Power Distance in 10 minutes

Geert HofstedeAugust 2014

Origin of the term “power distance”

• Used in the 1960s by Dutch experimental social psychologist Mauk Mulder for describing interpersonal power differences

• In the 1970s, applied by Hofstede to differences between national societies

Power Distance as a societal culture dimension

• Extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organizations expect and accept that power is distributed unequally• Transferred to children by parents and other elders

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Large Power Distance• Inequality is normal• Superiors are superior

beings• Power comes before

good and evil• Children should learn

respect as a key virtue• Centralization• Subordinates expect to

be told

Small Power Distance• Inequality is wrong• Hierarchy is for practical

purposes• Use of power should be

legitimate• Children should learn to

be independent• Decentralization• Subordinates expect to

be consulted

How are societal power distances measured?

• There is no absolute standard for power distance• “All societies are unequal, but some are more

unequal than others”•What we can measure is differences between

national societies • The position of societies relative to each other is

expressed in a Power Distance Index score (PDI)• PDI values have been plotted on a scale from 0

to 100; scores close to 0 stand for a smaller, scores close to 100 for a larger power distance

Some Power Distance Index (PDI) scores, out of 76

High93 Russia81 Mexico80 China80 Arab countries77 India68 France54 Japan

Low50 Italy40 U.S.A.38 Netherlands36 Australia35 Germany35 Britain18 Denmark

Some examples of what these PDI scores correlate withHigh PDI societies

•More income inequality• Smaller middle class• Dictatorships or oligarchies• Violence in national politics• Political systems changed by

revolution• Business executives older• Innovations only when

supported by hierarchy

Low PDI societies• Less income inequality• Larger middle class• Separation of powers• Peaceful conflict resolution• Political systems changed by

evolution• Business executives younger• Spontaneous innovations by

mavericks or rebels

Don’t the scores change over time ?• The scores are based on values transferred from parents to

children; these values rarely change after adulthood• Research bij Sjoerd Beugelsdijk comparing answers to the same

questions by two successive generations 30 years apart shows a worldwide shift towards slightly smaller power distances• However, the position of countries relative to each other

remained the same; and this is what the scores are based on• Country differences expressed in the scores are often rooted in

centuries of history• So, the scores can be assumed to be stable over time