Culture

A Definition of Culture

“Culture is everything that people have, think, and do as members of their society.”

Culture is composed of . . .

• Material objects
• Ideas, values, and attitudes
• Expected patterns of behavior

 Some Principles of Culture

• All culture is learned.
• Culture is universal to human society.
• Culture is not  value-neutral.
• All cultures are constantly undergoing change.
• Some cultures change more quickly than others.
• Not all cultures are equally complex.
• Virtually all cultures permit the development of sub-cultures.
• Culture can influence biology & biology can influence culture. 

Functions of Culture

• Cultures universally respond to human problems & challenges by developing systems to deal with them.
• Economic systems
• Marriage & family systems
• Educational systems
• Supernatural belief systems

 Issues Affecting Cultural Change

• Advantage: Is it superior to what already exists?
• Compatibility:  Is it consistent with existing cultural patterns?
• Complexity:  Is it easily understood?

 Ethnocentrism

• All cultures, to one degree or another, display ethnocentrism, or the tendency to evaluate a foreigner or outsider’s behavior by the standards of one’s own culture.
• All cultures also display the tendency to believe that they are somehow superior to all others.
• We take our own culture for granted.
• We see our behavior as “correct” and others’ as somehow “wrong.”
• Ethnocentrism can enhance group solidarity within a society.
• Ethnocentrism can also foster prejudice, contempt, inaccurate stereotypes, & conflict. 

Domestic Cultural Variables

• Gender
•  Ethnicity
•  Age
•  Ability
•  Preference

Hofstede’s Dimensions Defined

• Power Distance is a measure of the interpersonal power or influence between a superior & subordinate

• Uncertainty Avoidance is the extent to which members of a culture will seek to reduce uncertainty or tolerate uncertainty by means of technology, law, or religion.

• Individualism is a measure of a culture’s behavioral focus, determining whether decisions and behaviors are made by individuals acting alone or collectively by social convention.

• Gender is a measure of the extent to which social and cultural roles are defined by sex and gender boundaries.

Dimensions of Culture

• Individualism vs. Collectivism
• Masculinity vs. Femininity
• High vs. Low Power Distance
• High vs. Low Uncertainty Avoidance
• Short-Term vs. Long-Term Orientation
• High vs. Low Context
• Immediacy & Expression 

Cross-Cultural Communication Skills

• The capacity to accept the relativity of one’s own knowledge & perceptions
• The capacity to be non-judgmental
• A tolerance for ambiguity
• The capacity to communicate respect for other people’s ways, their country, & their values
• The capacity to display empathy
• The capacity to be flexible
• The capacity for turn-taking
• The humility to acknowledge what you do not know or understand

The Effective Global Executive Should Be Able to:

• Develop & use global strategic skills.
•  Manage change & transition.
•  Manage cultural diversity.
•  Design & function in flexible organizational structures.
•  Work with others & in teams.
•  Learn & transfer organizational knowledge.