cross cultural management

Cross-Cultural Management

Cross-Cultural Management2

Chapter 1 Meanings and Dimensions of Culture

Outline• Chap1-1 Cross-cultural management• Chap1-2 Globalization• Chap1-3 Definitions of culture• Chap1-4 Nature of culture • Chap1-5 Cultural values• Chap1-6 Dimensions of culture• Chap1-7 Attitudinal Dimensions of Culture• Chap1-8 Trompenaars’ s Cultural Dimensions


Chap1-1

Cross-cultural management


What is Cross-Cultural Management?

CCM is a fairly new field that is based on theories and research from:

• Cross Cultural Psychology

• International Business

• Organizational Behaviour

• Human Resources

• Anthropology


Goals for Cross-Cultural Management

Cross Cultural Management seeks to

• understand how national cultures affect management practices

• identify the similarities and differences across cultures in various management practices and organizational contexts

• increase effectiveness in global management


Globalization

Chap1-2


Globalization

Like it or not, globalization is here…to stay.• Most large companies have some kind of business

relations with customers, companies, employees or various stake-holders in other countries…and cultures. (Global corporations)

• Many employees and managers deal with people from other cultures on a constant basis

• Most of us have a close experience with only one or two cultures…=>


Globalization

• We do not understand people from other cultures as readily and intuitively as people from our own culture =>

• Cross cultural management helps organization members to gain better understanding of other cultures, of their culture and of the consequences of people from different cultures working together


Definitions of culture

Chap1-3


Culture

Definition: acquired knowledge that people use to interpret experience and generate social behavior.

Culture forms values, creates attitude, influences behavior.


Nature of culture

Chap1-4


Culture

Characteristics of culture include:• Learned• Shared• Transgenerational• Symbolic• Patterned • Adaptive


Cultural diversity

(P4: Culture and types of handshake)• Cultural values(P5: Priorities of cultural values: US, Japan)(P5: examples where culture can affect

management approaches)Depict cultural diversity through concentric circles.


Cultural values

Chap1-5


Priorities of Cultural Values

United States 1. Freedom 2. Independence 3. Self-reliance 4. Equality 5. Individualism 6. Competition 7. Efficiency 8. Time 9. Directness10. Openness

Arab Countries 1. Family security 2. Family harmony 3. Parental guidance 4. Age 5. Authority 6. Compromise 7. Devotion 8. Patience 9. Indirectness10. Hospitality

Japan 1. Belonging 2. Group harmony 3. Collectiveness 4. Age/seniority 5. Group consensus 6. Cooperation 7. Quality 8. Patience 9. Indirectness10. Go-between


Management Approaches Affected by Cultural Diversity

Cultural Diversity

Sort-term vs.long-term horizons

Stability vs.innovation

Individual vs.group rewards Cooperation vs.

competition

Centralized vs. Decentralized

decision making

Informal vs.formal procedures

Safety vs. risk High vs. loworganizational

loyalty


• Introduction to the course of cross-cultural management and our international teaching team

• Goals for Cross-cultural management• Nature of culture

Summary of what we learned last week


• A model of culture: concentric circles• Comparing culture as a normal distribution• Values in culture• Hofstede’s cultural dimensions

We will learn today


A model of culture: concentric circles

Explicit artifacts andproducts of the society

Implicit, basic assumptions that guide

people’s behavior

Norms and valuesthat guide the society

Outer layer: observable, e.g. language, food, buildings, art.

Middle layer: helps people understand how they should behave.

Inner layer: intangible, helpful for problem-solving and well interactions with other people.


Comparing Cultures as Overlapping Normal Distribution

Chinese Culture

?

U.S. Culture

?


Stereotyping from the Cultural Extremes: Brugha and Du’s research

Chinese Culture U.S. Culture

How Americans see the Chinese• in community• avoid confrontation (keep in harmony)• respect for authorities and seniors

How Chinese see Americans• individualism

• face confrontation (arguments and debates)

• respect for achievements


Values in Culture

Values: basic convictions that people have regarding what is right and wrong, good and bad, important and unimportant.

