-Example: A U.S. American, while traveling in Bolivia, observed that drivers rarely stopped at the red octagonal sign with the word “alto,” the Spanish word for “stop.” A local Bolivian explained that in that country, the stop sign is more a recommendation than a traffic law.
Strong Uncertainty Avoidance
Citizen protest should be repressed Civil servants negative toward political process Negative attitudes toward young people There is only one truth - ours Religious, political, and ideological fundamentalism and intolerance Scientific opponents cannot be personal friends
Intercultural Business Communication, 3rd ed., Chaney & Martin
Hofstede’s “Onion” Diagram
Symbols Heroes Rituals Practices Values
Geert Hofstede’s Model 衡量价值观的尺度
Intercultural Business Communication, 3rd ed., Chaney & Martin
What are Values?
Social principles, goals, or standards accepted by persons in a culture. They are learned by contacts with the family, teachers, and religious leaders. The media also may influence one’s value system.
Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations
• We all face the fact that we do not know what will happen tomorrow. Extreme uncertainty creates anxiety. Like values, feelings of uncertainty and how to deal with it are acquired and learned. Ways of coping with uncertainty are part of our cultural heritage; they are reinforced by the family, school, and government. • In Hofstede’s research, countries were assigned an uncertainty avoidance index. Questions were related to job stress and participants’ feelings of being tense or nervous at work.
Family harmony
Parental guidance Age
Group consensus Authority
Semantic Differences
Semantics - the study of the meaning of words;
involves the way behavior is influenced by words and nonverbal means of communication.
Civil servants positive toward political process Positive attitudes toward young people One group’s truth should not be imposed on others Human rights: nobody should be persecuted for their beliefs Scientific opponents can be personal friends
The more anxious cultures tend to be more expressive; they talk with their hands and show their emotions (Japan is an exception).
Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations
Chapter 3:
Contrasting Cultural Values
Intercultural Business Communication, 3rd ed., Chaney & Martin
Topics
• • • • • • • Semantic Differences Attribution and Perception Attitudes Toward Women Work Attitudes Attitudes Toward Ethics Religious Influences Individualism and Collectivism
• • • • • • • • 1. Power distance 权力距离 2. Collectivism versus Individualism 集体主义---个体主义 3. Femininity versus Masculinity 社会的男性化----女性化 4. Uncertainty avoidance 不确定性规避 5. Long-term versus Short-term orientation 长短期取向
Semantic Differences
Example: A misunderstanding over the meaning of one word during an important meeting in World War II caused quite an argument between U.S. Americans and the British. The problem was caused by the British interpretation of the phrase “to table an item”, which to them means to bring up the item for immediate consideration. The U.S. interpretation, on the other hand, was to shelve or postpone the subject.
Uncertainty Avoidance
Uncertainty Avoidance
More anxious cultures are said to have hig avoidance. Latin American, Latin European, Mediterranean countries, Japan and South Korea had high rankings.
Uncertainty Avoidance
Countries whose anxiety level is low are said to have low or weak uncertainty avoidance. Countries ranked low were U.S., India, Great Britain, Ireland, Hong Kong, Sweden, Denmark, and Singapore. In weak uncertainty avoidance countries, people are controlled, easy-going, quiet, and do not show emotions. Since stress cannot be released, people die from coronary heart disease.
Cultural Contrasts in Values
Americans
1. Freedom
Japanese
Belonging
Arabs
Family security
2. Independence Group harmony
3. Self-reliance 4. Equality 5. Individualism Collectivism Age/Seniority
Attitudes Toward Women
• Influenced by cultural roots; U.S. women are supposed to have the same rights as men while in Kenya women are considered subordinate to men. • Gender differences in the U.S. workplace are deemphasized; women are accepted at higher levels in government and in many corporations.
Hofstede, Cultures and Organizations