Chapter 3

DIFFERENCES IN CULTURE

Chapter Objectives 1
Discuss the primary characteristics of culture

Describe the various elements of culture and

provide examples of how they influence international business Identify the means by which members of a culture communicate with each other

4-2

Chapter Objectives 2
Discuss how religious and other values affect the

domestic environments in which international businesses operate Describe the major cultural clusters and their usefulness for international managers Explain Hofstedes primary findings about differences in cultural values Explain how cultural conflicts may arise

4-3

What Is Culture?
Culture is a system of values and norms that are

shared among a group of people and that when taken together constitute a design for living where
values are abstract ideas about what a group believes to be good, right, and desirable norms are the social rules and guidelines that prescribe appropriate behavior in particular situations

Society refers to a group of people who share a

common set of values and norms

3-4

How Are Culture, Society, And The Nation-State Related?

The relationship between a society and a nation state

is not strictly one-to-one Nation-states are political creations

can contain one or more cultures

A culture can embrace several nations

3-5

Values and Attitudes

Values are the principles and standards accepted by the members; attitudes encompass the actions, feelings, and thoughts that result from those values.

4-6

What Are Values And Norms?

Values provide the context within which a societys

norms are established and justified and form the bedrock of a culture Norms include

folkways - the routine conventions of everyday life mores - norms that are seen as central to the functioning of a society and to its social life

3-7

Values and Attitudes

Time

Age

Education

Status

4-8

What Are The Determinants Of Culture?

The values and norms of a culture evolve over time

Determinants include religion political and economic philosophies education language social structure

3-9

Elements of Culture

Language Education/Time /Age Religion

Culture
Social structure

Political &Economic Philosophy

4-10

What Is A Social Structure?

Social structure refers to a societys basic social

organization Consider

the degree to which the basic unit of social organization is the individual, as opposed to the group the degree to which a society is stratified into classes or castes

3-11

How Are Individuals And Groups Different?

A group is an association of two or more people who have

a shared sense of identity and who interact with each other in structured ways on the basis of a common set of expectations about each others behavior In Western societies, there is a focus on the individual

individual achievement is common dynamism of the U.S. economy high level of entrepreneurship

But, creates a lack of company loyalty and failure to gain

company specific knowledge

competition between individuals in a company instead of than team building less ability to develop a strong network of contacts within a firm

3-12

How Are Individuals And Groups Different?

In many Asian societies, the group is the primary

unit of social organization

discourages job switching between firms encourages lifetime employment systems leads to cooperation in solving business problems

But, might also suppress individual creativity and

initiative

3-13

What Is Social Stratification?

All societies are stratified on a hierarchical basis into social categories, or social strata Must consider
1.

The degree of social mobility - the extent to which individuals can move out of the strata into which they are born

caste system - closed system of stratification in which social position is determined by the family into which a person is born

change is usually not possible during an individual's lifetime position a person has by birth can be changed through achievement or luck

class system - form of open social stratification

2.

The significance attached to social strata in business contacts

Class consciousness is a condition where people tend to perceive themselves in terms of their class background, and this shapes their relationships with others

3-14

How Do Religious And Ethical Systems Differ?

1. 2. 3. 4.

Religion is a system of shared beliefs and rituals that are concerned with the realm of the sacred Religion and ethics are often closely intertwined Four religions dominate society
Christianity Islam Hinduism Buddhism

Confucianism is also important in influencing behavior and culture in many parts of Asia Ethical systems are a set of moral principles, or values, that are used to guide and shape behavior

