Culture and Communication - Speech/Communications

High/Low Uncertainty Avoidance

Cultures with a high level of uncertainty avoidance are less comfortable with uncertainty and attempt through rules, regulations, laws, controls, and behavioral norms to reduce or manage uncertainty and ambiguity. It is worth noting that high UAI cultures attempt to manage unstructured, ambiguous situations not only through formal, explicit rules and laws, but also through informal, implicit rules. Low uncertainty avoidance cultures are comfortable with uncertainty, and are relaxed in the face of ambiguity or unstructured situations. These cultures do not rely as heavily on rule-oriented mechanisms for uncertainty mitigation, are typically more tolerant of risk taking, and are more open to change.

Uncertainty Avoidance

Uncertainty avoidance is simple:it refers to a country or culture's level of tolerance or comfort for ambiguity, uncertainty, and unstructured situations.

Masculine/Feminine

A masculine society has traits that are categorized as male, such as strength, dominance, assertiveness, and egotism. Feminine society is traditionally thought of as having conventional traits, such as being supportive, caring, and relationship oriented.

Individualism/Collectivism

Individualism, which states that each individual is acting on his or her own, making their own choices, and to the extent they interact with the rest of the group, it's as individuals. Collectivism views the group as the primary entity, with the individuals lost along the way. Individualism just means that the individual is a separate entity, making his own choices, thinking his own thoughts, and responsible for his own choices. Collectivism views the group as the important element, and individuals are just members of the group. The group has its own values somehow different from those of the individual members. The group thinks its own thoughts. Instead of judging the group as a bunch of individuals interacting, it judges the group as a whole, and views the individuals as just members of the group.

Short/Long Term Orientation

Long-term orientation is when you are focused on the future. You are willing to delay short-term material or social success or even short-term emotional gratification in order to prepare for the future. If you have this cultural perspective, you value persistence, perseverance, saving and being able to adapt. Short-term orientation is when you are focused on the present or past and consider them more important than the future. If you have a short-term orientation, you value tradition, the current social hierarchy and fulfilling your social obligations. You care more about immediate gratification than long-term fulfillment.

Monochronic/Polychronic

Monochronic cultures like to do just one thing at a time. They value a certain orderliness and sense of there being an appropriate time and place for everything. They do not value interruptions. They like to concentrate on the job at hand and take time commitments very seriously. In addition monochronic people tend to show a great deal of respect for private property and are reluctant to be either a lender or a borrower. This is part of a general tendency to follow rules of privacy and consideration as well as adhere religiously to plans. Polychronic cultures like to do multiple things at the same time. A manager's office in a polychronic culture typically has an open door, a ringing phone and a meeting all going on at the same time. Though they can be easily distracted they also tend to manage interruptions well with a willingness to change plans often and easily. People are their main concern (particularly those closely related to them or their function) and they have a tendency to build lifetime relationships. Issues such as promptness are firmly based on the relationship rather than the task and objectives are more like desirable outcomes than must do's. If you live in the United States, Canada, or Northern Europe, you live in a monochronic culture. If you live in Latin America, the Arab part of the Middle East, or sub-Sahara Africa, you live in a polychronic culture.

High/Low Power Distance

People in high distance countries tend to believe that power and authority are facts of life. Both consciously and unconsciously, these cultures teach their members that people are not equal in this world and that everybody has a rightful place, which is clearly marked by countless vertical arrangements. Social hierarchy is prevalent and institutionalises that inequality. Leaders are therefore expected to resolve disputes as well as make all the difficult decisions. Subordinates will simply comply with their leader rather than challenge him or her or try to arrive at their own solutions in dealing with conflict. They seldom challenge their leaders power. In lower power distance countries there is a preference for consultation and subordinates will quite readily approach and contradict their bosses. The parties will openly work towards resolving any dispute by stating their own points of view. If they cannot come to a satisfactory conclusion, they may choose to involve a mediator. Leaders actually encourage independent thought and contributions to problem solving and expect (within reason) to be challenged.

Power Distance

Power distance refers to the way in which power is distributed and the extent to which the less powerful accept that power is distributed unequally. Put simply, people in some cultures accept a higher degree of unequally distributed power than do people in other cultures. When in a high power distance culture the relationship between bosses and subordinates is one of dependence. When in a low power distance society the relationship between bosses and subordiantes is one of interdependence.

High Uncertainty Avoidance

Prototypically high uncertainty avoidant cultures possess the following characteristics: The desire for and implementation of both formal and informal governing structures like laws (formal) or dinner etiquette (informal) Strategies for risk management or avoidance are utilized throughout the culture in formal and informal ways for safety and security Life is perceived as being stressful, and in certain high uncertainty avoidance cultures, open displays of emotions are acceptable In educational and family settings, children may receive the impression that the world is hectic, that their teachers or elders have all the answers, and they are taught in a structured manner. Children in high UAI countries are generally expected to follow traditional gender roles Citizens in high UAI cultures tend to be politically disengaged, and high UAI cultures are generally more ritualized and fundamentalist religiously. Catholic, Islamic, and Jewish cultures typically rank high on the UAI Socially, high uncertainty avoidance cultures have long histories, are conservative and resistant to the introduction of new ideas and concepts, and lack multicultural populations, which makes xenophobic thinking or behavior more acceptable When doing business in high UAI countries, think of ways to mitigate ambiguity - be patient, involve the people in fact-finding and discussions about risk management, provide factual reasoning and plenty of details with any proposal, and expect proposals not fully addressing risks and ambiguities to be rejected Countries scoring high on the uncertainty index include: Greece, Belgium, Russia, Italy, Korea, and Mexico

Low Uncertainty Avoidance

Prototypically low uncertainty avoidant cultures possess the following characteristics: Fewer formal and informal governing structures reflective of a greater degree of comfort with ambiguity Risk and risk -taking are viewed as acceptable means for obtaining greater gains in all areas of life, but risk taking is an expected part of business endeavors Life is not perceived as being inherently stressful, and maintaining emotional poise is valued and expected In educational and family settings, children may receive the impression that the world is benign, that their teachers or elders may not have all the answers, and they are taught in a less-structured, open-ended manner. There is less pressure on children in low UAI countries to conform traditional gender roles Citizens in low UAI cultures tend to be politically engaged. Low UAI cultures are generally less religiously ritualistic and fundamentalist, and are less likely to persecute others for divergent beliefs. Protestant, Buddhist, Taoist, and Hindu cultures are typically rank low on the UAI Socially, high uncertainty avoidance cultures have shorter histories, are receptive to new ideas and concepts, and have more diverse populations through immigration When doing business in low UAI countries - expect new ideas to be presented, accepted, and implemented quickly, expect decisions to be made more quickly with less exploration of ambiguities and risk, and be prepared for self-directed employees to execute the responsibilities of their position with little or no intervention Countries scoring high on the uncertainty index include: Singapore, the United States, the United Kingdom, India, China, and Indonesia

High/Low Context

The general terms "high context" and "low context" (popularized by Edward Hall) are used to describe broad-brush cultural differences between societies. High context refers to societies or groups where people have close connections over a long period of time. Many aspects of cultural behavior are not made explicit because most members know what to do and what to think from years of interaction with each other. Your family is probably an example of a high context environment. Low context refers to societies where people tend to have many connections but of shorter duration or for some specific reason. In these societies, cultural behavior and beliefs may need to be spelled out explicitly so that those coming into the cultural environment know how to behave.