International Management International Ninth Edition Management Luthans | Doh Fred Luthans Jonathan P. Doh Ninth Edition Chapter 4 The Meanings and Dimensions of Culture International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh The Meanings and Dimensions of Culture • The specific objectives of this chapter are to 1. DEFINE the term culture, and discuss some of the comparative ways of differentiating cultures. 2. DESCRIBE the concept of cultural values, and relate some of the international differences, similarities, and changes occurring in terms of both work and managerial values. 3. IDENTIFY the major dimensions of culture relevant to work settings, and discuss their effects on behavior in an international environment. 4. DISCUSS the value of country cluster analysis and relational orientations in developing effective international management practices. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh The Nature of Culture • Culture is – Acquired knowledge that people use to interpret experience and generate social behavior. This knowledge forms values, creates attitudes, and influences behavior. International Management Ninth Edition The Nature of Culture • Characteristics of culture – Learned – Shared – Transgenerational – Symbolic – Patterned – Adaptive Luthans | Doh International Management Ninth Edition Priorities of Cultural Values United States, Japan, and Arab Countries Luthans | Doh International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Centralized vs. Decentralized Decision Making – Centralized: In some societies, top managers make all important organizational decisions. – Decentralized: In others, these decisions are dispersed throughout the enterprise, and middleand lower-level managers actively participate in, and make, key decisions. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Safety vs. Risk – Safety: In some societies, organizational decision makers are risk-averse and have great difficulty with conditions of uncertainty. – Risk: In others, risk taking is encouraged, and decision making under uncertainty is common. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Individual vs. Group Rewards – Individual: In some countries, personnel who do outstanding work are given individual rewards in the form of bonuses and commissions. – Group rewards: In others, cultural norms require group rewards, and individual rewards are frowned upon. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Informal vs. Formal Procedures – Informal: In some societies, much is accomplished through informal means. – Formal: In others, formal procedures are set forth and followed rigidly. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • High vs. Low Organizational Loyalty – High: In some societies, people identify very strongly with their organization or employer. – Low: In others, people identify with their occupational group, such as engineer or mechanic. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Cooperation vs. Competition – Cooperation: Some societies encourage cooperation between their people. – Competition: Others encourage competition between their people. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Short-term vs. Long-term Horizons – Short-term: Some cultures focus most heavily on short-term horizons, such as short-range goals of profit and efficiency. – Long-term: Others are more interested in longrange goals, such as market share and technological developments. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Cultural Diversity How Culture Affects Managerial Approaches • Stability vs. Innovation – Stability: The culture of some countries encourages stability and resistance to change. – Innovation: The culture of others puts high value on innovation and change. International Management Ninth Edition A Model of Culture Luthans | Doh International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Comparing Cultures as Overlapping Normal Distributions International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Stereotyping from the Cultural Extremes International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Values in Culture • Values – Basic convictions that people have about • Right and wrong • Good and bad • Important and unimportant – Learned from culture in which the individual is nurtured – Differences in cultural values may result in varying management practices. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Business Customs in South Africa • Arrange a meeting before discussing business over the phone. • Make appointments as far in advance as possible. • Maintain eye contact, shake hands, provide business cards for everyone. • Be respectful of women • Maintain a win-win situation. • Be patient; don’t interrupt. • Keep presentations short; avoid flashy visuals. International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Power Distance Uncertainty Avoidance Individualism―Collec vism Masculinity―Femininity Time Orientation Indulgence vs. Restraint International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions • Power Distance – The extent to which less powerful members accept that power is distributed unequally • High power distance countries: people blindly obey superiors; centralized, tall organizational structures (Mexico, South Korea, India) • Low power distance countries: flatter, decentralized organizational structures, smaller ratio of supervisor to employee (Austria, Finland, Ireland) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions • Uncertainty Avoidance – The extent to which people feel threatened by ambiguous situations; create beliefs/institutions to try to avoid such situations • High uncertainty avoidance countries: high need for security, strong belief in experts and their knowledge; structure organizational activities, more written rules, less managerial risk taking (Germany, Japan, Spain) • Low uncertainty avoidance countries: people more willing to accept risks related to unknown, less structured organizational activities, fewer written rules, more managerial risk taking, higher labor turnover, more ambitious employees (Denmark and Great Britain) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions • Individualism – The extent to which people look after themselves and immediate family only • Collectivism – The tendency of people to belong to groups and to look after each other in exchange for loyalty • High individualism countries: wealthier, Protestant work ethic, greater individual initiative, promotions based on market value (U.S., Canada, Sweden) • High collectivism countries: poorer, less support of Protestant work ethic, less individual initiative, promotions based on seniority (Indonesia, Pakistan) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions • Masculinity – A cultural characteristic in which the dominant social values are success, money, and things • Femininity – A cultural characteristic in which the dominant social values are caring for others and quality of life • High masculine countries: stress earnings, recognition, advancement, challenge, wealth; high job stress (Germanic countries) • High feminine countries: cooperation, friendly atmosphere, employment security, group decision making; low job stress (Norway) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions • Time Orientation (1988) • Table 4.3 – A cultural characteristic dealing with society’s search for virtue • Long-term oriented societies: focus on the future, able to adapt traditions when conditions change, tend to save and invest, focus on achieving long-term results (Asian countries) • Short-term oriented cultures: focus on quick results, do not tend to save, service to others, belief in absolutes, value stability and leisure (U.S., UK, Spain) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions • Indulgence vs. Restraint (2010) • Table 4.4 – Indulgent: trait related to relative happiness based on instant gratification – Restraint: a cultural characteristic based on regulating and controlling behavior according to social norms • Indulgent societies: perceived happiness, life in control, positive emotions, basic needs satisfied (U.S., UK, Australia, Chile) • Restrained societies: less happiness, sense of helplessness, less likely to remember positive emotions, basic needs not always met (China, Egypt, Romania) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • Universalism vs. Particularism – Universalism: belief that ideas/practices can be applied everywhere • High universalism countries: focus on more formal rules than on relationship, close faithfulness to business contracts, deal is a deal (U.S., UK, Germany, Sweden, Australia) – Particularism: belief that circumstances dictate how ideas/practices apply • High particularism countries: legal contracts often modified, the way deals executed change as people get to know each other (China, Indonesia, Venezuela) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • Individualism vs. Communitarianism – Individualism: people regard themselves as individuals • Countries with high individualism: stress personal and individual matters; assume great personal responsibility (U.S., UK, Argentina, Mexico, Thailand) – Communitarianism: people regard themselves as part of a group • Value group-related issues; committee decisions; joint responsibility (Malaysia, Korea) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • Neutral vs. Emotional – Neutral: culture in which emotions are held in check • High neutral countries: people act stoically and maintain self-control, don’t show their feelings (Japan and UK) – Emotional: emotions are expressed openly and naturally • High emotion cultures: people smile a lot, talk loudly, greet each other with eagerness (Mexico, Netherlands, Switzerland) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • Specific vs. Diffuse – Specific: large public space shared with others and small private space guarded closely and share with close friends and associates. • High specific cultures: people open and extroverted, strong separation of work and personal life (Austria, UK, U.S., Switzerland) – Diffuse: public and private spaces have similar size, public space guarded because entry into public space affords entry into private space as well. • Diffuse cultures: people indirect and introverted, work/private life closely linked (Venezuela, China, Spain) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • Achievement vs. Ascription – Achievement culture: people accorded status based on how well they perform functions • High status to high achievers (Austria, Switzerland, U.S., UK) – Ascription culture: status based on who or what a person is • Status based on age, gender, social connections (Venezuela, China, Indonesia) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • Time – Sequential: only one activity at a time, appointments kept strictly, follow plans as laid out (U.S.) – Synchronous: multitask, appointments are approximate and easily changed, schedules subordinate to relationships (France, Mexico) – Past/Present vs. Future: • Future more important (Italy, U.S., Germany) • Past/Present more important (Venezuela, Indonesia, Spain) • All 3 time periods equally important (France, Belgium) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Trompenaars’s Cultural Dimensions • The Environment – Inner-directed: people believe in controlling outcomes • Dominant (sometimes aggressive) attitude toward environment (U.S., Switzerland, Australia) – Outer-directed: people believe in letting things take their course • “Go with the flow,” flexible attitude, willingness to compromise and maintain harmony (China, many other Asian countries) International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh Integrating Culture and Management: The GLOBE Project • GLOBE: Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness – Project extends and integrates previous analyses of cultural attributes and variables – Evaluates nine different cultural attributes using middle managers from 951 organizations in 62 countries • First two phases: middle management – Multi-cultural team of 170 scholars from around the world worked together to survey 17,000 managers in 3 industries: financial services, food processing, and telecommunications – Covered every major geographic region of the world • Third phase: upper-level management – Team of 40 researchers from 24 countries surveyed 5,000 reports from 1,000 CEOs International Management Ninth Edition The GLOBE Project • The Nine Dimensions of the GLOBE Project 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Uncertainty avoidance Power distance Collectivism I: Societal collectivism Collectivism II: In-group collectivism Gender egalitarianism Assertiveness Future orientation Performance orientation Humane orientation Luthans | Doh International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh GLOBE Country Analysis • The results of the GLOBE project – Correspond generally with those of Hofstede and Trompenaars – Different from Hofstede in that many more researchers with varied perspectives were involved (vs. Hofstede working alone); studied many companies (vs. Hofstede studied one company) – Figure 4.11 • GLOBE provides a current comprehensive overview of general stereotypes that can be further analyzed for greater insight International Management Ninth Edition Luthans | Doh GLOBE Cultural Variable Results International Management Ninth Edition GLOBE Analysis Luthans | Doh Managerial Perspectives in the United States and Brazil
