The aim of this thesis "American cultural standards" is the identification and explanation of cultural standards typical for American culture and the creation of practical guide of Work and Travel program. American cultural standards are defined according to the interviews with Czech participants in the program Work and Travel USA and my own experience. The cultural standards clearly and concisely indicate the essential differences between American and Czech culture. The thesis also includes advice and recommendations for more effective communication with Americans. The thesis also contains an introduction into intercultural management and methodology of cultural dimensions and standards and their most popular representatives. The thesis is recommended to all who want to be more familiar with American culture or who plan to cooperate with the Americans. The thesis will be most useful for students who plan to participate in the program Work and Travel USA.

The subject of this diploma thesis is the foreign policy of Japan in the period since the Second World War to the present and its cultural and historical determinants. The aim of the thesis is to identify fundamental cultural and historical factors reflected in Japan's foreign policy and in its behaviour in international relations. The thesis comprises analysis of history, culture and foreign policy of Japan and the connections between them. The thesis is divided into five chapters. The first chapter is focused on the history of Japan. The second chapter concerns Japanese culture and its specifics. The third chapter characterizes Japanese culture using cultural dimensions models by Geert Hofstede and Fons Trompenaars. The fourth chapter focuses on the analysis of Japanese foreign policy. The final chapter attempts to identify the major cultural and historical determinants of Japanese foreign policy.

The Diploma Thesis is divided into three sections. The first section describes the activities of the ILPS and characterizes closely the Study Centre in Prague -- Albertov and its courses. The second section deals with differences among cultures, according to Fons Trompenaars and Charles Hampden-Turner, and characterizes Czech culture and the cultures of participants of courses at Albertov. This section also includes a research study on the perception of Czech culture by foreign students and in-depth interviews with two representatives. The last section discusses the promotion of the Study Centre Albertov and proposes concrete ways on how to promote the 6-Week Intensive Czech Language Course and the summer course Czech Language and Culture.

Nowadays the world is becoming increasingly economically connected, and cultural diversity of employees is gaining importance as a crucial competitive advantage. Cross-cultural communication ability is becoming a key management skill in multinational firms and is equally important for other employees who are exposed to other cultures in the workplace. This work mainly focuses on cultural specifics of management in multinational firms. The goal of this thesis is to discover how different national cultures influence management of people, particularly work relationships, management tools and organization structures. The author discovers this through cultural dimensions that she updates for the Czech Republic and Slovakia for her work using methodology of Fons Trompenaars. The author tests three hypotheses: about the development of preferences of cultural dimensions in time, differences in preferences of cultural dimensions of Czechs and Slovaks and differences in preferences of cultural dimensions based on people's gender, age and the number of years spent abroad. The work also presents mapping of changes of attitudes in specific work and personal situations of Czechs and Slovaks over a period of time. The work additionally analyzes the influence of economic factors on work attitudes and preferences of cultural dimensions and identifies areas of potential conflicts between the cultures of Czechs and Slovaks in the workplace. It also compares results with other researches about cultural dimensions and cultural standards. The work concludes by presenting culturally specific recommendations for management of Czechs and Slovaks.

<p>The purpose of the thesis is to study Swedes who live in Australia about their thoughts concerning differences between the cultures and their communication styles in the following four areas; Power Distance, Masculinity verses Femininity, Affective verses Neutral, and Time.</p><p>I have chosen a qualitative approach for this study. My research is based on 10 telephone interviews; conducted with Swedes who work for various companies in Australia.</p><p>My theoretical chapter includes theories in the field of communication science and culture. Four scientists’ theories are explained; William B. Gudykunst's Anxiety /Uncertainty Management theory, Edward Hall’s High-and Low-context theory, Geert Hofstede’s national culture theory, and Fons Trompenaars’ culture business theory.</p><p>My research concludes that there are some main differences between the Swedish and Australian culture and between Swedes’ and Australians’ communication style. My research shows that Sweden is a low-power distance, feminine and neutral culture. While Australia is a higher power-distance, masculine and more affective culture, compared to Sweden. My study also confirmed that the time aspect is not as flexible communicated in Sweden as it is in Australia. All these culture differences are reflected in the cultures’ communication style. For example, Swedes are characterized by a team-oriented, open and equal communication style, whereas Australians use a more hierarchical, assertive and unilateral communication style. While group discussions, personal responsibility, and a high flow of information are common in Sweden, Australia is more characterized by delegation and protectiveness of territories, authority, and information flow.</p>

