The impact of technology on the Arab communication style and culture: Implications for marketing |
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| Authors: | Salma Ghanem Morris Kalliny Siham Elgoul |
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| Affiliation: | 1. College of Communication and Fine Arts, Central Michigan University, Moore Hall 129, Mount Pleasant, MI48859, USAghane1si@cmich.edu;3. Department of Marketing, John Cook School of Business, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO63108, USA;4. Department of Sociology, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt |
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| Abstract: | ‘Culture is communication and communication is culture,’ as Hall (1976, Beyond culture, Garden City, NY: Anchor Books, Doubleday) reminds us. The main purpose of this paper was to assess the impact of technology on the Arab communication style. The Internet is a unique environment with particular characteristics that might cause shifts in people's communication styles. The setting/context of online communication is very different from face-to-face communication and thus assumptions about communication styles need to be reexamined. The data analysis indicates that significant changes to the Arab culture are taking place and these changes are likely to have an impact on marketing practices in the region. |
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| Keywords: | Arab culture communication marketing |
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