• Value differences and similarities across cultures: P 10: “common personal values”

U.S. Values and possible alternatives• Values in transition: work values change over

time.


Dominant Western Values in Workforce

CareerStage

Entered theWorkforce

ApproximateCurrent Age

Dominant Work Values

1. Protestant Work Ethic

2. Existential

3. Pragmatic

4. Generation X

Mid-1940s toLate 1950s

1960s to Mid-1970s

Mid-1970s toMid-1980s

Mid-1980sthrough 1990s

50 to 65

35 to 50

35 to 35

Under 25

Hard working; loyal tofirm; conservative

Nonconforming; seeksautonomy; loyal to self

Ambitious, hard worker;loyal to career

Flexible, values leisure;loyal to relationships


Dimensions of culture

Chap1-6


Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions• Dutch researcher Geert Hofstede found there

are four dimensions of culture.• Hofstede’s initial data: questionnaire surveys

with over 116000 respondents from over 70 different countries who worked in the local subsidiaries of IBM.

• The fifth dimension was added later.• Criticized because of its focus on just one

company. • Popular in the research field of cross-cultural

management.


HofstedeHofstede’’ssFive CulturalFive CulturalDimensionsDimensions

Power DistancePower Distance

Uncertainty AvoidanceUncertainty Avoidance

IndividualismIndividualism

MasculinityMasculinity

Long-Term OrientationLong-Term Orientation


• Power Distance: the extent to which less powerful members of organizations accept that power is distributed unequally.

Low: people treated as equals despite social status

High: people accept authority relations• Uncertainty avoidance: the extent to which people feel

threatened by ambiguous situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid these.

Low: prefer few formal rulesHigh: want clear behavioral guides


• Individualism/collectivism: the tendency of people to look after themselves and their immediate family only (belong to groups or collectives and to look after each other in exchange for loyalty).

Low: group behavior importantHigh: individual behavior important

A bipolar continuum

Individualism Collectivism Individualism Collectivism Individualism


• Masculinity/femininity: a situation in which the dominant values in society are success, money, and things (caring for others and the quality of life).

Low: cooperation; friendly atmosphere; employment security; low stress; warm interpersonal relationships.

High: competition; challenge; recognition; wealth; advancement; high stress; tight control.

A continuumFemininity Masculinity


• Long–term orientation: value placed on persistence, status, thrift

Low: respect for tradition, personal stability, focused on the past

High: perseverance, thrift, focused on the future

This dimension was added to depict the influence of Confucianism in Asia.

This dimension is similar to “Adjusting” proposed by Brugha and Du.

Examples of Cultural Dimensions

CountryCountry Power Power DistanceDistance Individualism*Individualism* Masculinity**Masculinity** Uncertainty Uncertainty

AvoidanceAvoidanceLong-term Long-term

Orientation***Orientation***

ChinaChina HighHigh LowLow ModerateModerate ModerateModerate HighHigh

FranceFrance HighHigh HighHigh ModerateModerate HighHigh LowLow

GermanyGermany LowLow HighHigh HighHigh ModerateModerate ModerateModerate

Hong KongHong Kong HighHigh LowLow HighHigh LowLow HighHigh

IndonesiaIndonesia HighHigh LowLow ModerateModerate LowLow LowLow

JapanJapan ModerateModerate ModerateModerate HighHigh ModerateModerate ModerateModerate

NetherlandsNetherlands LowLow HighHigh LowLow ModerateModerate ModerateModerate

RussiaRussia HighHigh ModerateModerate LowLow HighHigh LowLow

United StatesUnited States LowLow HighHigh HighHigh LowLow LowLow

West AfricaWest Africa HighHigh LowLow ModerateModerate ModerateModerate LowLow

* A low score is synonymous with collectivism** A low score is synonymous with masculinity*** A low score is synonymous with a short-term orientation


