Power distance refers to how power Power distance refers to how power

is distributed in a society. is distributed in a society.

In some cultures power is In low-power-distance cultures,

concentrated in the hands of a few, power is more evenly distributed
and there’s a great difference throughout the citizenry.
between the power held by these
people and the power of the ordinary
citizen. These are called
high-power-distance cultures.

Malaysia, Slovakia, Guatemala, Austria, Israel, Denmark, New

Panama, the Philippines, Russia, Zealand, Switzerland, Ireland,
Romania, Serbia, Suriname, and Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Great
Mexico Britain

For example, in high-power-distance In low-power-distance cultures (and

cultures there’s a great power you can see this clearly in U.S.
distance between students and college classrooms), students are
teachers; students are expected to expected to demonstrate their
be modest, polite, and totally knowledge and command of the
respectful. subject matter, participate in
discussions with the teacher, and
even challenge the teacher
In a high- context culture much of In a low-context culture most of the
the information in communication is information is explicitly stated in the
in the context or in the person- for verbal message; in formal
ex, information that was shared transactions it will be stated in
through previous communications, written (or contract) form.
through assumptions about each
other and through shared
experiences. The information is thus
known by all participants, but it is not
explicitly stated in the verbal
language.

High-context cultures are also Low-context cultures are also

collectivist cultures. individualist cultures.

High-context cultures place great Low-context cultures place less

emphasis on personal relationships emphasis on personal relationships
and oral agreements. and more emphasis on verbalized,
explicit explanation—for example, on
written contracts in business
transactions

Japanese, Arabic, Latin American, German, Swedish, Norwegian, and

Thai, Korean, Apache, and Mexican American

Masculine~ Achievement Feminine~ Nurturance

A highly masculine culture values A highly feminine culture values

aggressiveness, material success, modesty, concern for relationships
and strength. and the quality of life, and
tenderness.

Japan, Austria, Venezuela, Italy, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands,

Switzerland, Mexico, Ireland, Denmark, Costa Rica, Yugoslavia,
Jamaica, Great Britain, and Finland, Chile, Portugal, and
Germany. Thailand.

Masculine cultures emphasize Feminine cultures emphasize the

success and so socialize their quality of life and so socialize their
members to be assertive, ambitious, members to be modest and to
and competitive. highlight close interpersonal
relationships.
For example, members of masculine Feminine cultures, for example, are
cultures are more likely to confront more likely to utilize compromise and
conflicts directly and to fight out any negotiation in resolving conflicts;
differences competitively; they’re they’re more likely to seek solutions
more likely to emphasize conflict in which both sides win (win–win
strategies that enable them to win strategies)
and ensure that the other side loses
(win–lose strategies)

Masculine organizations emphasize Feminine organizations are less

competitiveness and competitive and less aggressive.
aggressiveness. They stress the They emphasize worker satisfaction
bottom line and reward their workers and reward their workers on the
on the basis of their contributions to basis of the needs of workers.
the organization.

High-Ambiguity-Tolerant Cultures Low-Ambiguity-Tolerant Cultures

Members of high-ambiguity-tolerant Members of low ambiguity-tolerant
cultures don’t feel threatened by cultures do much to avoid
unknown situations: Uncertainty is a uncertainty and have a great deal of
normal part of life, and people accept anxiety about not knowing what will
it as it comes. happen next; they see uncertainty as
threatening and as something that
must be counteracted.

The 10 countries with highest The 10 countries with the lowest

tolerance for ambiguity are tolerance for ambiguity are Greece,
Singapore, Jamaica, Denmark, Portugal, Guatemala, Uruguay,
Sweden, Hong Kong, Ireland, Great Belgium, Malta, Russia, El Salvador,
Britain, Malaysia, India, and the Poland, and Japan.
Philippines; the United States ranks
11th.
Members are comfortable with Low-ambiguity-tolerant cultures
ambiguity and uncertainty; they create clear-cut rules for
minimize the importance of rules communication that must not be
governing communication and broken.
relationships.

