Geert Hofstede

Professional Psychology: Debating Chamber · Psychology Journals · Psychologists

Geert Hofstede is an influential Dutch expert on the interactions between national cultures and organizational cultures, and is an author of several books including Culture's Consequences (2nd, fully revised edition, 2001) and Cultures and Organizations, Software of the Mind (2nd, revised edition 2005, with Gert Jan Hofstede).

Hofstede demonstrated that there are national and regional cultural groupings that affect the behaviour of organisations, and that are very persistent across time.

He has identified five dimensions of culture in his study of national influences:

Power distance - The degree to which the less powerful members of society expect there to be differences in the levels of power. A high score suggests that there is an expectation that some individuals wield larger amounts of power than others. Countries with high power distance rating are often characterised by a high rate of political violence. A low score reflects the view that all people should have equal rights. Latin American and Arab nations are ranked the highest in this category; Scandinavian and Germanic speaking countries the least.
individualism vs. collectivism - individualism is contrasted with collectivism, and refers to the extent to which people are expected to stand up for themselves, or alternatively act predominantly as a member of the group or organisation. Latin American cultures rank the lowest in this category, while U.S.A. is the most individualistic culture.
masculinity vs femininity - refers to the value placed on traditionally male or female values. Masculine cultures value competitiveness, assertiveness, ambition, and the accumulation of wealth and material possessions, whereas feminine cultures place more value on relationships and quality of life. Japan is considered by Hofstede to be the most "masculine" culture, Sweden the most "feminine." The U.S. and U.K. are moderately masculine.
uncertainty avoidance - reflects the extent to which a society attempts to cope with anxiety by minimizing uncertainty. Cultures that scored high in uncertainty avoidance prefer rules (e.g. about religion and food) and structured circumstances, and employees tend to remain longer with their present employer. Mediterranean cultures and Japan rank the highest in this category. (see below)
long vs short term orientation - describes a society's "time horizon," or the importance attached to the future versus the past and present. In long term oriented societies, thrift and perseverence are valued more; in short term oriented societies, respect for tradition and reciprocation of gifts and favors are valued more. Eastern nations tend to score especially high here, with Western nations scoring low and the less developed nations very low; China scored highest and Pakistan lowest.

Power distance

Power distance measures the degree to which less powerful members of a culture accept the unequal distribution of power.

The Arabic-speaking nations, Latin America, Russia, and nearly all of Asia (especially India and China) are high in power distance. Most of Europe, Canada, Australia and Israel are low in power distance. Japan and Mediterranean-Europe fall in the middle range.

In a high power distance culture:

it's acceptable for a supervisor to display his authority
superiors rarely give their subordinates important work
if something goes wrong, the subordinates are usually blamed for not doing their proper job/role
managers rarely interact or socialize with workers
teachers are treated respectfully
local politics are prone to totalitarianism
class distinctions are emphasized
parents are more highly respected and corporal punishment is more common

In a low power distance culture:

supervisors are expected to treat employees respectfully
subordinates may do important work, thus having the opportunity to get promoted quickly
if something goes wrong, the superior/authority figure is usually blamed for having unrealistic expectations or being too strict
managers socialize and interact with workers more often
teachers are simply employees and parents are merely people

Uncertainty avoidance

Uncertainty avoidance measures a nation's preference for strict laws and regulations over ambiguity and risk. According the Hofstede's research, Greece is the most risk-averse culture, and Singapore the least.

Protestant and Chinese culture countries rank relatively low; Catholic, Buddhist, and Arabic countries tend to score high in uncertainty avoidance. Ironically, high uncertainty avoidance cultures tend to have a less efficient infrastructure than low uncertainty avoidance cultures.

Some characteristics of a low uncertainty avoidance culture:

Typically the country is newer or more recently settled (but not always, as in the case of China).
The population tends to be ethnically diverse.
Risk is valued in business (i.e. U.S.A.)
Frequent innovations.
Citizens are proud of the nation.
Foreigners or minorities are encouraged to assimilate.
Examples: U.S.A., Singapore, Jamaica, Ireland, Sweden, China

Some characteristics of a culture high in uncertainty avoidance:

Generally older countries/cultures with a long history.
The population is more ethnically homogeneous.
Risk is avoided in business (i.e. Germany)
Low tolerance for innovation, prefer to stick to traditional routines.
Citizens are often critical of their own nation.
People tend to be more superstitious.
Smoking is more common. ^{[citation needed]}
Higher maximum speed limits and a higher rate of motor vehicle accidents.^{[citation needed]}
Xenophobia is common and foreigners/minorities tend to be ostracized.
Examples: Greece, Portugal, Japan, Israel, Spain, Latin America

Given the characteristics known to be associated with uncertainty avoiding societies, this dimension could also be conceptualized more broadly as "cultural paranoia" versus "cultural trust."

External links

His homepage: http://www.geerthofstede.nl
A training institute based on his work and actively supported by him http://www.itim.org
His C.V.: http://www.itim.org/cv_geert.html
Information on cultural dimensions: http://stephan.dahl.at/intercultural/Hofstede_dimensions.html
Hofstede's cultural dimensions World maps of Geert Hofstede's 5 cultural dimensions
http://www.it.murdoch.edu.au/~sudweeks/b329/readings/mcsweeney.doc (essay criticizing the supposed finding of cultural dimensions)
International Business Cultures: http://www.via-web.de

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Geert Hofstede

Contents

Power distance

Uncertainty avoidance

See also

External links

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