Additional Frameworks

Two additional perspectives, of social/cross-cultural psychologists merit attention:

Markus & Kitayama: Independent & Interdependent Construals

Triandis: Individualism-Collectivism


Vertical & Horizontal Individualism & Collectivism

Harry Triandis: Combination of Individualism vs. collectivism and power & achievement vs. benevolence & universalism

• VI: achievement + individualism (USA)• HI: universalism + individualism (Sweden)• VC: power + collectivism (India)• HC: benevolence + collectivism (Israel; rare)


Schwartz’s Values• Universalism• Benevolence• Conformity & tradition• Security• Power• Achievement• Hedonism• Stimulation• Self Direction


UniversalismSelf-

Direction

Stimulation

Hedonism

Achievement

Power

Benevolence

Security

Conformity Tradition

Self-Enhancement

Openness toChange

Conservation

Self-Transcendence

Obedience HumilityDevoutness

Helpfulness

Social Justice,Equality

Creativity,Freedom

Exciting Life

Pleasure

Success,Ambition

Authority,Wealth

Social Order

Organized by motivationalsimilarities and dissimilarities

Schwartz’s Value Map


Empirical test of the Theory

• 75,000 + respondents, varied samples in 68 countries

• Instrument lists 57 abstract value items • “How important is each item as a guiding

principle in your life?”


Tasks in the next session:Students’ talks and presentationsDiscussion in groups: how to learn

Cross-cultural management?

Assignment after class: Read a paper on Hofstede’s cultural

dimensions.


Preview

• Integrating Hofstede’s cultural dimensions

• Attitudinal dimensions of culture• Trompenaars’s cultural dimensions• Integrating culture and management


Chap1-7 Attitudinal Dimensions of Culture

Work Value and Attitude Similarities• Research has revealed many similarities in both work values and

attitudes• Ronen and Kraut

– Smallest space analysis (SSA) - maps the relationship among countries by showing the distance between each on various cultural dimensions

– Can identify country clusters• Ronen and Shenkar

– Examined variables in four categories» Importance of work goals» Need deficiency, fulfillment, and job satisfaction» Managerial and organizational variables» Work role and interpersonal orientation


A Synthesis of Country Cultures


GLOBE Project

• Multi-country study and evaluation of cultural attributes and leadership behavior

• Are transformational characteristics of leadership universally endorsed?

• 170 country co-investigators• 65 different cultures• 17,500 middle managers800 organisations


GLOBE Project

• What traits are universally viewed as impediments to leadership effectiveness?

• Based on beliefs that– Certain attributes that distinguish one culture from others can be

used to predict the most suitable, effective and acceptable organizational and leader practices within that culture

– Societal culture has direct impact on organizational culture– Leader acceptance stems from tying leader attributes and

behaviors to subordinate norms

Variable Highest Medium LowestRanking Ranking Ranking

GLOBE Cultural Variable Results

Assertiveness Spain, U.S. Egypt, Ireland Sweden, New Zealand

Future orientation Denmark, Canada Slovenia, Egypt Russia, Argentina

Gender differentiation South Korea, Italy, Brazil Sweden Denmark Egypt

Uncertainty avoidance Austria, Denmark Israel, U.S. Russia, Hungary

Power distance Russia, Spain England, France Demark, NetherlandsCollectivism/Societal Denmark, Hong Kong, U.S. Greece, Hungary

SingaporeIn-group collectivism Egypt, China England, France Denmark,

NetherlandsPerformance orientation U.S., Taiwan Sweden, Israel Russia, Argentina

Humane orientation Indonesia, Egypt Hong Kong, Germany, Spain Sweden


Chap1-8 Trompenaars’ Cultural Dimensions

• Research produced five cultural dimensions that are based on relationship orientations and attitudes toward both time and the environment

• Universalism vs. Particularism– Universalism - belief that ideas and practices can be applied

everywhere in the world without modification• Focus on formal rules and rely on business contacts

– Particularism - belief that circumstances dictate how ideas and practices should be applied and something cannot be done the same everywhere

• Focus on relationships, working things out to suit the parties


Trompenaars’ Cultural Dimensions (cont.)

