Intercultural Negotiations: Kibbutz Ketura

                                                                                                                                                 

I have now been at the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies for 5 days and it is truly like no other place I have experienced. In preparation for this trip, many of the cultural cues I have been given were about Jewish Israelis, the dominant group at Kibbutz Ketura where AIES is located. However, AIES is comprised of students from over 10 countries spanning from Latin America, North America, Europe, and the Middle East.This has led to a whirlwind of situations that have highlighted the intercultural differences between us all. One such experience was while going over the welcome packet during registration.

This has led to a whirlwind of situations that have highlighted the intercultural differences between us all. One such experience was while going over the welcome packet during registration.

It was late in the afternoon after a jam-packed day, and everyone was exhausted when the director of student life decided to go through the orientation packet. For the most part it was the standard "Don't do drugs", "Don't put tape on the walls", "Do go to class". Everything was pretty standard until we went over the hours of operation of the facilities around the Kibbutz including the hours of operation for the health clinic, library, Aspaka (the store), and post office.

Every student from America had their jaw drop. The hours were sporadic, and this was compounded by the fact that the hours could change from week to week. On the other hand, one native Israeli exclaimed "Those are GREAT hours!" The students from Latin America were rather unmoved either way. After a little bit of joking, we moved onto the next point on the welcome packet. Only after doing the reading was I able to put a name to the phenomenon I had just witnessed: cultural differences in "uncertainty avoidance".

Americans, specifically myself, have a very high "avoidance uncertainty" quotient, especially in business matters. We like to know exactly the what, where, when, why, who, and how of any situation we will find ourselves in, and when we don't have this information, we feel disrupted/thrown off balance. Most Middle Easterners, on the other hand, have low "uncertainty avoidance". From this experience, it appears that Latin Americans fall between the extremes of Middle Eastern and American avoidance uncertainties to land somewhere in the middle. I can already tell that this is going to be a large hurdle for me.

Shortly after the orientation-talk one of my Israeli friends asked me about why I was so taken back by the flexible hours of business. A few other students of Middle Eastern descent joined into the conversation, freely asking questions about my viewpoint and where I was coming from. I believe this reflects a higher amount of "transpection" in Middle Eastern Cultures. Perhaps it is due to their close proximity to so many different countries and cultures, or maybe openness is just more valued. Either way, I hope to be able to match their "transpection" in my own actions to help increase communication while decreasing misunderstandings between us.