Using Symbols in International Business Presentations: How Well Are They Understood?

The purpose of this study was to measure how well business and professional people from various cultures interpret symbols commonly used in international business presentations. Questionnaires contained 15 black and white symbols, selected from the clip art collection of Harvard Graphics business gr...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author Griffin, Robert E
Format Report
LanguageEnglish
Published 1995
Subjects
Business Communication
Cultural Influences
Cultural Literacy
Data Interpretation
Foreign Countries
Imagery
International Communication
Japan
Sweden
Symbolic Language
Symbolic Representation
Tanzania
United States
Visual Aids
Visual Literacy
Sweden
United States
Japan
Tanzania
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Summary:The purpose of this study was to measure how well business and professional people from various cultures interpret symbols commonly used in international business presentations. Questionnaires contained 15 black and white symbols, selected from the clip art collection of Harvard Graphics business graphics software. Respondents from the United States, Sweden, Tanzania, and Japan were asked to write free-form responses classifying the symbols. The symbols were divided into three categories--verbal symbols, pictorial symbols, and abstract symbols--each of which is defined. Symbols in the verbal category were either clearly understood or not understood at all by the subjects, with little middle ground. Results concerning pictorial symbols clearly show the following rank order of understanding based on country, with highest rate of understanding first: United States, Sweden, Tanzania, and Japan. This rank order is probably due to the fact that most symbols used in the study were designed for a predominantly U.S. audience. Abstract symbols were the most difficult for all audiences to comprehend, indicating that abstract symbols are culturally dependent. The results offer some guidance to visual designers. It is recommended that when using symbols in presentations, symbols should be used which are designed for the culture, and the use of symbols should be restricted to verbal and pictorial symbols. Data is presented in eight figures. An appendix provides data recorded by symbol and country, shown as percentages. (MAS)