“Gung Ho and Other Movies:
 Using Feature Films in Intercultural Communication Courses”

Concept and Objectives

        Although my focus is primarily on intercultural communication, the concept of using feature films should be transferable to other areas of communication instruction and particularly to training seminars for organizations seeking better communication skills.  From classroom experience over the past three years I have found films to be useful in promoting a fuller understanding of key communication issues and traits by allowing students to visualize abstract concepts.  Visualizing these concepts not only reinforces the classroom lectures it also enhances learning by providing another learning mode -- the visual rather than just the auditory.  More significant, from a management education perspective, use of film enables the cross-disciplinary integration which has been advocated for the past decade (Harrison and Akinc).  In short, my objective in this brief presentation is to demonstrate that appropriate feature films are a sound teaching and training tool.

Key Intercultural Communication Concepts

        In my course, I present a number of key intercultural communication issue.  It should be noted that these students are not communication majors but BBA or MBA students who have usually taken only the basic communication course required as part of the general education requirements.  Thus, they are not usually familiar with concepts such world view formation, ethnocentrism, stereotyping, and certainly they have not dealt with Hofstede’s concepts of individualism / collectivism and  masculinity/ femininity, or even core American and Japanese values.  At most, as business majors, they have considered negotiation tactics -- but not from a cross-cultural perspective.  This is probably also true of most non-communication majors and would also reflect the perspective of a general corporate work force in a training seminar.  At this point I am going to quickly summarize Gung Ho (I don’t intend to spoil the movie for those of you who may not have seen it but wish to refresh the memory of those of you who have).  Then, I will review several key scenes in Gung Ho which I find useful in allowing students to visualize these concepts.

Gung Ho Summary

        A small-town labor leader convinces a Japanese auto manufacturer to take over his town’s bankrupt auto plant.  After the inevitable culture clashes, particularly over Japanese imposed work rules, the workers undertake a month-long “contest” to show that their individualistic American methods can surpass the best efforts of an auto plant in Japan.  They succeed only after they embrace the communal approach of the Japanese.

Key Scenes / Issues

        Before I review the key intercultural issues I find illustrated in Gung Ho, I would like to comment on the role of comic exaggeration in the movie.  Sometimes this exaggeration helps to make some of the points I have been trying to stress in class.  For instance, in an early scene, the central character, Hunt Stevenson (Michal Keaton) flies to Japan. In trying to reach his destination, he ends up in a rice field asking for directions.  Then, once he is at the board meeting, he discovers that the screen he has been awkwardly carrying throughout his trip is not needed.  Instead one drops from the ceiling of the board room at a touch of a button.  My students always comment, not on this exaggeration, but on its emphasis that individuals in cross-cultural situations need to do their home work to prepare for such encounters.
        Ethnocentrism, the assumption by all cultures of their own inherent superiority, is amply demonstrated by the actions of Buster (George Wendt) mistreating the Japanese wife of the plant manager in a grocery store by keeping her from choosing any items from the shelf until his “buddy” finally stops him.  Ethnocentirsm also underscores the relationship between the Japanese and American  softball teams
        Stereotyping is perhaps one of the weaknesses of the film.  Although the film goes out of its way to avoid racism,  both Japanese inscrutability and American labor inefficiencies are occasionally exaggerated. At the same time, however, I have found my students quickly pick up on examples of stereotyping.
        Individualism / Collectivism, the cornerstone of Hofstede’s study, underlies many of the episodes in the movie.  American individualism is shown in the actions of Hunt Stevenson, particularly in his decision to go it alone on his trip to Japan to convince the Japanese company that they need to step in and save the key industry in his town.  It is also seen in his leadership in the labor meetings where he emphasizing his personal ability to control the Japanese management team — a skill forecast by his references to his sporting ability in high school when he individually won the “big game.”
        Japanese collectivism is amply shown throughout —  beginning with the initial, accidental meeting of the central American and Japanese character at the “rite of shame'' when Kazahiro (Gedde Watanabe) is being “reinforced” in the need for group cohesion because of his earlier failures as a manger, in the Japanese slogans and group exercises they impose on the American labor force, in the scenes of the Japanese swimming together in the river near the American auto plant, and most of all in the stylistic differences of the American and Japanese softball teams (the Americans are a rag-tag group of individuals who disdain warmup and “team spirit”; the Japanese not only have uniforms but practice team play in warmup).  The differences also underscore the Japanese collectivistic concerns for harmony and group bonds; the American individualism is epitomized by its competitive “win at any cost” spirit.
        Masculinity / Femininity, another of Hofstede’s concepts which focuses on achievement/success orientation and on gender roles, is seen in the Japanese attitude towards women as seen in Kaz’s treatment of his wife when he brings home office work, in the Japanese management unwillingness to allow one of the team time off to be with his pregnant wife.  This is highlighted by Hunt’s treatment of his girlfriend at a dinner with the Japanese managers.  When he basically kicks her out of the room so it is a men-only meeting, my students first think of this as an example of male chauvinism.  However, this also allows us to discuss the cultural differences on the masculinity /femininity scale of Hofstede.  While Hunt is chauvinistic from an American perspective, to the Japanese his actions are acceptable to their understanding of  clear gender roles.  Note that the Japanese are ranked by Hofstede as the most masculine society in world while the US ranks approximately in the middle (Hofstede,1997, p 84).
        Japanese versus American management styles are also contrasted throughout the movie.  This also underscores the individualism / collectivism concepts.  Noteworthy is the Japanese tendency (overstated at times) to promote life-time employment as seen in the willingness to retain Buster as a janitor when he is unwilling to follow the group process and change his working style to meet Japanese efficiencies.  The final episode of the movie, when the American auto workers succeed in breaking the Japanese record for number of automobiles produced in a single month shows the need for American workers to accept the cooperative or collectivistic approach.  In turn, the Japanese management becomes increasingly individualistic and feminine, an synergism that models the ideals we promote for intercultural encounters.