People in these cultures readily For example, students from

tolerate individuals who don’t follow strong-uncertainty-avoidance
the same rules as the cultural cultures prefer highly structured
majority, and may even encourage experiences with little ambiguity;
different approaches and they prefer specific objectives,
perspectives. detailed instructions, and definite
timetables. An assignment to write a
Students from term paper on “anything” would be
high-ambiguity-tolerant cultures cause for alarm; it would not be clear
appreciate freedom in education and or specific enough. These students
prefer vague assignments without expect to be judged on the basis of
specific timetables. These students the right answers and expect the
want to be rewarded for creativity instructor to have all the answers all
and readily accept an instructor’s the time.
lack of knowledge.

Some cultures teach a long-term A short-term orientation looks

orientation, an orientation that more to the past and the present.
promotes the importance of future Instead of saving for the future,
rewards and so, for example, members of this culture spend their
members of these cultures are more resources for the present and, not
apt to save for the future and to surprisingly, want quick results from
prepare for the future academically. their efforts.

South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, China, Puerto Rico, Ghana, Egypt, Trinidad,
Ukraine, Germany, Estonia, Belgium, Nigeria, Dominican Republic,
Lithuania, and Russia. Colombia, Iran, Morocco, and
Zimbabwe.
In these cultures, marriage is a These cultures believe and teach
practical arrangement rather than that marriage is a moral
one based on sexual or emotional arrangement, living with in-laws
arousal, and living with extended causes problems, children do not
family ( for example, in-laws) is have to be cared for by their mothers
common and considered quite (others can do that), humility is a
normal. These cultures believe that virtue only for women (not men), and
mothers should be at home with their old age is an unpleasant time of life.
children, that humility is a virtue for
both men and women, and that old
age should be a happy time of life.

Organizations in long-term oriented Organizations in short-term-oriented

cultures look to profits in the future. cultures, on the other hand, look to
Managers or owners and workers in more immediate rewards.
such cultures share the same values Managers and workers are very
and work together to achieve a different in their thinking and in their
common good. attitudes about work.

Students in long-term cultures will Students in short-term cultures will

attribute their success or failure in attribute their success or failure to
school to their own efforts. luck or chance.
Cultures high in indulgence are Cultures high in restraint are those
those that emphasize the that foster the curbing of such
gratification of desires; they gratification and its regulation by
focus on having fun and enjoying life. social norms.

Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, El Pakistan, Egypt, Latvia, Ukraine,

Salvador, Nigeria, Colombia, Albania, Belarus, Lithuania, Bulgaria,
Trinidad, Sweden, New Zealand, and Estonia, and Iraq
Ghana are the top 10 in indulgence;
the United States ranks 15th out of
93 countries, making it considerably
more indulgent than most countries.

These cultures have more people Restraint cultures have more people
who are happy, which depends on who are unhappy: people who see
two major factors: themselves as lacking control of their
own lives and with little or no leisure
- Life control. This is the time to engage in fun activities.
feeling that you may do as you
please (at least to a significant
degree), that you have
freedom of choice to do or not
do what you want.

- Leisure. This is the feeling

that you have leisure time to
do what you find fun.

Members of indulgent cultures have Members of cultures high

more positive attitudes, greater in restraint are more cynical,
optimism, and are more likely to pessimistic, and are less likely to
remember positive emotions. They remember positive emotions. They
also have a more satisfying family have less satisfying family lives, rigid
life and loose gender roles (for gender roles, and an unequal
example, household tasks are distribution of household tasks.
shared by both partners).

Indulgent cultures do not place great Restrained cultures place a great

value on thrift; instead the value value on thrift.
is on spending to gratify one’s needs.

Indulgent cultures place great Restrained cultures place less

importance on friendship and having importance on friendships.
lots of friends.