3-15

What Is Christianity?
Christianity the worlds largest religion found throughout Europe, the Americas, and other countries settled by Europeans the Protestant work ethic (Max Weber, 1804)

hard work, wealth creation, and frugality is the driving force of capitalism

3-16

What Is Islam?
Islam the worlds second largest religion extends the underlying roots of Christianity to an all-embracing way of life that governs one's being Islamic fundamentalism is associated in the Western media with militants, terrorists, and violent upheavals, but in fact Islam teaches peace, justice, and tolerance fundamentalists, who demand rigid commitment to religious beliefs and rituals, have gained political power in many Muslim countries, and blame the West for many social problems people do not own property, but only act as stewards for God

people must take care of that which they have been entrusted with

supportive of business, but the way business is practiced is prescribed

3-17

What Is Hinduism?
Hinduism practiced primarily on the Indian sub-continent focuses on the importance of achieving spiritual growth and development, which may require material and physical selfdenial Hindus are valued by their spiritual rather than material achievements promotion and adding new responsibilities may not be important, or may be infeasible due to the employee's caste

3-18

What Is Buddhism?
Buddhism has about 350 millions followers stresses spiritual growth and the afterlife, rather than achievement while in this world does not emphasize wealth creation entrepreneurial behavior is not stressed does not support the caste system, individuals do have some mobility and can work with individuals from different classes

3-19

What Is Confucianism?
Confucianism ideology practiced mainly in China teaches the importance of attaining personal salvation through right action high morals, ethical conduct, and loyalty to others are stressed three key teachings of Confucianism - loyalty, reciprocal obligations, and honesty - may all lead to a lowering of the cost of doing business in Confucian societies

3-20

What Is The Role Of Language In Culture?

Language - the spoken and unspoken (nonverbal

communication such as facial expressions, personal space, and hand gestures ) means of communication One of the defining characteristics of culture

countries with more than one language often have more than one culture English is the most widely spoken language in the world Chinese is the mother tongue of the largest number of people English is also becoming the language of international business knowledge of the local language is still beneficial, and in some cases, critical for business success failing to understand the nonverbal cues of another culture can lead to communication failure

3-21

What Is The Role Of Education In Culture?

Formal education is the medium through which

individuals learn many of the language, conceptual, and mathematical skills that are indispensable in a modern society

important in determining a nations competitive advantage general education levels can be a good index for the kinds of products that might sell in a country

3-22

How Does Culture Impact The Workplace?

1.

2.
3.

4.

Management processes and practices must be adapted to culturally-determined work-related values Geert Hofstede identified four dimensions of culture Power distance - how a society deals with the fact that people are unequal in physical and intellectual capabilities Uncertainty avoidance - the relationship between the individual and his fellows Individualism versus collectivism - the extent to which different cultures socialize their members into accepting ambiguous situations and tolerating ambiguity Masculinity versus femininity -the relationship between gender and work roles

3-23

How Does Culture Impact The Workplace?

Work-Related Values for 20 Countries

3-24

Hofstedes Five Dimensions

Social Orientation
Power Orientation Uncertainty Orientation Goal Orientation Time Orientation
4-25

Was Hofstede Right?

Hofstede later expanded added a fifth dimension called

Confucian dynamism

captures attitudes toward time, persistence, ordering by status, protection of face, respect for tradition, and reciprocation of gifts and favors

Hofstedes work has been criticized because made the assumption there is a one-to-one relationship between culture and the nation-state study may have been culturally bound used IBM as sole source of information culture is not static it evolves But, it is a starting point for understanding how cultures

differ, and the implications of those differences for managers

3-26

Does Culture Change?

Culture evolves over time changes in value systems can be slow and painful for a society Social turmoil - an inevitable outcome of cultural

change

as countries become economically stronger, cultural change is particularly common

3-27

What Is Cross-Cultural Literacy?

Cross-cultural literacy is an understanding of

how cultural differences across and within nations can affect the way in which business is practiced A relationship may exist between culture and the costs of doing business in a country or region

3-28

What Do Cultural Differences Mean For Managers?

1.

It is important to develop cross-cultural literacy

companies that are ill informed about the practices of another culture are unlikely to succeed in that culture managers must beware of ethnocentric behavior, or a belief in the superiority of one's own culture

2.

There is a connection between culture and national competitive advantage

suggests which countries are likely to produce the most viable competitors has implications for the choice of countries in which to locate production facilities and do business

3-29

Understanding New Cultures

Self-reference criterion

Cultural literacy

Acculturation

4-30