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The contribution of G. Hofstede to intercultural studies

Geert Hofstede: dutch researcher and professor of anthropology
Did his research with IBM

4 sets of continua and antagonisms (more exist, but not required for this course)
1. High or low power distance
2. Collectivism vs individualism
3. High VS Low uncertainty avoidance
4. Femininity VS Masculinity

High or low power distance (HPD/LPD)

Governing practices and such.
Distant or clos e authority: Historical roots (distant king or lord)
- May ower Charter - wanted a more direct democracy, so they went overseas. 1620

HPD:
- Power/authority are facts of life
- Everyone has a speci c place
- Those in power emphasise position
- Respect for or afraid of authority
- Centralised authority
Distant king or lord: “when the cat’s away, mice will play”

May ower charter 1620: direct democracy

- No titles; Elite, judged by Merit
- Low power distance: minimise social/class structures
- No set hierarchy, those in power minimise position
- Respect for individuality
AND SMTH

Court VS Merchant society and PD

Emphasise VS minimise power

High VS Low PD
Decision making in government and at work
Low PD:
- cooperation, team spirit
- “Bottom-up” decision-making
- First names
- Grassroot organisations (Grassroots organisations use collective action from the local level to
implement change at the local, regional, national, or international levels)

High PD:
- Confrontation
- “Top-down” decision making
- “Strategic poignant debate” and formality

Example of bottom up decision making: Kyoto protocol

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Concension VS dissension
The US:
- Mainly a two political party system
- Few trade unions
- Few strikes

France
- lots of political party division
- Lots of trade union division within in each group
- Teachers
- Labourers
- But political tendencies
- Lots of strikes

Low power distance in the USA

Centralisation and decentralisation
In the US, it’s a state affair, not a federal one
- Language
- Death penalty
- Gun control
- State tax
- Education
- speed limit
- Legal driving age (in some states you can drive at 14 years old, sometimes even different in
the same state)
- Minimum wage

E.g; gun legislation in the USA : 36 states right to carry, illegal in 5 states, restricted in 9 states

Dictators and HPD

Gun control: in the declaration of independence and the articles there is a text that says “a well
regulated militia necessary to the security of a free state the right of the people to keep and bear
arms shall not be infringed”
Goes back to the founding of the USA

Low PD of big business: “laissez-faire” policies. Liberalism in the US = extreme left (except if you
say economic liberalism)

Management: different styles (cf graphic representation on the

right)
- Uk casual leadership
- Us structured individualism
- France completely linear, autocratic

Vacation days per year:

(France 39 days - US 12)
No federal government mandated minimum vacation policy in the US
69% of US workers do not use all of their vacation days

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Maternity leave - France 16-24 weeks, 100% paid / US 12 weeks, unpaid

Some consequences:
High PD cultures:
- Obedience to authority
- Parents boss of cials - is expected
- Language lled with power or hierarchic indicators
- Managers / teachers tend to be autocratic while
- Subordinates expect direct supervision

LPD cultures
- Emphasis is on challenging decisions
- Expecting autonomy and independence
- Parents and children are considered more like equals

Power distance scores by Hofstede - cf ppt

China 12
France 27
USA 57-59

LPD/HPD language
Evaluations and inspections
Meritocracy VS hierarchy

Basic traits of high/LPD

HPD:
- hierarchal - vertical
- Dictators, tradition of strong monarchies
- Power/ authority are facts of life
- Everyone has a speci c place
- Dif cult to move up the adder
- Those in power emphasise position
- Respect for authority
- But tend to demonstrate more (only to be heard)
- Centralised authority (like France)
- Decisions made by one or small number of leaders

LPD:
- egalitarian - horizontaal
- Minimise social/class structures
- No set hierarchy
- Those in power min position
- Respect for individuality
- Decentralised authority
- Ect

Collectivism Vs individualism dimension (Hofstede)

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- focuses on the relationship between the individual and the group
- A completer

Hofstede’s de nitions
Individualism(Ind): a preference for a loosely knit social framework, and individuals are expected
to take care of themselves and their immediate fairies

Collectivism(Col): preference for tight knit framework in society, individual scan expect
something?????

