A culture gap is any systematic difference between two

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

s which hinders mutual understanding or relations. Such differences include the

values In ethics and social sciences, value denotes the degree of importance of something or action, with the aim of determining which actions are best to do or what way is best to live (normative ethics in ethics), or to describe the significance of di ...

, behavior, education, and

custom Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to: Traditions, laws, and religion * Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom * Norm (social), a r ...

s of the respective

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...

As international communications, travel, and trade have expanded, some of the communication and cultural divisions have lessened. Books on how to handle and be aware of cultural differences seek to prepare business people and travelers. Immigrants and migrant laborers need to learn the ways of a new culture. Tourists can also be confronted with variants in protocols for tipping, body language, personal space, dress codes, and other cultural issues. Language instructors try to teach cultural differences as well.

Legal

A ''legal culture'' is a system of laws and precedents peculiar to a nation, region, religion, or other organized group. A culture gap occurs when incompatible or opposing systems might be applied to the same situation or assumed by the parties. Legal constructs such as contracts and corporations are not uniform across cultures. In some cases, such a gap is intentionally sought by one party, as in

forum shopping Forum shopping is a colloquial term for the practice of litigants having their legal case heard in the court thought most likely to provide a favorable judgment. Some jurisdictions have, for example, become known as "plaintiff-friendly" and so ...

for a more favorable legal framework or in

libel tourism Libel tourism is a term, first coined by Geoffrey Robertson, to describe forum shopping for libel suits. It particularly refers to the practice of pursuing a case in England and Wales, in preference to other jurisdictions, such as the United State ...

, by which speech protected in one jurisdiction may be actionable in another.

Generational

A ''generation gap'' occurs when the experiences and attitudes of one

generation A generation refers to all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It can also be described as, "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and gr ...

differ significantly from those of another. The

world war A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...

s contributed to generation gaps in several nations. The term first saw widespread use in contrasting the

Baby Boomer Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the Western demographic cohort following the Silent Generation and preceding Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964, during the mid-20th century baby boom. ...

generation with their parents. The "Youth culture" of adolescents and teenagers seeking to stake out their own identity and independence from their parents often results in a cultural divide. Younger generations have experienced different technologies, freedoms and standards of propriety.Gerhard Falk and Ursula A. Falk ''Youth culture and the generation gap'' Algora Publishing, 2005 , 9780875863689 254 page

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Gender and sexual identity

Urban

Professional

Communication between and collaboration among scientific disciplines is sometimes hindered by use of different paradigms or competition between the desires to describe a simple explanatory framework and elucidate fine details. The framework of the questions to which each field lends itself may differ, leading to frustration and wasted effort.

Educational

The education culture is the different education people receive in their life. A culture gap occurs when people with different cultures sit together and take the same class. Different cultures behave differently towards the teacher both in class and after class. Differences can be noticed in assessment method and the direction method of the class. Asian students focus on books and exercises more than European and American students, who are willing to raise questions in the classes. The cultural gap in education is due to the different education traditions in different places. For example, Asian students receive exam-oriented education, but European and American students receive a very different, freer education and are both expected to challenge their teachers and strongly encouraged to challenge the teachers in class. In both China and Japan, the education system normally usually uses exams to show a student's ability. In American and Britain, students grade instructors according to ability. Both systems have advantages and disadvantages but form a cultural gap between people. Different ways of thinking and analyzing things makes students view things very differently.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Culture Gap Conflict of laws Sociology of culture