Cultural Differences

Dr. Chansoo Park

What is culture?
Culture is “that complex whole which include knowledge, belief, art, morals, law,
custom, and other capabilities acquired by man as a member of society.”
-Edward Tylor (P.93, Textbook)

“A system of values and norms that are shared among a group of

people and that when taken together constitute a design for living.”

- Hofstede, Namenwirth, and Weber

“An invisible control mechanism operating in out thoughts”

-Hall, 1983
Components of Culture

Values: Abstract ideas about what a group believes to be

good and right
(ex, democracy, justice, social obligation: People argue,
fight, and even die over values)

Norms: Social rules and guidelines that govern the actions of people toward
one another
(1) Folkways: the routine conventions of everyday life
(ex, appropriate dress in particular situation, eating with the correct utensil )
*People who violate folkways may be thought of as ill-mannered

(2) Mores: serious standards of behavior (ex, Drinking alcohol in Saudi Arabia )
* Violating mores can bring serious retribution
Why culture is important in the context of international
business

 Understanding the hidden cultural differences underneath the

surface is important to avoid misunderstanding and
conflicts (ex, negotiation)

 Understanding and adapting to the local cultural is important

international companies. (Can become Competitive
Advantage)

 MNEs can be agents of cultural change

Ex, McDonald’s, Starbucks
Aesthetics and Color

• Red–associated with blood, wine-making, activity, heat, and

vibrancy in many countries but is poorly received in some African
countries.

• Blue—since the pigment was rare, ancient Egyptians, Chinese,

Mayans associated it with royalty and divinity.

• White–identified
White with purity and cleanliness in the West, with
death in parts of Asia.

• Gray–means inexpensive in Japan and China, but high quality and

expensive in the U.S.

4-5
The Meaning of Color

Traditionally, yellow
ribbons were worn as
a sign of hope as
women waited for
their men to come
home from war.

In the U.S.,
“Something Blue”
on a bride’s garter
Red signifies good luck symbolizes fidelity
and celebration in China
Nonverbal Communication

 Westerners tend to be verbal; Asians value

nonverbal communication

 In Japan, bowing has many nuances

 In the Mideast, Westerners should not show the

soles of shoes or pass documents with the left hand
Saudi Arabia allows women to attend soccer match

Twitter
Female Saudi supporters of Al-Ahli attend
their teams football match against Al-Batin
in the Saudi Pro League at the King
Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Jan. 12,
2018. ABC News (2018)
http://abcnews.go.com/International/saudi-arabia-women-attend-soccer-match/story?id=52315612
Country difference and value creation

Japanese consumers different value:

 A major factor is the value Japanese’s consumers place on

having a material item.
 And another contributor is “Aging”

CD Sales still strong in Japan (CNN/ Oct. 2013)

http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2013/08/22/n-cmw-japanese-buy-
cds.cnnmoney/

Japan is still a largest music market world wide

CDs and other physical media sales as a
percentage of all recorded music revenue, 2012

Source: Bloomberg Businessweek (2013)

The girl group AKB48
An appreciation of cross-cultural differences

An appreciation of cross-cultural differences in

values is essential to understanding the needs
and tastes of customers or clients around the
world.

-The initial French response to the Disneyland Paris theme

park was less enthusiastic, probably due in part to Disney’s
failure to truly appreciate French tastes in food, lifestyle, and
entertainment

-. South Korea’s Samsung recalled a calendar, featuring

female models displaying its products. Some North
Amercians were offended by Miss July’s see-through blouse
Share a Coke is a multi-national marketing
campaign in for Coca-Cola.

In launching the campaign Coca Cola identified and

printed the top 150~250 most popular first names.

In Israel, it becomes very tricky to conceptualize the

concept of individualizing the coke bottles especially
in a country where cultural identity is bound by
religion and ethnicity.

The problem surfaced when one Arab-Israeli citizen

accused coke for not printing any Arabic name
among the popular Israeli names.
Discussion topic
Business etiquette varies greatly between countries. For
example, in Thailand it is considered offensive to show
the sole of the shoe or foot to another person.

Discuss folkways or mores (or etiquette) in your country

* or different culture comparing Canada/Asia/Europe

President Xi Jinping of China is greeted with a hongi

by Government House Kaumatua Lewis Moeau during
a State Welcome at Government House in Wellington,
New Zealand.
Source: Wall Street Journal, Nov., 2014
Hofstede’s Cultural Typology

 Hofstede conducted a world-wide survey of employee values in IBM

subsidiaries in 50 countries in the 1960s and 1970s.
 The theory was one of the first quantified study to explain observed
differences between cultures
 Still continued (World value survey-http://www.worldvaluessurvey.org)

• Power Distance
• Individualism/Collectivism
• Masculinity
• Uncertainty Avoidance
• a fifth dimension, long-term orientation
• *In 2010 Hofstede added a sixth dimension, indulgence versus
self-restraint.
Power Distance
 How a society deals with the fact that people are unequal
 The extent to which less powerful members of institutions and
organizations accept that power is distributed unequally.
i.e. acceptance of authority of those higher in the hierarchy

Uncertainty Avoidance
 The extent to which members are intolerant of
ambiguity and rely on formal rules
 A proxy for risk propensity and tolerance
 High (i.e. risk averse): Japan, Greece
Ex) Place premium on job security, retirement benefits
 Low (i.e. risk taking): U.S., Canada

Ex) a greater readiness to take risks and less emotional resistance to

change
Individualism/Collectivism
 The tendency of people to look after themselves and
their immediate family versus belonging to groups or
collectives and looking after each other in exchange for loyalty

Masculinity/ Feminity
 The relationship between gender and
work roles
Masculine culture: sex roles were
sharply differentiated
Feminine culture: sex roles were less
sharply differentiated
Hofstede’s Dimensions of National Culture
Hofstede’s Dimensions of National Culture

4. High masculine culture: sex roles were sharply differentiated

Low masculine culture: sex roles were less sharply differentiated
High masculine Low masculine
culture culture
Japan, Mexico Singapore Sweden, Denmark
Individuals and Groups: Example

When a Japanese faces the outside (confronts another person)

and affixes some position to himself socially he is inclined to give
precedence to institution over kind of occupation.

Rather than saying, “I am a computer programmer or I am a filing

clerk,” he is likely to say, “I am from B Publishing Group” or “I be
long S company
Work-Related Values for 20 Selected Countries
Cultural distance measurement

Hofstede’s cultural dimensions – based on national cultures

(see example in a journal article)

Park, C.S., