From my point of view, cultural difference refers to the different business etiquette, standard of behavior, value towards time and space, negotiation style and all the approaches or strategies used in business negotiation.

3.2 Causes of Cultural Difference 

Culture differences are embodied in all aspects of our material and mental life. Regional differences, political differences, and economic differences are the three main factors that cause the cultural differences. 

3.2.1 Regional Differences

Regional differences refer to that people from different geographical environment develop different customs, habits and life styles. Most western countries are around the sea. Owing to the tradition of researching and exploring the nature and scarcely populated area, western countries have opening and innovative folkway. On the contrary, the relative closed geographical environment makes eastern people have introverted personality. They tend to chose quiet and stable life style. For example, Britain is well developed in seafaring and fischfang because it is an island country. So, British people often use the different forms of the word ‘fish’ to describe people. Such as ‘Big Fish’ means very rich people and ‘Cool Fish’ means people who are cheeky. While China is abound in bamboo, so Chinese people often use the word ‘bamboo’ to describe different conditions. Such as ‘have a bamboo in mind’ in English means ‘have a card up one’s sleeve’. These different uses of words are easily misunderstood because negotiators of international business negotiation live in different environment.