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Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions

Understanding the use of cultural dimensions:

All of the people living in the world, technologies give the advantage to the people for good living. This means that different cultural people finds themselves communicating each other and working together.

This is interesting and exciting, but it also has fraught and frustrating. Forming the connection of people anywhere in the world is one of the dimensions of the cultural diversity. People also have the issues like structuring projects, developing strategy and motivating people [Fang G., 2003].

People asked some other questions like that, “How can I understand the cultural differences around the world?” that the same question also occurs in Hofstede’s mind in the year of 1970. After that, he decides to research and also conducts a lot of interviews for various cultural dimensions and that becomes the international recognized standard.

To approach the people for research, they working in the same organization all over the world, Hofstede gathered the cultural information and analyzed the collection of data. Initially, he identified four different cultural dimensions that provide one culture from another. After that, he adds the fifth cultural dimension [Geert H., 2001].

The Five Cultural Dimensions:

The use of the cultural research, Hofstede analyzes the results and finds the clear system of the differences and similarity over the responses with these five cultural dimensions. The research was conducted from IBM employees, which allows to contributing the system for the national variations in culture, large elimination of the problem of variations in the organizational culture [David A., 2005].

The five cultural dimensions are,

Power and Distance (PD):

 This dimension refers to the rate of inequality that way out and it is accepted from the people without and with power. A high PD (power and distance) scores indicate that the society accepts not equal the dispersion of power and the people understands the place in the system. Low PD says that power is contribute and distributed. It also includes that the society members views them as equals.  From the model of Hofstede, in a high Power and Distance nation like Malaysia, they would send the reports to top officials and few of powerful leaders selected to attend the closed door meetings [Huo Y., 1991].

	Characteristics	abbreviations
Low PD	·         Supervisors and employees are considered almost as equals. ·         Flatter organizations.	Use teamwork Involve as many people as possible in decision making.
High PD	Strong hierarchies. Centralized companies. Huge gaps in authority, respect and compensation.	Be aware that the top questions for answers. Acknowledge a leader's power.

2. Individualism (IDV):

 Individualism refers to the endurance of the ties with people have to others within the community. A high individualism scores the indication of a loosely connection with the people. In some of countries with a high individualism scores there is a lack of the interpersonal connection and sharing of the responsibility, beyond the family and with close friends. A society with a low individualism scores would have strong gang cohesion, and there would be a high amount of loyalty and respect. The group itself is also big and people take more responsible for each other.  Hofstede's model of cultural dimension says the analysis of Central American countries of Guatemala and Panama where the individualism scores are very low and a marketing campaign that benefits to the community and political movement likely be well understood [Inglehart, 1971].

	Characteristics	abbreviations
Low IDV	Harmony more important than honesty. Work for intrinsic rewards. Emphasis on building skills and becoming masters of something.	Respect traditions and introduce change slowly. Suppress feelings and emotions to work in harmony. Show respect for age and wisdom.
High IDV	An enjoyment of challenges, and an expectation of rewards for hard work. Respect for privacy. High valuation on people's time and their need for freedom.	Encourage debate and expression of own ideas. Acknowledge accomplishments. Don't ask for too much personal information.

3. Masculinity (MAS):

 Masculinity refers to the society sticks with values of the traditional female and male roles. High masculinity scores are found in countries where men are expected to be tough, to be the provider, to be strong and to be assertive. If women work outside the home, they have separate professions from men. Low masculinity scores do not reverse the gender roles. In a low masculinity society, the roles are simply blurred. You see women and men working together equally across many professions. Women can work hard for professional success and Men are allowed to be sensitive.  Japan scored the highly masculine whereas Sweden scored lowest measured value. From Hofstede's analysis, In Japan, people who open the office and have the greater success, they appointed a male employee to manage the team. In Sweden, on the other hand, they would aim for a team that was balanced in terms of skill rather than gender [Wayne E., 2000].

