TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF FIGURES i

LIST OF TABLES i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1. Rationale of the study 1

1.2. Objectives of the study 1

1.3. Scope of the study 2

1.4. Methodology of the study 2

1.5. Structure of the study 3

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 4

2.1. The communication process 4

2.2. Communication types 6

2.2.1. Verbal communication 6

2.2.2. Non-verbal communication 6

2.3. Communication forms 10

2.3.1. Written communication 10

2.3.2. Oral communication 11

2.3.3. Visual communication 11

2.4. Communication styles 11

2.4.1. Aggressive communication 12

2.4.2. Passive communication 12

2.4.3. Passive-aggressive communication 13

2.4.4. Assertive communication 13

2.5. Principles of effective communication 13

2.6. Benefits of effective communication 15

2.7. Consequences of poor communication 16

2.8. Barriers to effective communication with foreign colleagues 17

2.8.1. Cultural differences 18

2.8.2. English language performance 19

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY AND ANALYSIS 22

3.1. Methodology 22

3.1.1. Study design 22

3.1.2. Research Instrument 22

3.1.3. Participants’ characteristics 23

3.1.4. Brief on the survey questions 23

3.1.5. Data processing 24

3.2. Findings 25

3.2.1. Response rate 25

3.2.2. How Vietnamese staff communicate with their foreign colleagues 29

CHAPTER 4: DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW TO COMMUNICATE MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH FOREIGN COLLEAGUES IN FOREIGN ORGANIZATIONS AND COMPANIES 39

4.1. Phase 2: Sender encodes idea 39

4.2. Phase 3: Sender transmits message 43

4.3. Phase 4: Receiver gets message 44

4.4. Phase 5: Receiver decodes message 46

4.5. Phase 6: Receiver sends feedback 47

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 50

5.1. Conclusion 50

5.2. Limitations of the study 50

5.3. Suggestions for further study 51

REFERENCES I

APPENDIXES IV

Appendix 1: Research Questionnaire IV

Appendix 2: Raw data for Questionnaire collected on 17 May 2008 VII