The purpose of the thesis is to study Swedes who live in Australia about their thoughts concerning differences between the cultures and their communication styles in the following four areas; Power Distance, Masculinity verses Femininity, Affective verses Neutral, and Time. I have chosen a qualitative approach for this study. My research is based on 10 telephone interviews; conducted with Swedes who work for various companies in Australia. My theoretical chapter includes theories in the field of communication science and culture. Four scientists’ theories are explained; William B. Gudykunst's Anxiety /Uncertainty Management theory, Edward Hall’s High-and Low-context theory, Geert Hofstede’s national culture theory, and Fons Trompenaars’ culture business theory. My research concludes that there are some main differences between the Swedish and Australian culture and between Swedes’ and Australians’ communication style. My research shows that Sweden is a low-power distance, feminine and neutral culture. While Australia is a higher power-distance, masculine and more affective culture, compared to Sweden. My study also confirmed that the time aspect is not as flexible communicated in Sweden as it is in Australia. All these culture differences are reflected in the cultures’ communication style. For example, Swedes are characterized by a team-oriented, open and equal communication style, whereas Australians use a more hierarchical, assertive and unilateral communication style. While group discussions, personal responsibility, and a high flow of information are common in Sweden, Australia is more characterized by delegation and protectiveness of territories, authority, and information flow.

The diploma thesis is focused on identification and mutual comparison of Czech-British and Slovak-British cultural standards at work environment. The main goal of the thesis is to define British cultural standards from both sides, from the Czech one and the Slovak one, and then to compare, whether the information from qualitative research corresponds with theoretical assumptions. The next goal is to find out how much different is the view on this topic from the Czech and from the Slovak perspective, if it is different. At the end of the thesis will be proposed a few suggestions, how Czech and Slovak should prepare for a longer staying in the United Kingdom in order to avoid possible cultural misunderstandings.

Despite a close geographical position to the Czech Republic, there are vast differences between the Czech and British cultures. Commonly after arriving in Britain, many Czech nationals experience a cultural shock and do not understand the behaviour of the British people. The same can be said about Britons arriving in the Czech Republic. This makes it important to understand the cultural differences to help both nationals interact successfully with one another. This Master thesis focuses on cultural standards, a concept made by Alexander Thomas. Therefore, this report aims to define the Czech-British and British-Czech cultural standards, whilst comparing them with the theory and then to apply them in a cultural-historic framework. This report will hypothesise that the defined cultural standards do not differ from the standards analysed within the book by Karel Čapek. Other hypothesis of this thesis is: Many Britons see Czech people as over-caring and anxious. In conclusion to this report, the author will provide recommendations to both Czech nationals travelling to Great Britain and also the same for British descendants arriving within the Czech Republic.

The aim of this thesis is to identify and more closely analyse Italian cultural standards, specifically from the perspective of Czechs and Slovaks, who came to a closer and more extended contact with the Italian culture. Identification of these standards was based on in-depth personal interviews and the theoretical part of this thesis. This part is focused on terms such as culture, intercultural communication, culture shock, cultural dimensions and standards. The practical part of this work is dedicated to the research itself and its evaluation as well as Italy per se, its history, culture, economy or demography. This work can also serve anyone in closer personal of professional contact with this culture.

This diploma thesis is focused on Czech-Scottish cultural standards at work environment. The main aim is to define Scottish cultural standards at work environment from the Czech point of view and to compare them with the theory. The thesis begins with the definition of culture, cultural dimensions introduced by G. Hofstede, F. Trompenaars and E. T. Hall and cultural standards by A. Thomas. It continues to the description of Scotland with its geography, history, language, economic situation and various systems in the society, such as the legal system, educational system, health care system, a role of the family and religion. Further, Scottish national identity, key values and traditions are identified and there are added some information about work in Scotland. The thesis then leads us onwards to the determination of eight cultural standards at work environment and six cultural standards connected with the daily life in Scotland based on the qualitative research. The standards concerning work environment are further compared with the theory. At the end of the thesis, there are provided some recommendations for Czechs who are going to work with Scots.