	Characteristics	abbreviations
Low MAS	Powerful and successful women are admired and respected. A woman can do anything a man can do.	Treat men and women equally. Avoid an "old boys' club" mentality. Ensure job design and practices are not discriminatory to either gender.
High MAS	There is a well defined distinction between men's work and women's work. Men are masculine and women are feminine.	Advise men to avoid discussing emotions or making emotionally-based decisions or arguments. Be aware that people may expect male and female roles to be distinct.

4. Uncertainty and Avoidance Index (UAI):

It refers to the society members feels when in unknown or uncertain situations. Low UAI scores the society enjoys values differences and novel events. There are very few rules and people are encouraged to discover their own truth.  High UAI scoring countries try to avoid confused situations whenever possible. They are controlled by order and rules and they find a collective truth.

The model of Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions suggests that the people in Belgium, the country scored high UAI scale; they investigate the different options and then present a limited number of choices, but have very detailed data available on the risk plans and contingency [Priscilla A., 1997].

	Characteristics	abbreviations
Low UAI	Informal business attitude. More concern with long time strategy rather than daily basis. Acceptance of risk and change.	Do not impose rules or structure unnecessarily. Minimize your emotional response by being calm and contemplating situations before speaking. Express curiosity when you discover differences.
High UAI	Need and expect structure. Very formal business conduct with lots of policies and rules. Differences are avoided. Sense of nervousness makes high levels of expressions and emotion.	Plan and ready to progress, communicate often and early soon, provide detailed plans and focus on the aspects of a job or any work. Express your emotions through hands and raised voices. Be clear and concise about your expectations and parameters.

5. Long Term Orientation (LTO):

Long Term Orientation refers to the society values of long standing as opposed to values and short term traditions. This is the fifth dimension of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions added in the year of 1990. After find that, the Asian nations are totally different from the western cultures. That countries scores high LTO and delivering on social obligations and avoiding the loss of face are considered very important. Hofstede's analysis says that, people in the US and UK have the score of low Long Term Orientation. It also says that people can pretty much expect nothing in this culture in terms of novel ideas and creative expression. The model implies those peoples in the both of the countries value tradition likely to be willing to execute the most innovative ideas long as they get to participate fully [Shi Yuquan, 2002].

	Characteristics	abbreviations
Low LTO	High creativity, individualism. Promotion of equality. Self-actualization is sought. Treat others as you would like to be treated.	Be respectful of others. Do not hesitate to introduce necessary changes. Expect to live by the same rules and standards you create.
High LTO	Strong work ethic. High value placed on education and training. Family is the basis of society. Parents and men have more authority than young people and women.	Reward perseverance, loyalty, and commitment. Avoid doing anything that would cause another to "lose face". Do not display extravagance or act frivolously. Show respect for traditions.

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimension in BRIC Nations:

Country	Power and Distance	Individualism	Masculinity	Uncertainty  and Avoidance	Long Term Orientation	Confucian Dynamism
Brazil	69	38	49	76	42	65
Russia	90	42	37	70	24	47
India	77	48	56	40	42	61
China	82	47	61	42	41	63

REFERENCES:

1.      Fang G., Critique of Hofstede's Fifth National Culture Dimension, 2003.

2.      Geert H., Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values, 2001.

3.      Huo Y., Exploring Sub cultural Differences in Hofstede's Value Survey, 1991.

4.      Inglehart, Silent Revolution in Europe: Intergenerational Change in Post-industrial Societies, 1971.

5.      Wayne E., Modernization, Cultural Change and the Persistence of Traditional Values, 2000.

6.      Priscilla A., the Role of Materialism, Religiosity and Demographics in Subjective Well-Being, 1997.

7.      Shi Yuquan, the Study of Hofstede's Cross-cultural Dimensions in Construction Projects, 2002.

8.      David A., the Effects of Culture and Life Stage on Workplace Strategies of Upward Influence 2005.

9.      Yvonne E., Measuring National Culture: Does Gender Matter?, 2004.

10.  Naveen D., Validating Hofstede’s Five-Dimensional Measure of Culture at the Individual Level, 1998.

11.  Tomasz L., Study of Hofstede's Cross-cultural Dimensions in Construction Projects, 2004.

12.  Yoo B., the Effects of Marketing Education and Individual Cultural Values on Marketing Ethics of Students, 2002.