Session 4: Comparing Cultures PDF

Session 4: Comparing Cultures Chapter 3 Culture is expressed in the complex interactions of values, attitudes, and behavioral assumptions of a society, which are reflected in its institutions. These cultural beliefs are well understood by societies’ members but need also to be understood by managers...

Session 4: Comparing Cultures Chapter 3 Culture is expressed in the complex interactions of values, attitudes, and behavioral assumptions of a society, which are reflected in its institutions. These cultural beliefs are well understood by societies’ members but need also to be understood by managers, both those who work in cultures other than their own and those who manage people from other cultures. However, for culture to be a useful concept in management studies, we must find a way of talking about specific aspects of culture, not just the overall concept. Much of our understanding of cultures and their differences has come from focusing on values. Values are important because of their depth. When we consider values, we are looking far below and beyond people’s surface behavior and considering deeply rooted anchors to that behavior, anchors framed by centuries of tradition, by the deeply held beliefs of the ancestors of the members of the society. One source of such understanding is the results of the systematic research that has been conducted on cultural differences. In recent years, researchers around the world have conducted a range of impressive, multi-country studies. Typically, these studies go well beyond the superficial cross-cultural observations that managers often make: “Aren’t Thai people quiet compared to U.S. people?” “Japanese people are very formal and polite during the day but sure know how to throw a party in the evening!” “In Russia no one will move a muscle without instructions from above,” and so on. Systematic, objective research can tell us not only whether or not these observations are accurate but also if the observations are validated based on real, systematic, and consistent differences in behavior. It may also generate insights about other cultures that managers might not normally notice. Analyzing a society’s values enables us to see consistent patterns in how the society chooses to work and how it deals with its basic social relationships, and it enables us to understand the assumptions that its members share about the way things ought to be or the way people should behave. For example, the Chinese tolerance of intrusion on privacy in the interests of collective well-being, contrasts with values for individual privacy and personal freedom in many Western countries. The concept of Cultural distance—where the values of two societal groups are very far apart from each other—highlights the difficulties that may be created for managers in understanding the people from the other cultures they deal with. Considering such differences enables us to categorize a country, society, or indeed any social group accordingly. Culture shapes individuals by influencing the basic mental representations that members of their particular social groups share. Broad cultural concepts Individualism → loosely linked individuals, who view themselves as independent from the collectives, are primarily motivated by their own preferences and needs, and give priority to their own personal growth Collectivism → closely linked individuals, who see themselves as part of one or more collectives, primarily motivated by norms and duties, and who give priority to the goals of the collective  Cultural distance → values of 2 societal groups are very far apart-differences and difficulties Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck Framework 6 problems that all societies face and 3 alternative ways of handling each Hofstede’s Study 4 dimensions of culture: Individualism-collectivism → the degree to which one’s self-identity depends on individual characteristics or on the characteristics of the groups to which they belong Power distance → how members of a culture view and accept an unequal sharing of power. For example, to what extent do people accept or question the dictates of a powerful boss. Uncertainty avoidance → the degree of tolerance they have for unpredictability, and how much they focus on reducing uncertainty and creating stability. Unlike the risk in games of chance, clear probabilities are valued—for example, having clear strong rules and laws so that everyone knows where they stand. Masculinity-femininity → which orientations are emphasized Male orientations → ambition, acquisition and achievement Female orientation → nurturance and interpersonal harmony Two new dimensions through further studies Long-term orientation → cultural dimension that focuses on the future, willingness to delay short-term material or social success or even short-term emotional gratification in order to prepare for the future; values persistence, perseverance, saving, and being able to adapt. It is the set of values that place high importance on the long-term future and on thrift and perseverance, and low importance on immediate rewards-positively related to countries’ long-term rates of economic growth  Indulgence versus restraint → indulgence indicates a society that allows relatively free gratification of basic and natural human drives related to enjoying life and having fun. Restraint indicates a society that suppresses gratification of needs and regulates it by means of strict social norms. ○ indulgent societies are more open to the gratification of basic and human drives related to enjoying life and having fun (happier, in control of their lives, sociable, leisure-oriented, higher birth rates, less cardiovascular diseases, higher importance of friends, support for casual sex, more obesity Schwartz Value Survey 7 value orientations: Egalitarianism: recognition of people as moral equals Harmony: fitting in harmoniously with the environment Embeddedness: people are embedded in the collective Hierarchy: unequal distribution of power is legitimate Mastery: exploitation of the natural or social environment Affective autonomy: the pursuit of positive experiences Intellectual autonomy: the independent pursuit of own ideas Trompenaars Dimensions 5 dimensions-concern relationships among people Universalism–particularism: Universalism is a belief that what is true and good can be discovered and applied universally, whereas particularism is a belief that unique circumstances determine what is right or good. Universalist cultures include Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Particularist cultures include Latin America, Korea, China, and Russia. Individualism–collectivism: Similarly to Hofstede’s definition, this dimension concerns the extent to which people plan their actions with reference to individual benefits versus those of the group. Individualistic cultures include Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Collectivist cultures include Japan, much of Africa, China, and Latin American countries. Neutral–affective: In neutral cultures, emotion should be held in check, and maintaining an appearance of self-control is important, whereas in affective cultures, it is natural to express emotions. Neutral cultures include Germany, Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Affective cultures include Italy, Spain, and Latin America. Specific–diffuse: This dimension refers to the extent to which individuals are willing to allow others to access to their inner selves. In specific cultures, people separate the private part of their lives from the public, whereas in diffuse cultures, these aspects of the individual overlap. Specific cultures include Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Diffuse cultures include China, India, Argentina, and Spain. Achievement–ascription: This dimension is about how status and power are determined in a society. In an ascription society, status is based on who a person is (e.g., from a respected family), whereas in an