Cultural Awareness: The Trade
Mission
Aims: to make participants aware of the variety of cultural
difference and to experience how it feels to be a member of a
culture encountering another culture.
Presenter: Dr Richard Hinchcliffe, University of Liverpool
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Example: The Frankfurt Incident
‘The recent happening goes to clearly
prove that the US is the world's biggest
state of hooligans and rogues.’
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Cultural Awareness – A means of avoiding
misunderstanding…
North Korea = respect for authority, one nation
U.S.A. = the individual is at the root of authority – government
does not control business
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Reasons for this session…
• Cultural awareness, cross-cultural learning and orientation are imperative in a
global research environment.
• Employees and researchers often deal with a variety of diversity issues and
intercultural challenges as they become internationally mobile
• Researchers manage multicultural workforces
• It helps people get along with each other peacefully
• Gives you capacity to accept the relativity of one’s own knowledge and
perceptions.
• Gives you the capacity to be non-judgemental.
• Promotes a tolerance for ambiguity and pluralism.
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Hofestede’s Five Culture Dimensions
Identity
Hierarchy
Gender
Truth
Relationship
between
individual and
group
Power distance
between
individuals
Gender
equality
Coping with
unpredictability
Virtue
Long-term
V
short-term
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Synthetic Cultures
Based on the work of Gert Jan Hofstede, Paul B. Pederson and Geert Hofstede*
Five Culture Dimensions
Extreme
Dimension
Individualism (indiv)
High power distance
(Hipow)
Masculinity (mascu)
Strong uncertainty
avoidance (uncavo)
Long term orientation
(Lotor)
Identity
Hierarchy
Gender
Truth
Virtue
*Exploring Culture: Exercises, Stories
and Synthetic Cultures, 2002
Extreme
Collectivism (Collec)
Small power distance
(Lowpow)
Femininity (Femi)
Strong uncertainty
tolerance (Unctol)
Short term orientation
(Shotor)
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The Trade Mission – Your Brief
• Delegations of 3-5
• Attending a large international
trade event
• You know little about the other
delegations
MDGovpics
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In your delegation ‘Hotel Suite’
• Discover your Synthetic Culture and the name of your
country!
• Read and practice your synthetic culture
• Decide what product you want to sell – must be compatible
with your national (synthetic) culture
• Devise your sales strategy
• Meet with other delegations and establish a trading
relationship – negotiate business
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Seven Key Elements
1.
Honest people speak their mind
2.
Low context communication (explicit
concepts) is preferred
3.
The task takes precedence over
relationships
4.
Laws and rights are the same for all
5.
Trespassing leads to guilt and loss of
self-respect
6.
Everyone is supposed to have a
personal opinion on any topic
7.
The relationship between employer
and employee or between parent and child is a
contract based on mutual advantage
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Time
00. – 5 minutes
5.00 – 15.00
15.00 – 30.00
30.00 – 50.00
50.00 – 60.00
60.00 – 90.00
Activity
Briefing
Team Formation
Preparation time for
participants
Conduct Business
Place
Plenary
Plenary
Team rooms
Team rooms (visiting
teams gather in
plenary)
Plenary –
End of simulation Observers comments
De-briefing
Plenary
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De-briefing and participant reactions
Team Synthetic culture
1
Indiv (extreme
Individualism)
product
Freedom
flags
2
Femi
(Femininity)
Aroma
therapy
products
3
Uncavo
(Strong uncertainty
avoidance)
Spreadsheets
Unctol (Strong
uncertainty
tolerance)
Stuff
4
outcome
Satisfaction
level
Process
Disgust,
embarrassment
No deal/
still
negotiating
Unctols
departed,
Uncavos
working on
details
exasperation
psychopathic
strained
Too early to tell
It was really
weird
Stereotype
servile
uptight
Relaxed
then very
difficult
uncaring
These notes are made by observers in the debriefing process to the whole of the group
TWF – LU – Knowledge Exchange Innovation School
Hofestede’s Five Culture Dimensions
Identity
Hierarchy
Gender
Truth
Relationship
between
individual and
group
Power distance
between
individuals
Gender
equality
Coping with
unpredictability
Long-term
V
short-term
Scandinavia,
Netherlands
feminine,
Germanic
countries
masculine
Russia,
Japan avoid
uncertainty
Denmark,
Jamaica
opposite
East Asia =
long
Europe/USA =
Short
Rich countries
V poor
AngloAmerican low
South America
high
Virtue
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References and Further links:
• Hofstede, G., Pederson, P., Hofstede, G.H.: Exploring Culture: Exercises, stories and
synthetic cultures. 2002
Not surprisingly there is a Hofstede Centre:
• http://geert-hofstede.com/the-hofstede-centre.html
And others cashing in on the research:
• http://www.culturaldiversity.com.au/practice-guides/cultural-awareness
• HEA paper: Cultural Awareness in the Curriculum, Tom Baum. University of Strathclyde,
Frances Devine, University of Ulster
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