• Individualism vs. Communitarianism– Individualism - people regard themselves as individuals

• Rely on individuals to make decisions– Communitarianism - people regard themselves as part of a group

• Seek consultation and mutual consent before making decisions• Neutral vs. Emotional

– Neutral - culture in which emotions are held in check• People try not to show their feelings

– Emotional - culture in which emotions are expressed openly and naturally

• People smile, talk loudly, greet each other with enthusiasm


• Specific vs. Diffuse– Specific - culture in which individuals have a large public space

they readily share with others and a small private space they guard closely and share with only close friends and associates

• People often are open and extroverted• Work and private life are separate

– Diffuse - culture in which both public and private space are similar in size and individuals guard their public space carefully, because entry into public space affords entry into private space as well

• People often appear indirect and introverted, and work and private life often are closely linked




• Achievement vs. Ascription– Achievement - culture in which people are accorded status based

on how well they perform their functions– Ascription - culture in which status is attributed based on who or

what a person is• For example, status may be accorded on the basis of age,

gender, or social connections• Time

– Sequential approach to time - people do one thing at a time, keep appointments strictly, follow plans to the letter

– Synchronous approach - people do more than one thing at a time, appointments are approximate



• Environment– Inner-directed

• People believe in controlling environmental outcomes– Outer-directed

• People believe in allowing things to take their natural course

• Cultural Patterns or Clusters– Defined groups of countries that are similar to each other in

terms of the five dimensions and the orientations toward time and the environment

Cross-Cultural Management 49

Trompenaars’ Cultural GroupsAnglo cluster

Relationship United States United KingdomIndividualism x x

Communitarianism

Specific relationship x x

Diffuse relationship

Universalism x x

Particularism

Neutral relationship x

Emotional relationship x

Achievement x x

Ascription


Trompenaars’ Cultural Groups

Asian cluster

Relationship Japan China Indonesia Hong Kong SingaporeIndividualism

Communitarianism x x x x x

Specific relationship

Diffuse relationship x x x x x

Universalism

Particularism x x x x x

Neutral relationship x x x x


Achievement

Ascription x x x x x


Trompenaars’ Cultural GroupsLatin American cluster

Relationship Argentina Mexico Venezuela BrazilIndividualism x x x

Communitarianism

Specific relationship

Diffuse relationship x x x x

Universalism

Particularism x x x x

Neutral relationship x x x


Achievement x x

Ascription x x


Trompenaars’ Cultural GroupsLatin-European cluster

Relationship France Belgium Spain ItalyIndividualism x

Communitarianism x x x

Specific relationship x x

Diffuse relationship x x

Universalism x x x

Particularism x

Neutral relationship x

Emotional relationship x x x

Achievement x

Ascription x x x


Trompenaars’ Cultural Groups

Germanic cluster

Relationship Austria Germany Switzerland CzechoslovakiaIndividualism x

Communitarianism x x x

Specific relationship x x x

Diffuse relationship x

Universalism x x x x

Particularism

Neutral relationship x x

Emotional relationship x x

Achievement x x x

Ascription x


Culture Maps - FrameworksEdward T. Hall

Geert Hofstede

Kluckhohn & Strodbeck

• time• space• things• friendships• agreements

&interpersonal

behavior

• power• risk• individualism• masculinity• long term orientation

&management

theories - practice

• relation to nature• orientation to time• belief about human nature• mode of human activity• relationships• space

&Int’l. business

practice

Value Pattern

s

Variations in Value

Orientations

Culture Elements

Trompenaars

• universalism– particularism• collectivism– individualism• affective–neutral relationships• specificity–diffuseness• achievement– ascription• time orientation•Internal–external control

&Int’l. business practice

Value Patterns

cross cultural management

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