Methodology:   Pros and Cons

        I briefly tried using short episodes from various films to illustrate key intercultural concepts, however, my experience has been that students do not “engage” with the story or characters sufficiently.  While a full-length film does take up a significant portion of class time, I have found that the engagement of students outweighs the time constraints of most courses.  In addition, I have found most students (schedule permitting) are willing to stay longer so that most films can be covered in two 75 minute class periods.  This also permits adequate time to encourage students to identify and discuss concepts coming out of the film narrative.  In addition, I have found that a comedy is often effective for the “relief” it gives students often overwhelmed by technical concepts and also by deadlines.

Other Movies

        I have also noted a good student response from the following films:

Fools Rush In – conflict between European American / Hispanic American values

Moscow on the Hudson — shows assimilation issues, American values

Iron and Silk — shows an understanding of basic Chinese and American cultural differences

Mississippi Masala — ethnocentrism involving African American and American East Indian cultures

The Joy Luck Club — generational differences compounded by assimilation and Chinese American / Chinese/ European American differences

The Gods Must Be Crazy (first part, not currently available on video but may be rented) — world view formation as an underlying culture basis, non-verbal communication

        I have tried to illustrate the success I have had in using Gung Ho as a capstone film after I have presented basic cultural issues, Hoftsede’s theories, and cultural negotiation differences.  However, I believe that this concept is applicable to most communication courses.  Nearly every major concept may be visualized by the actions and words of characters in the movies that are such an integral part of social and intellectual framework.  The trick is to not only to enjoy the movie of the moment but also to begin viewing critically as a teacher looking for resource material.  Who knows, the movies playing at the cinema today may be just what you need for your classroom or training session tomorrow.

References

Ebert, Roger. (1986). “Gung Ho [a review]”.  See:   http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert_reviews/1986/03/48252.html.  Accessed Nov 7, 2000.
 
Harrison, J. Kline and Helen Akinc. (2000).  “ Lessons in Leadership from the Arts and Literature:  A Liberal Arts Approach to Management Education through Fifth Discipline Learning. “ Journal of Management Education.  Vol 24.3, pp 391-414.

Hodgetts, Richard M. and Fred Luthans.  (2000).  International Management: Culture, Strategy and Behavior.  4th ed.  Irwin McGraw-Hill.

Hofstede, Geert.  (1997). Culture and Organizations: Software of the Mind.  McGraw-Hill

Charles H. Tidwell, Ph.D.
Acting Dean
School of Business
Andrews University
Berrien Springs, MI 49104

Phone: 616 471 3632
Fax:     616 471 6158
E-mail: tidwell@andrews.edu