achievement society, status is based on what a person does or has achieved. Achievement cultures  include the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Scandinavia. Ascription cultures include Japan, Italy, and France. Final 2 dimensions - time and environment: Time: This dimension is about past versus future orientations but also the extent to which time is viewed as linear (progressing from one stage to another) versus holistic (happening all at once), integrating past and present experiences with future possibilities. Examples of linear time cultures include the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Examples of holistic time cultures include Japan, India, and Mexico. Environment: This dimension refers to the extent to which individuals feel that they themselves are the primary influence on their lives (internal direction). Alternatively, they may perceive that the environment is seen as more powerful than they are (external direction), and people should strive to achieve harmony with it. Examples of internal direction cultures include the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Examples of external direction cultures include China, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. ○ Internal direction → the extent to which individuals feel that they themselves are the primary influence on their life ○ External direction → they may perceive that the environment is seen as more powerful than they are The Globe Study Nine dimensions of cultural variation  Institutional collectivism The degree to which organizational and societal institutional practices encourage and reward the collective distribution of resources and collective action In-group collectivism The degree to which individuals express pride, loyalty, and cohesiveness in their organizations or families Power distance The degree to which members of society expect power to be distributed unequally Uncertainty avoidance Gender egalitarianism The degree to which a collective minimizes gender inequality Assertiveness The degree to which individuals are assertive, confrontational and aggressive in their relationship with others Human orientation The degree to which a collective encourages and rewards individuals for being fair, altruistic, generous, caring, and kind to others Future orientation The extent to which individuals engage in future-oriented behaviors, such as delayed gratification, planning and investing in the future Performance orientation The degree to which a collective encourages and rewards group members for performance improvement and excellence Special features of the GLOBE study: Middle managers Cultural dimensions measured as practices (how it is) and values (how it should be) For some dimensions, those 2 measures were negatively correlated Individualism and Collectivism Individualism and collectivism are perhaps the most useful and certainly the most frequently studied dimensions of cultural variation. Individualism as a societal characteristic refers to the tendency to view each person as independent of others and to be concerned about the consequences of a person’s actions for themselves alone. In contrast, collectivism refers to the tendency of a society to view people as interdependent with others who are part of stable groups, such as extended family or kinship groups. Collectivist societies tend to be concerned about the consequences of a person’s behavior for his or her group and to expect people to be more willing to sacrifice their personal interests for the good of their group. Individualism–collectivism is more than a split between self-interest and a generalized concern for everyone in the world: Collectivism does not equate with socialism. Recognizing the difference between societal culture and individual values means that international managers must be very careful in their expectations of colleagues, associates, clients, and customers from other cultures.  On the one hand, they should try to understand the broad cultural characteristics that may influence the actions and behavior of those they deal with, but on the other, they should avoid stereotyping—that is, assuming that all the members of a society will be the same. Here, an ability called cultural intelligence, which includes sensitivity to others’ cultural characteristics and the ability to show this sensitivity in one’s own actions, can be a huge asset to international managers. Selling to a collectivist individual → first build a relationship & recognise the difference between social culture and individual values! Cultural intelligence → sensitivity to others’ cultural characteristics and the ability to show this sensitivity in one’s own actions Tightness and Complexity An important aspect of culture related to individualism–collectivism is the idea of cultural tightness and looseness. Tightness refers to the extent to which members of a culture agree about what correct behavior is and believe that they must behave exactly according to cultural norms and that they will receive and should give severe criticism for even small deviations from cultural norms. Loose cultures often have multiple and sometimes conflicting norms about appropriate behavior and show tolerance to those who deviate from the norms. ○ As examples, Japan is a relatively tight culture, whereas the United States is a relatively loose culture.Tight cultures tend to be homogeneous and often occur in societies with high population density. The United States shows high cultural diversity compared to Japan. A country’s Cultural complexity refers to the amount of difference in the various domains of individuals’ lives and may be assessed by measures as diverse as the numbers of different roles available to individuals and the size of communities. Tightness → tight cultures have strongly enforced rules and little tolerance (Japan) - often homogenous, and often appear in societies with high population density Loosened → lose cultures have few strongly enforced rules and great tolerance for deviance Cultural complexity → the amount of difference that exists in the various aspect of the lives of individuals in a society Vertical and Horizontal Dimensions Additional refinements have been made to the individualism–collectivism concept. Important among these are the vertical and horizontal dimensions that indicate how people view their status relationships with others. Vertical and horizontal dimensions → how people view their status relationship with others Vertical dimension-similar to Hofstede’s power distance dimension and Schwartz's value orientation of hierarchy Horizontal-individualistic societies, the self is autonomous, and people generally have equal opportunity. Their patterns of social behavior emphasize equity in resource sharing according to contribution, and social systems emphasize both equality and individual freedom A high correlation between power distance and collectivism → dominant cultural profile around the world may be vertical collectivism (China, India) and horizontal individualism (Western Societies) Social axioms Generalized beliefs about oneself, the social and physical environment, or the spiritual world and take the form of statements about the relationship between two entities or concepts Dynamic externality → a cluster of beliefs that focus around religiosity and the view that effort ultimately leads to justice Social cynicism → cynical view of people, biases against some other groups, a mistrust of social institutions, and a disregards of ethical means of achieving an end Sources of guidance for managers: Organisation’s rules and procedures Superiors Colleagues Subordinates Staff experts Organisation’s norms Society’s norms Own experience and training What source a manager relies on can be an indicator of their culture Cultural distance-quantitative measures High cultural distance → might experience unfamiliarity and uncertainty when working with one another A small degree of cultural distance → easier to develop trusting relationships