IC Chap 3

Culture and International Management

• Culture consists of specific learned norms based on attitudes, values, and beliefs of a group of people.

• Cultural intelligence is an outsider's ability to interpret someone's unfamiliar and ambiguous gestures in the same way as that person's compatriots.

• Cultural empathy is the awareness of and honest caring about another individual's culture.

• Cultural sensitivity is also known as cultural empathy.

• Cross-cultural differences are a primary reason for failed expatriate assignments.

• Culture comprises the shared values, understandings, assumptions, and goals passed on and imposed by members of a group or society.

• Globalization is increasing the pace of cultural diffusion and cultural change.

• Sociocultural variables of culture include religion, education, and language, but not economy.

• Organizational culture represents the expectations, norms, and goals held in common by members of a specific company or group.

• An organization with employees who wear casual clothes and interact casually is likely to have an informal organizational culture.

• A drawback of organizational culture is resistance to change.

• An advantage of organizational culture is long-term commitment.

• Convergence is the phenomenon of individual management styles shifting to become more similar to one another.

• The self-reference criterion is the unconscious reference point of one's own cultural values.

• The first step for an international manager towards cultural sensitivity should be to understand their own culture.

• Cultural intelligence is also known as cultural quotient.

• Cultural sensitivity requires the willingness to put oneself in another's shoes.

• Creolization is the process where immigrants adopt some aspects of the local culture while keeping aspects of their culture of origin. This is not the same as disregarding all aspects of the local culture.

• Organizational culture tends to be weaker than societal culture.

• Contingency management requires managers to adapt to the local environment and people and to manage accordingly.

• Convergence refers to the phenomenon of the shifting of individual management styles to become more similar to one another.

• Parochialism occurs when someone expects others to follow their own customs, while ethnocentrism assumes one's ways are best globally.

• Creolization is the process where immigrants adopt some aspects of the local culture while keeping aspects of their culture of origin.

• Parochialism refers to the expectation that foreigners should automatically fall into host-country patterns of behavior.

• Ethnocentrism refers to the belief that the practices of one's own country are best no matter where or under what conditions they are applied.

• Subcultures are distinct groups within a larger culture, such as Anglophones, Francophones, and indigenous Canadians in Canada.

• Stereotyping refers to the assumption that every member of a society or subculture has the same characteristics or traits without regard to individual differences.

• International managers should avoid stereotyping because many cultures have diverse subcultures.

• Harris and Moran’s eight categories of subsystems in any society include the health system, education system, and political system, but not the societal system.

• The main purpose of Harris and Moran's eight categories is to show how subsystems in a society affect an individual's behavior.

• A kinship system refers to the influence of family relationships on individual behavior.

• The religious system is most likely to underlie both moral and economic norms in a society.

• Values are a society's ideas and convictions about what is good or bad and right or wrong.

• The GLOBE Project team identified cultural dimensions like power distance, universalism, and individualism.

• According to the GLOBE project, Austria and Germany are likely to be assertive societies because they value competition and have a "can-do" attitude.

• Future-oriented countries focus on longer time horizons for decisions.

• According to the GLOBE project, the assertiveness cultural dimension refers to how much people in a society are expected to be tough, confrontational, and competitive versus modest and tender.

• Societies that are inclined toward long-term planning score high on future orientation, according to the GLOBE project.

• Managers who take initiative, have a sense of urgency, and the confidence to get things done score high on the performance orientation cultural dimension, according to the GLOBE project.

• Med-Tex should build its new facility in Ireland because expanding into a similar culture reduces risks associated with different attitudes, values, and communication styles.

• Hofstede's value dimensions include uncertainty avoidance, power distance, and individualism, but not assertiveness.

• Workplaces in high power distance cultures are likely to be characterized by autocratic leadership.

• An autocratic style of leadership would likely be most effective in high power distance countries.

• According to Hofstede, the extent to which subordinates accept a hierarchical system in a company is known as power distance.

• A strong sense of nationalism is associated with high uncertainty avoidance according to Hofstede.

• The tendency to look after oneself and one's immediate family and to place less emphasis on the needs of society is known as individualism according to Hofstede.

• Countries with strict laws and procedures to which their people adhere closely most likely have high uncertainty avoidance.

• Countries in which nationalism is less pronounced, protests are tolerated, and job mobility is common are high on uncertainty avoidance.

• Tight social frameworks, emotional dependence on belonging to the organization, and a strong belief in group decisions are characteristics of collectivism.

