The world has come from IQ (Intelligence Quotient) to EQ (Emotional Intelligence) and finally CQ (Cultural Intelligence). In their article titled Cultural Intelligence, Christopher Earley and Elaine Mosakowski define CQ as the “natural ability to interpret someone’s unfamiliar and ambiguous gestures in just the way that person’s compatriots and colleagues would, even to mirror them.” Prior to defining CQ, the two authors described how acrididae, the primary family of grasshoppers, are perceived differently from culture to culture. They explain that because a grasshopper, “a lowly insect,” is perceived differently, there should be no surprises that “human actions, gestures, and speech patterns” that one experiences can be widely interpreted, misunderstood, and at times make “cooperation impossible.” Thus culture, as defined by Martin & Nakayama, is “learned patterns of behavior and attitudes shared by a group.” …show more content…
However, an American who has high CQ can asses that certain gestures are common for people from such areas. In fact, Kwintessential Culture Guide highlights that Italians maintain eye contact and they are extremely expressive. They use their faces and hands to demonstrate their point. They often raise their voices so that they can be heard over other speakers; it’s not because they are angry as it would interpreted here in the US. According to Kwintessentials, Italians also enjoy being in close proximity to the people they are talking to; in American culture however, that is considered encroachment of personal