Differences in Culture

Differences in CultureDifferences in Culture

Societies’ differ along cultural dimensions What is culture? How/why do social structure, religion, language

influence cultural differences? What are differences between culture and values

in the workplace (corporate culture)? Culture changes over time. What are some reasons

behind this? Implications for business managers

Cultural AppreciationCultural Appreciation

Aspects ofculture

Values

Customs

Symbols

Language

What is Culture?What is Culture? Culture: a society’s (group’s) system of

shared, learned values and norms; these are the society’s (group’s) design for living– Values: abstract ideas about the good, the right, the desirable

– Norms: social rules and guidelines; guide appropriate behavior for specific situations

Folkways: norms of little moral significancedress code; table manners; timeliness

Mores: norms central to functioning of social life– bring serious retribution: thievery, adultery, alcohol

Basic U.S. Business ValuesBasic U.S. Business Values

Cultural DiversityCultural DiversityValues represent personal or socially

preferable modes of conduct or states of existence that are enduring.

Why doesn’t McDonald’s sell hamburgers in India?

Cultural DiversityCultural DiversityCustoms are norms and expectations

about the way people do things in a specific country.

Why were 3M executives perplexed concerning lukewarm sales of Scotch-Brite floor cleaner in the Philippines?

What is Culture?What is Culture?

“the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group over another…

Culture, in this sense, includes systems of values; and values are among the building blocks of culture”

Geert Hofstede

National CultureNational Culture

“Nation” is a useful:– Definition of society

similarity among people a cause -- and effect -- of national boundaries

– Way to bound and measure culture for conduct of business

culture is a key characteristic of societ can differ significantly across national borders

– also within national borders laws are established along national lines

Culture is both a cause and an effect of economic and political factors that vary across national borders

Social Structure and CultureSocial Structure and CultureUnit of social organization: individual or group?Society may be stratified into classes or castes

High-low stratificationHigh-low mobility between strata

The individual: building block of many Western societiesEntrepreneurshipSocial, geographical and inter-organizational mobility

The group: Two or more associated individuals with a shared identityInteract with each-other in specific ways on the basis of a common set of expectations.

Individual vs Group Individual vs Group Societal CharacteristicsSocietal Characteristics

Individual– Managerial mobility

between companies– Economic dynamism,

innovation– Good general skills– Team work difficult,

non-collaborative

Exposure to different ways of doing business– e.g., U.S. companies

Group– Loyalty and commitment to

company– In-depth knowledge of

company– Specialist skills– Easy to build teams,

collaboration– Emotional identification with

group or company– e.g., Japanese companies

Religion, Ethics and CultureReligion, Ethics and Culture

Religion: system of shared beliefs about the sacred Ethical systems: moral principles or values that shape

and guide behavior; often products of religion Major religious groups and some economic

implications– Christianity protestant work ethic– Islam Islamic economic principles– Hinduism anti-materialistic, socially stratified– Buddhism anti-materialistic, social equality– Confucianism hierarchy, loyalty, honesty

Language: Culture BoundLanguage: Culture BoundLanguage, spoken

– “private” does not exist as a word in many languages

– Eskimos: 24 words for snow– Words which describe moral concepts can be

unique to countries or areas– Spoken language precision important in low-

context culturesLanguage, unspoken

– Context... more important than spoken word in high context cultures

Non-Verbal GesturesNon-Verbal Gestures

Non-Verbal GesturesNon-Verbal Gestures

Non-Verbal GesturesNon-Verbal Gestures

Non-Verbal GesturesNon-Verbal Gestures

CulturalCultural Diversity – “Diversity – “Chevy NovaChevy Nova Award”Award”

Dairy Association’s huge success with the campaign “Got Milk?” prompted them to expand advertising to Mexico

It was brought to their attention the Spanish translation read, “Are you lactating?”

CulturalCultural Diversity – “Diversity – “Chevy NovaChevy Nova Award”Award”

Clairol introduced the “Mist Stick”, a curling iron into Germany

Only to find out that “mist” is German slang for manure.

Cultural Diversity Cultural Diversity Chevy Nova AwardChevy Nova Award

When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, they used US packaging with the smiling baby on the label.

In Africa, companies routinely put pictures on labels of what’s inside, since many people can’t read.

