Page 187 - Handbooks of Applied Linguistics Communication Competence Language and Communication Problems Practical Solutions

Humour across cultures: joking in the multicultural workplace 165

and competitive humour in the predominantly Pacific Island factory community
of practice.
Moreover, as the examples have illustrated, the contribution of cultural
norms should not be overlooked. While team spirit is important both in the
Ma ¯ori organization and the multicultural factory team, the ways in which this
spirit is encouraged differs markedly between the workplaces. In the Ma ¯ori or-
ganization, in accordance with Ma ¯ori cultural norms, the focus is on the group,
even when criticism and complaint is involved; individuals are not singled out
for comment. In the Pacific Island factory team, the pressure is on the individual
to maintain the team’s high performance, and individuals who are not measuring
up are an appropriate target for critical comment. Humour is a strategy used in
both communities for conveying negative comment in a more acceptable way,
but it has a much sharper edge in the factory context.
Another point of contrast is the different ways in which the two team leaders
construct themselves as professionals in the workplace (Holmes and Marra
2005; Marra and Holmes 2005). Conforming to Ma ¯ori norms which emphasize
modesty and avoid self-promotion, Yvonne plays down the importance of her
presentation in example 2 and deflects attention from the compliment paid by
Sherie by teasing her about the reason for it. Ginette on the other hand, in line
with Samoan norms of explicit pride in and overt demonstration of one’s status
and power, presents a sharp-edged story which illustrates her quick wits and her
logical skills in argument, and which portrays her as an intelligent as well as a
demanding manager.

5. Implications for cross-cultural and intercultural education

Socio-pragmatic competence is an often under-estimated aspect of workplace
success. Learning ways of interacting which are appropriate and acceptable in a
workplace is an important aspect of fitting in and becoming an integrated
member of the workplace as a community of practice. Understanding, accu-
rately interpreting, and appropriately contributing to workplace humour is one
important component of this process. Indeed a sense of humour has been ident-
ified as a crucial characteristic in the workplace. Being able to do your job is
only part of what is needed for workplace success. Only 15% of workers are
fired because of lack of competence, according to a Robert Haft International
survey cited in Sultanoff (1993), the remaining 85% are let go because of their
inability to get along with fellow employees. Developing appropriate socio-
pragmatic skills, including learning to handle humour, often presents a real
hurdle for immigrant workers joining new cultures and communities, especially
when the language of the workplace is different from their home language
(Clyne, 1991, 1994; Gumperz, Jupp and Roberts 1979, Roberts, Davies and