periods of silence; 8. People's time orientation: past, present and the future; 9. The symbolic meaning of time; 10. Cultural differences in importance of work and leisure time. The authors also provide insights based on these ten concepts for business people who travel extensively to other cultures and who accept long-term assignments in other countries.