HOFSTEDE’S CULTURAL DIMENSIONTROMPENAAR’S DIMENSION

Cross cultural management

How Cultures View Each Other

Stereotyping: assumes that all people within one culture or group behave, believe, feel, and act the same.

Ethnocentrism: occurs when people from one culture believe that theirs are the only correct norms, values, and beliefs.

Self-reference criterion: the assumption that people in another culture will behave like people in your culture

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions

Work-related value dimensionsMost influential effort to group by cultural

valuesSurveyed over 116,000 employees in more

than 70 countriesCreated maps of pairs of dimensions

Individualism-Collectivism

Self-perception as individual or part of a group

Most widely studied Most complexDimensions different across cultures

i.e., Asian vs Latin American collectivism

Individualism-Collectivism (cont’d)

IndividualismHigh value on

autonomyIndividual

achievementPrivacy

CollectivismHigh value on group

Family, clan, organization

LoyaltyDevotionConformity

Masculinity-FemininityDescribes Importance of

Achievement versus Relationships

SuccessAssertive acquisition

of money/powerachievement

Equality of gendersCaring for

disadvantagedharmony

Power DistanceAcceptance of differences in

powerHigh-Power DistanceAccept positionFollow authorityConcentrated &

centralized authorityHierarchical

Low-Power DistanceAvoid concentration of

authorityDecentralizedFewer layers of

management

Uncertainty AvoidanceReaction to ambiguous events

Low UncertaintyAvoidanceEmbrace

unpredictableLess adherence to

rules, procedures, or hierarchies

Risk taking desirable

High UncertaintyAvoidanceThreatened by

ambiguityNeed stable &

predictable workplace

Reliance on rules

Cultural Maps

Individualism-Collectivism & Power DistanceUncertainty Avoidance & Masculinity-

FemininityUncertainty Avoidance & Power Distance

Individualism-Collectivism & Power Distance

Large power distance and collectivism Asia and Latin America

Small power distance and individualism Northern Europe and Anglo countries

Synthesis of Country Clusters

Adapted from Figure 4–8: A Synthesis of Country Clusters

Culture Map for Power

Distance and Individualis

m

Uncertainty Avoidance & Masculinity-Femininity

Achievement oriented-weak uncertainty avoidance & masculine values

Security Motivation-high uncertainty avoidance & masculinity

Social Motivation-feminine values & high uncertainty avoidance

Culture Map for

Uncertainty

Avoidance and

Masculinity-

Femininity

Uncertainty Avoidance & Power Distance

Family-large power distance & weak uncertainty avoidance

Pyramid of People-large power distance & strong uncertainty avoidance

Well-Oiled Machine-small power distance & strong uncertainty avoidance

Village Market-small power distance & low uncertainty avoidance

Culture Map for Power Distance

and Uncertainty Orientation

Limitation of Hofstede’s Dimensions

Missing countries Estimates values

Ignores differences within clusters

Trompenaars’s Alternative Dimensions

Focus on values and relationshipsSurvey of

15,000 managers Over 10-year period From 28 countries

Bipolar cultural dimensions

Trompenaars’s Alternative Dimensions

Outer-directed—Inner-directedUniversalism—ParticularismNeutral—EmotionalSpecific—DiffuseAchievement—AscriptionIndividualism—Communitarianism

Trompenaars’ Cultural Dimensions

Universalism vs. particularism Universalism – the belief that ideas and practices

can be applied everywhere in the world without modification. People tend to focus on formal rules and expect business partners to do the same.

Particularism – the belief that circumstances dictate how ideas and practices should be applied and some things cannot be done the same way everywhere. People tend to focus on relationships, working things out to suit those involved.

Trompenaars’ Cultural Dimensions (2)

Neutral vs. Emotional Cultures Neutral culture – a culture in which emotions are

held in check. People try not to show their feelings

Emotional culture – a culture in which emotions are expressed openly and naturally. People smile, may talk loudly, greet each other with enthusiasm, show happiness or unhappiness.

Trompenaars’ Cultural Dimensions (3)

Achievement vs. Ascription n Achievement culture - culture in which people

are accorded status based on how well they perform their work and what they have accomplished Job, work performance, education, etc.

Ascription culture - 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, family, tribe, ethnic group, etc.

Trompenaars’ Cultural Dimensions (4)

Use of time Sequential use of time - people do one thing at a

time, keep appointments strictly, follow plans to the letter

Synchronous use of time - people do more than one thing at a time, appointments are approximate

Trompenaars' Research onPeople and the External

Environment

Inner-directed: People believe in controlling environmental outcomes and think that they can control what happens to them

Outer-directed: People believe in allowing things to take their natural course and living in harmony with nature. People are less likely to believe that they can control what happens to them.