Caste club Clan

Col: clan organisation based on family af liation (take care of family members, high PD - elders
have a strong in uence)
Caste organisation based on profession af liation (not wide spread; resembles clan behaviour,
male indicates profession, found mostly in India and Pakistan, strong networking amongst cast
members
Ind: club organisation based on common goal - union to reach a common goal

E.g. The guardian angels - a ‘club’ mentality (founded by Curtis Sliwa in NYC, 1979)
- They work with the police but there was no problem with hierarchy or status
- You can join the club and easily leave it
- It’s only to help other members of society without interference form the government
- Not necessarily for people you know or fairy or caste, it’s a matter of civic responsibility

Contradictions
Americans are known for their “team spirit” which can be confused with collectivism
Team spirit def to ADD HERE

Col VS Ind
Reactions to proposals and decisions
In France: demonstrations (retraités, étudiants, professeurs etc dans la rue)
In the US: Lobbyists - con dential groups; representing and bargaining for particular needs and
interests, and behind closed doors.

Col VS Ind
Direct and indirect taxes
Europe’s good life
- the tax bill
- Direct and indirect taxes as % of GDP
- Sweden over 50%
- France around 45%
- UK 30%
- US 20%

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High VS Low uncertainty avoidance

Uncertainty avoidance index:
High: maintains rigid codes of belief and behaviour and are intolerant of unorthodox behaviour
and ideas
Low: societies maintain a more relaxed attitude in which practice counts more than principles

- “Uncertainty is a state where outcomes and conditions are unknown and unpredictable”
- “…The degree to which individuals participate in certain behaviours to stay in comfortable
situations is called uncertainty avoidance”
- “Emphasis is on the extend to which a culture feels threatened or is anxious about ambiguity”
- “It is how certain cultures adapt to changes and cope with uncertainty”

The uncertainty avoidance index:

- conceptualisation of uncertainty avoidance index
- To measure it to compare countries to one another

- Low uncertainty avoidance scores

- More conformable with ambiguity
- More entrepreneurial
- Lore Molly to take risks
- Less dependent on structure rules

- High uncertainty avoidance scores

- Desire more stability
- Desire more structures rules and social norms
- Are less comfortable taking risks

Topics where uncertainty scores differ: social norms, political/legal system, religion, school,
family

High/Low UA
Col/ Ind
Freedom of speech, press, religion, and petition
“The US Supreme Court saying even hurtful speech is protected by the constitution
“As a nation we have chosen a different couse- to protest even hurtful speech on public issues
ensure that we do not sti e public debate”

USA:
- article 1: congress shall make no law … limiting … the freedom of speech or of the press …
(Lower UA)

France:
- no hate speech allowed

Immigration and assimilation:

Diversity:
- high risk situation
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- Low UA

Integration:
- low risk situation
- High UA

Architecture - lower UA - USA

Little or low barriers, often made of wood between properties
Higher UA - France
Higher barriers

Entrepreneurship
Most startups in:
1. Silicon Valley US
2. Tel Aviv
3. LA US
4. Seattle US
5. NYC US

High UA in france
Strikes over 1st job contract (CPE)
- the CPE, contrat premiere embauche, passed on 30/03/06
- A 2 year probation period contract
- Employer had the right to re the employee without having to give a reason or prior warning
- Affected only under 26 years olds
- Part of a wider ‘equal opportunities’ bill
- Modi ed to 1 year probation and employers must give a reason for termination

Innovation and entrepreneurship

More individualistic and less UA national cultures

Grandeur and Titles High UA

Grandes Ecoles
Sure of top 200 French companies
73% of CEO’s - alumni of Grandes Ecoles
50% from polytechnic and something
A completer

Attribution and experts ‘ Name and Titles ‘

Legion d honneur etc etc

Basic traits of HUA and LUA

High UA
- have more formal rules
- Prefer details; speci c plans
- Less toelerant of deviant ideas
- Consensus seeking
- Minimise risk
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- Ritualised, ceremonial
- Belief in absolute truth/ expertise

Low UA
- believe that the fewer the rules the better
- Tolerate generalisation
- Tolerate deviance
- Seek indiquas opinions
- approve risk taking
- Avoid ritualisation and ceremony

Some consequence
High UA:
- more resistant to change and risks
- Implicit competition and more explosive con ict
- Often characterised by more elaborate rituals/ religious practices

Low UA:
- accept change and risks
- explicit competition and more moderate con it
- Tolerate dissent and deviance

Femininity VS Masculinity
Or

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