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West Meets East: Lessons Learned from Misunderstandings During Market Expansion in Russia

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International Business and Emerging Economy Firms

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Abstract

The purpose of this book chapter is to consider how misunderstandings occur, amplify in time, and influence the outcome of a Western European corporation originally established in Russia. While conventional literature generally studies the nature of misunderstandings between two individuals, which occur at a given moment in time, we intend to focus on longer chains of communication. Research demonstrates that difficulties can arise prior to actual exchanges and that the approach, as promoted by Intercultural Communication experts does not go far enough to guarantee good communication between partners. Our data analysis has helped us identify; (i) numerous malfunctions in relation to the “other”, prompting the outbreak of misunderstandings, (ii) intercultural aspects that may broaden recognition of the problem, as well as (iii) behaviours that block the process. This chapter aims to create an initial general overview of the process and help define and refine future comprehensive training.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Law and Social Sciences, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University, Brno, Czech Republic

    Vincent Montenero

  2. Associate Researcher at CEFRES, Prague, Czech Republic

    Vincent Montenero

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Business Studies, University of Vaasa, Vaasa, Finland

    Jorma A. Larimo

  2. Aalborg Business School, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark

    Marin A. Marinov

  3. Department of Business and Management, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark

    Svetla T. Marinova

  4. School of Marketing and Communication, University of Vaasa, Vaasa, Finland

    Tiina Leposky

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Montenero, V. (2020). West Meets East: Lessons Learned from Misunderstandings During Market Expansion in Russia. In: Larimo, J., Marinov, M., Marinova, S., Leposky, T. (eds) International Business and Emerging Economy Firms. Palgrave Studies of Internationalization in Emerging Markets. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27285-2_3

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