chapter 4 culture

gift-giving/hospitality

-important means of communication -different etiquettes and customs -communicating bad news (South Korea - end of day via subordinates)

social structure

-individuals, families, and groups -social stratification -social mobility

elements of culture

-values and attitudes -social structure -language -communication -religion

four approaches to names/branding:

1) no adaptation (ex: Pizza Hut, Heineken) 2) sound adaptation (Sony, Audi) 3) Meaning Adaptation (GM, GE) 4) Dual Adaptation (Nike, Coca-Cola --- ideal!)

Hofstede's 5 dimensions

1) social orientation 2) power orientation 3) uncertainty orientation 4) goal orientation 5) time orientation

how many different languages worldwide?

3000+

power orientation extremes

power tolerance vs power respect

acculturation

process of adjusting and adapting to a specific culture other than one's own --- one of the keys to success in international business operations

Hinduism

product adaptations (beef), caste system

individualist country

US

versatility of words

ex: "fix" in Texas

US is

more aggressive

more turnover in

uncertainty accepting countries

uncertainty orientation extremes

uncertainty avoidance vs uncertainty acceptance

self-reference criterion

unconscious use of one's own culture to help assess new surroundings

to formulate an international strategy

understand culture similarities and differences, maximize similarities (less adaptation)

cross-cultural literacy

understanding of how cultural differences across and within nations can affect the way in which business is practiced

low-context culture

words used by speaker explicitly convey the speaker's message to the listener

language

-delineates cultural groups -shapes one's perceptions of the world -filters observations and perceptions -provides important clues about the cultural values of the society -offers indications about the diversity of a country's population

Caterpillar

-developed Caterpillar Fundamental English (CFE) - consists of 800 words that are necessary to repair equipment -taught to non-English speaking people in 30 lessons

high context extreme

Chinese

most common language

English is predominant common language of international business

power orientation outlier

France is individualistic AND power respecting (most individualist countries are usually more power tolerant)

low context extreme

German

power tolerance country

Israel

Uncertainty avoiding countries

Japan & France

wa

Japan's concern for social harmony; have group-oriented business practices

long term oriented countries

Japan, Hong Kong / Asia in general

short term oriented countries

Nigeria, Philippines

collectivist country

Panama

power respect country

Panama

Islam

Sharia, halal/haram, Ramadan, prayer times, gender roles, product adaptations (meat, alcohol)

most individualistic cultures

US and Australia

nepotism

US looks down on it, but in many countries it is duty to look after family first

uncertainty accepting countries

US, Scandinavian countries, Denmark

social mobility

ability of individuals to move from stratum of society to another

business cards

acceptance, acknowledgement, defacing, placement, information, language

language becomes most important when

advertising

goal orientation extremes

aggessive goal behavior vs passive goal behavior

culture is shared by members of society

and defines membership in society

Hall's Low-Context, High-Context approach

approach to understanding communication based on the relative emphasis on verbal and nonverbal cues to transmit meaning

power tolerance

attach much less significance to a person's position in the hierarchy

ethnocentrism

belief in the superiority of one's own ethnic group or culture

collectivism

belief that the group comes first characterized by: well-defined social networks

power orientation

beliefs that people in a culture hold about appropriateness of power and authority

power orientation examples

benefits, delegation, status, titles, managerial style, advertising, training, setting targets

examples of motivation for goal orientation

benefits, reinforcement, competitiveness

context examples

body language, presence of lawyers at first meeting, looking repeatedly at watch, not using proper forms of address

greenfield investment

brand-new investment

social stratification

categorizing someone based on birth, occupation, achievements, etc.

culture is adaptive

changes in response to external forces that affect the society

culture

collection of values, beliefs, behaviors, customs, and attitudes that distinguish one society from another (the way of life of a people)

cultural cluster

comprises countries that share many cultural similarities, although differences do remain

high-context culture

context in which the conversation occurs is just as important as the words that are actually spoken and cultural cues are important in understanding what is being communicated

cultural convergence

convergence of two or more cultures

individualism

cultural belief that the person comes first key values: high degree of self-respect and independence

individuals, families, and groups

defining family (nuclear vs extended), individual's role within groups, importance of individual relative to group

guanxi

describes a personal connection between two people in which one is able to prevail upon another, or be prevailed upon, to perform a favor or service RECIPROCAL EXCHANGE OF FAVORS "GOOD CONNECTIONS" OR "RELATIONSHIPS"

uncertainty avoidance

dislike ambiguity and will avoid it whenever possible

more than one language in a culture indicates

diversity

having a foreign sounding name lends a cachet

ex: Cadillac, Hilton, Rols-Royce (status symbols)

time orientation

extent to which members of a culture adopt a long-term vs a short-term outlook on work, life, and other aspects of society

nonverbal communication

facial expressions, hand gestures, intonation, eye contact, body positioning, body posture

uncertainty orientation

feeling people have regarding uncertain and ambiguous situations

short-term outlook

focus on past and present

long-term outlook

future orientation

less stratified societies

higher social mobility - US

social orientation extremes

individualism vs collectivism

elements of culture are

interrelated

many clusters based on

language similarities

culture reflects

learned behavior that is transmitted from one member of a society to another

highly stratified societies

lower social mobility - India, UK

goal orientation

manner in which people are motivated to work toward different kinds of goals

disadvantage of lingua franca

miscommunications

power respect

people in a culture tend to accept the power and authority of their superiors simply on the basis of the superiors' positions in the hierarchy

social orientation

person's beliefs about the relative of the individual and the groups to which that person belongs

aggressive goal behavior

place a high premium on material possessions, money, and assertiveness

passive goal behavior

place higher value on social relationships, quality of life, concern for others

social orientation examples

promotions, decision making, purchase decisions, recruiting, rewards

uncertainty orientation examples

risk taking, innovation, warranties, turnover, rules/policies/procedures

uncertainty acceptance

stimulated by change and thrive on new opportunities

Protestant ethic

stresses individual hard work, frugality and achievement as a means of glorifying God

lingua franca

third or "link" language that is understood by two parties who speak different native languages

time orientation examples

time set aside for negotiations, signing contracts, relationship building before legal contracts signing

values and attitudes

time, age, education, status

back translation

translating a foreign language version back to the original language by a different person than the one who made the first translation (make sure meanings entirely the same)