Chapter ThreeChapter Three

Global Cultural Analysis

3-1

Culture Across Countries

High vs low context cultures

Silent languages

Hofstede’s cultural dimensions

Gannon’s metaphors

Culture and demandHidden motivators, risk, cognitive dissonance, materialism, global consumer?

High vs Low Context CulturesHigh vs Low Context Cultures

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High LowVerbal Behavior Words chosen have

numerous possibleinterpretations;meaning is derivedfrom matchingwords with non-verbal cues and thespecific situation

High reliance onverbalcommunication toconvey meaning;words are carefullyselected to conveyprecise, specificmeanings.

NonverbalBehavior

High reliance onnonverbal behaviorto convey meaning

Nonverbal aspectsplay secondary orconfirming role

Societal Makeup Homogeneous Diverse

Ability tocommunicaterelies heavily onsimilarity incommunicants'backgrounds

yes no

Hall’s Silent Languages

SpacePossessionsFriendshipsAgreementsTime

Power Distance and Individualism ScalesPower Distance and Individualism Scales

-

Exhibit 3.1

ARG ArgentinaBRA BrazilCHL ChileCOL ColumbiaGRE GreeceHOK Hong KongIND IndiaIRA IranJAP JapanMEX MexicoPAK PakistanPER PeruPHI PhilippinesPOR PortugalSIN SingaporeTAI TaiwanTHA ThailandTUR TurkeyVEN VenezuelaYUG Yugoslavia

Small LargePower DistanceIn

divi

dua

lism

Col

lect

ivis

t

12

50

30

Small power distance collectivist

Large power distance

collectivist

Reprinted by permission of the author from Culture’s Consequences, published by Sage Publications. ©1990 by Gert Hofstede

•PAK •COL •VEN

•TAI •PER

•THA •SIN

•CHL•POR •HOK

•YUG•MEX •PHI

•GRE

•TUR

•BRA•IRA

•ARG •JAP

•IND+11 +28 +44 +64 +77 +94

Power Distance and Individualism ScalesPower Distance and Individualism Scales

Exhibit 3.1cont.

AUL AustraliaAUT AustriaBEL BelgiumCAN CanadaDEN DenmarkFIN FinlandFRA FranceGER GermanyGBR Great BritainIRE IrelandISR IsraelITA ItalyNET NetherlandsNZL New ZealandNOR NorwaySAF South AfricaSPA SpainSWE SwedenSWI SwitzerlandUSA United States

Small LargePower DistanceIn

divi

dua

lism

Indi

vidu

alis

t

53

91

71

Small power distance

individualist

Large power distance

individualist

Reprinted by permission of the author from Culture’s Consequences, published by Sage Publications. ©1990 by Gert Hofstede

•SPA

•SAF

•FRA

•BEL•ITA

•AUT•ISR

•FIN

•GER•NOR•SWI

•SWE•IRE

•DEN

•NZL •CAN•NET

•GBRUSA

•AUL

•+11 +28 +44 +64 +77 +94

Hofstede’s Classification of Triad Countries

Hofstede’s Classification of Triad Countries

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Japan North America W. Europe(Canada, USA, Great Britain) Northern Continent

Individualism low high high low

Powerdistance

high low low high

Masculinity high high low high

Risktolerance

low high high low

Context high low high low

Note: “Context” added.Source: Adapted from Hofstede, 1980

Exhibit 3.4

Gannon’s MetaphorsGannon’s Metaphors

1. American football: Individualism and competitive speculation; huddling; ceremonial celebration of perfection.

2. The British house: Laying the foundations; building the brick house; living in the brick house.

3. The German Symphony: 0rchestra; conductors; performance society; education, and politics.

4. The French wine: Purity; classification; composition; compatibility; maturation.

5. The Italian family opera: Pageantry and spectacle; voice expression; chorus and soloists.

6. The Swedish summer house: Love of nature; individualism through self-development; equality.

7. The Japanese garden: Wa and shitaki, harmony and form; seishin, spirit of self-discipline; combining droplets.

8. The Chinese family altar: Confucianism and Taoism; roundness, harmony and fluidity.

9. India: cyclical Hindu philosophy: The cycle of life; the family cycle; the social cycle; the work cycle.

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Source: Martin Gannon, “Cultural Metaphors,” Understanding Global Cultures, pp. v-vii, ©1994 by Martin Gannon. Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications.

Exhibit 3.3

Cross Cultural Management

Managing in a cross cultural environmentthe acculturation processmanagerial styles in the Triadmanaging subordinates

Culture and negotiationslevels of contactcommunication stylestiming

Limits to cultural sensitivitylimits to flexibility, global low context culture?

Chapter Terms and Essay

TermsCulture, silent languages, metaphors, Hofstede’s indices, permanent income, relative income, uncertainty avoidance

EssayHow may each of the following models help global

marketers understand more fully the cultures in which they must operate?

silent languagesHofstede’s indicesGannon’s metaphors

Going International Video

How important is the concept of culture in understanding the behavior of people from different countries? Use examples from the video to illustrate your answers.

What is the difference between “cultural awareness” and “cultural stereotyping?” How can managers benefit from the former without suffering from the latter?

According to the video (use examples), how do the world’s cultures vary in each of the following dimensions?

TimeSpaceSanitary habitsCommunication style

Chapter ThreeChapter Three

Global Cultural Analysis

3-1