Stephen Davis

Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions

Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions measure how a culture/society will act under certain

circumstances. There are now six dimensions, they are power distance, individualism vs

collectivism, masculinity vs femininity, uncertainty avoidance, long term orientation vs short

term normative orientation, and a newly added one, indulgence vs restraint.

Power Distance, PDI, measures how well members of society accept that power is not

distributed equally. High power distance means society accepts that power is unequally shared

and they do not need any further justification. Lower power distance means that society looks

for ways to equalize the power distribution and they require reasons why power is distributed

the way it s.

Individualism vs Collectivism, IDV, measures if a society is more I focused or we

focused. Individualism, which is measured by a higher score, means that individuals are

expected to only take care of themselves and immediate families. Collectivism, a lower score,

individuals can expect relatives or members of certain groups to look after them in exchange

for unquestioning loyalty.

Masculinity vs Femininity, MAS, measures what a society takes value from. Masculinity,

society looks for achievements, assertiveness, and material rewards for success, society is more

competitive. Femininity, society is more cooperative, cares for the weak and quality of life,

society is more consensus-oriented.

Uncertainty Avoidance Index, UAI, measures how comfortable a society is with

uncertainty and ambiguity. A strong UAI means that society has rigid codes of belief and
behavior and they shun unorthodox behavior. Weak UAI means the society is more relaxed and

practice over principal.

Long term orientation vs short term normative orientation, LTO, measures how a society

maintains its culture and tradition while dealing with the present and future. A low TLO score

means that society prefers to maintain tradition and are skeptical to change. A high LTO score

encourages thrift and efforts in modern education to prepare for the future. Businesses often

refer to short term as normative and long term as pragmatic.

Indulgence vs Restraint, IND, measures how strict a society is regarding gratification. A

society that is indulgent allows for normal human desires relating to enjoying life and having a

good time. A restraining society suppresses gratification by instilling strict social norms.

If you were to do business, as an American, with China there a few differences, relating

to Hofstede, that you need to take into consideration. China has a high PDI rating compared to

the US which means that they might only take orders from someone higher up and feel

uncomfortable if someone on his level or lower tries to communicate with him. Out of all six of

the cultural dimensions Chinas IDV rating is the furthest from the US. This means that he will

count on the US businessman to help take care of him, in some respects, rather than figuring

out certain thing for himself. On the MAS rating, there should be little to no issue because the

two ratings are very similar. The UAI rating should not pose much of a problem because of how

close they are. However, there may be a few uncertain things the Chinese businessman might

be uncomfortable with. In terms of LTO, the Chinese businessman might think the way the US

businessman does business is out of date and needs to be updated. This is due to how high

China rates on the LTO scale. On the IND scale the US businessman needs to be careful how
much he takes the Chinese businessman out to business dinners and business trips in general.

China is ranked very low on the IND scale so he will most likely feel uncomfortable indulging

that much.

Due to Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions we can now better how we partake in business

with foreign countries. Overall this will increase the global economy in addition to encouraging

collaboration and innovation.