Cultural Diversity Cultural Diversity Chevy Nova AwardChevy Nova Award

Pepsi’s “Come Alive With the Pepsi Generation” in Chinese translated into

“Pepsi Brings Your Ancestors Back From the Grave”

              

Cultural Diversity Cultural Diversity Chevy Nova AwardChevy Nova Award

Coca-Cola’s name in China was first read as “Kekoukela”, meaning “Bite the wax tadpole” or “female horse stuffed with wax”, depending on the dialect.

Coke then researched 40,000 characters to find a phonetic equivalent “kokou kole”, translating into “happiness in the mouth.”

Cultural StereotypesCultural Stereotypes

Cultural stereotypes: values and behaviors considered typical of a culture

        Are they valuable?

Yes, if they reduce uncertainty about what expatriate can expect.

No, if used to label an individual unlike the stereotype

High/Low Context CulturesHigh/Low Context CulturesHigh-Context Low-ContextCrucial to Communications: external environment, situation, non-verbal behaviorexplicit information, blunt communicative

styleRelationships: long lasting, deep personal mutual involvement short duration, heterogeneous populationsCommunication: economical, fast because of shared "code" explicit messages, low reliance on non-

verbalAuthority person: responsible for actions of subordinates, loyalty at apremium

diffused through bureaucratic system,personal responsibility tough to pin down

Agreements: spoken, flexible and changeable written, final and binding, litigious, more

lawyersInsiders vs outsiders: very distinguishable difficult to identify, foreigners can adjustCultural pattern change: slow faster

Education and CultureEducation and Culture

Education– Medium through which people are acculturated– Language, “myths,” values, norms taught– Teaches personal achievement and competition– Critical to national competitive advantage

Education system may be a cultural outcome

Culture and the workplace (Hofstede)Culture and the workplace (Hofstede)Finds national culture dimensions meaningful to

businessBasis:

– Work related values not universal– National values may persist over MNC efforts to create

corporate culture– Home country values often used to determine HQ

policies– MNC may create morale problems with uniform moral

normsPurpose: understanding of business situations

across-culturesMUST understand own culture AND other culture(s)

Culture and the workplaceCulture and the workplace Geert Hofstede – sampled 100,000 IBM

employees 1963-1973 Compared employee attitudes and values

across 40 countries Isolated 4 dimensions summarizing

culture:1. Power distance2. Individualism vs. collectivism3. Uncertainty avoidance4. Masculinity vs. feminity

Power Distance -- (Hofstede)Power Distance -- (Hofstede)

Degree of social inequality considered normal by people

Distance between individuals at different levels of a hierarchy

Scale: from equal (small power distance) to extremely unequal (large power distance)

Individualism Vs. Collectivism (Hofstede)Individualism Vs. Collectivism (Hofstede)

Degree to which people in a country prefer to act as individuals rather than in groups

Describes the relations between the individual and his/her fellows

Uncertainty Avoidance (Hofstede)Uncertainty Avoidance (Hofstede)

Degree of need to avoid uncertainty about the future

Degree of preference for structured versus unstructured situations– Structured situations: have tight rules may

or may not be written down High uncertainty avoidance: people with

more nervous energy (vs easy-going), rigid society, "what is different is dangerous."

Masculinity Vs. Femininity (Hofstede)Masculinity Vs. Femininity (Hofstede)

Division of roles and values in a society

Masculine values prevail: – assertiveness, success, competition

Feminine values prevail: – quality of life, maintenance of warm

personal relationships, service, care for the weak, solidarity

Confucian Dynamism (Hofstede)Confucian Dynamism (Hofstede)

Attitudes towards– Time– Persistence– Status in society– “Face”– Respect for tradition– Gifts and favors

Cultural Change Over TimeCultural Change Over Time

Change is slow and often painfulShifts away from “traditional

values” towards “secular values”Changes with shift from “survival

values” to “self-expression values”

Cultural DistanceCultural Distance

Geographic and cultural (or pshychic) distance among countries may not be the same

Key concept which can affect IB strategy and conduct

Managerial ImplicationsManagerial ImplicationsEthnocentrism vs Polycentrism Must a company adapt to local

cultures or can corporate -- often home-country dominated -- culture prevail?

Cross-cultural literacy essentialDo some cultures offer a national

competitive advantage over others?

Applying Cultural AnalysisApplying Cultural Analysis

1.   Describe culture using Hofstede’s Model

2.    Estimate cultural impact on management  

  • Strategic planning: Futile? How much information needed?

  • Employee motivation: Security or money reward? Immediate or long-term rewards?

  • Employee monitoring and control: Rules or trust?

  • Decision making: overcoming problems or seizing opportunities?