• Assertiveness is a primary characteristic of masculine societies.

• Countries with low masculinity are likely to have more women in high-level jobs.

• Trompenaars's value dimensions include universalism versus particularism, neutral versus affective, and specific versus diffuse, but not intrinsic versus extrinsic.

• The universalistic approach emphasizes applying rules and systems objectively, while the particularistic approach emphasizes relationships.

• People in particularistic societies are more likely to pass on inside information to a friend.

• The neutral versus affective dimension focuses on the emotional orientation of relationships.

• Managers from Italy and Mexico are likely to express emotions openly, while managers from England and Japan would consider this unprofessional. This difference is explained by the neutral versus affective dimension.

• Managers in specific-oriented cultures separate their work and private lives and tend to be open and direct when communicating with coworkers.

• The achievement versus ascription dimension explains the source of power and status in society.

• In achievement societies, your source of status is based on your level of education.

• Values are a society's ideas about what is good or bad.

• Highly assertive societies do not emphasize loyalty and solidarity; this is more characteristic of collectivist societies.

• Future-oriented societies do not place more emphasis on instant gratification; they are more likely to focus on long-term goals.

• Performance-oriented societies tend to take initiative and have the confidence to get things done.

• Humane orientation measures the extent to which a society encourages and rewards people for being fair, altruistic, generous, caring, and kind.

• Paternalism and patronage are important in humane-oriented societies.

• High power distance usually results in a centralized structure and autocratic leadership.

• Uncertainty avoidance refers to the extent to which people in a society feel threatened by ambiguous situations.

• Achievement and personal capabilities are valued in individualistic societies.

• Social loafing is common in an individualistic society.

• Assertiveness and materialism are values of a masculine society, not a feminine society.

• In specific-oriented cultures, managers separate work and private life.

• In an ascription-oriented society, status is based on factors like family background or age, not on personal achievements.

• The performance orientation dimension measures the importance of performance improvement and excellence in society. Countries like Singapore, Hong Kong, and the U.S. score high; Russia and Italy score low.

• Individualistic societies tend to have a higher gross national product and a freer political system.

• Confucian work dynamism shows that Asian managers tend to strive for long-term goals and accept delayed gratification.

• A universalistic culture applies rules objectively, while a particularist culture emphasizes relationships and is more subjective.

• Managers in specific-oriented cultures (like the U.S.) separate work and personal life, while managers in diffuse-oriented cultures (like China) allow work to spill over into personal life and vice versa.

• The local attitude to information privacy primarily determines how the Internet is used in different countries.

• The Internet impacts social variables like education and the economy. Cultural attitudes like privacy concerns shape how the Internet is used.

• Arabs believe important decisions cannot be rushed.

• Leisure time is more important than work in Mexican culture.

• Media exposure can cause changes in traditional, non-Western societies.

• Critical operational value differences include time, material factors, and change, but not etiquette.

• The European view of information privacy stems from its culture and history.

• Americans tend to have a strong work ethic and be competitive and aggressive.

• Arabs emphasize hospitality, have an indirect communication style, and practice five times a day prayer; they are less likely to impose deadlines.

• Arabs are less likely to openly admit mistakes. ### Cultural Differences in Business

• Common cultural issues faced by American managers conducting international business: Time, change, material factors, and individualism

• Common culturally sensitive behaviors:

  • Swearing
  • Discussing religion or politics
  • Bringing alcohol
  • Requesting favors
  • Introducing business topics too soon
  • Pointing fingers
  • Showing the soles of feet

• Cultural Diversity benefits businesses:

  • Companies can gain a competitive advantage
  • Can increase product and service knowledge

• Cultural Intelligence (CQ):

  • Necessary for successful international managers
  • Helps managers negotiate effectively in expatriate assignments

• Understanding cultural differences:

  • International managers should create a cultural profile of the region they operate in

• Contingency Management:

  • International managers should adapt their management styles to the local setting and people ### Chinese business

• Characteristics of Chinese Management:

  • Paternalistic
  • Family-centered
  • Centralized power
  • Focuses on human-centeredness

• Guanxi:

  • Network of relationships based on mutual obligations and favors ### Arab Business

• Arabs avoid openly admitting to mistakes

• This is seen as a sign of weakness and a failure to be manly

This quiz explores the key concepts of culture as they relate to international management. Topics include cultural intelligence, empathy, sensitivity, and the impact of globalisation on cultural practices. Understanding these elements is essential for successful expatriate assignments.