International management
Extra material
Complementary to your lecture notes
and slides
KU Leuven
, Country comparison tool
We define culture as the collective mental programming of the human mind distinguishing
one group of people from another. This programming influences patterns of thinking which
are reflected in the meaning people attach to various aspects of life and which become
crystallised in the institutions of a society.
Culture does not imply that everyone in a given society is programmed in the same way;
differences among the values of individuals in one country tend to be bigger than the value
differences between countries. Nevertheless, we can still use such country scores based on
the law of the big numbers and on the fact that most of us are strongly influenced by social
control. Please realise that statements about countries are generalisations and should be
interpreted relative to other countries. Only by comparison a country score is meaningful.
Power distance
This dimension deals with the fact that all individuals in societies are not equal - it expresses
the attitude of the culture towards these inequalities amongst us. Power Distance is defined
as the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a
country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.
Individualism
The fundamental issue addressed by this dimension is the degree of interdependence a
society maintains among its members. It has to do with whether people's self-image is
defined in terms of "I" or "We". In Individualist societies people are supposed to look after
themselves and their direct family only. In Collectivist societies people belong to 'in groups'
that take care of them in exchange for loyalty.
Motivation towards achievement and success
A high score (Decisive) on this dimension indicates that the society will be driven by
competition, achievement and success, with success being defined by the winner / best in
field - a value system that starts in school and continues throughout organisational life. A
low score (Consensus-oriented) on the dimension means that the dominant values in society
are caring for others and quality of life. A Consensus-oriented society is one where quality of
life is the sign of success and standing out from the crowd is not admirable. The fundamental
issue here is what motivates people, wanting to be the best (Decisive) or liking what you do
(Consensus-oriented).
Uncertainty avoidance
The dimension Uncertainty Avoidance has to do with the way that a society deals with the
fact that the future can never be known: should we try to control the future or just let it
happen? This ambiguity brings with it anxiety and different cultures have learnt to deal with
this anxiety in different ways. The extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened
by ambiguous or unknown situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to
avoid these is reflected in the score on Uncertainty Avoidance.
Long term orientation
Extra material
Complementary to your lecture notes
and slides
KU Leuven
, Country comparison tool
We define culture as the collective mental programming of the human mind distinguishing
one group of people from another. This programming influences patterns of thinking which
are reflected in the meaning people attach to various aspects of life and which become
crystallised in the institutions of a society.
Culture does not imply that everyone in a given society is programmed in the same way;
differences among the values of individuals in one country tend to be bigger than the value
differences between countries. Nevertheless, we can still use such country scores based on
the law of the big numbers and on the fact that most of us are strongly influenced by social
control. Please realise that statements about countries are generalisations and should be
interpreted relative to other countries. Only by comparison a country score is meaningful.
Power distance
This dimension deals with the fact that all individuals in societies are not equal - it expresses
the attitude of the culture towards these inequalities amongst us. Power Distance is defined
as the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a
country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.
Individualism
The fundamental issue addressed by this dimension is the degree of interdependence a
society maintains among its members. It has to do with whether people's self-image is
defined in terms of "I" or "We". In Individualist societies people are supposed to look after
themselves and their direct family only. In Collectivist societies people belong to 'in groups'
that take care of them in exchange for loyalty.
Motivation towards achievement and success
A high score (Decisive) on this dimension indicates that the society will be driven by
competition, achievement and success, with success being defined by the winner / best in
field - a value system that starts in school and continues throughout organisational life. A
low score (Consensus-oriented) on the dimension means that the dominant values in society
are caring for others and quality of life. A Consensus-oriented society is one where quality of
life is the sign of success and standing out from the crowd is not admirable. The fundamental
issue here is what motivates people, wanting to be the best (Decisive) or liking what you do
(Consensus-oriented).
Uncertainty avoidance
The dimension Uncertainty Avoidance has to do with the way that a society deals with the
fact that the future can never be known: should we try to control the future or just let it
happen? This ambiguity brings with it anxiety and different cultures have learnt to deal with
this anxiety in different ways. The extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened
by ambiguous or unknown situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to
avoid these is reflected in the score on Uncertainty Avoidance.
Long term orientation
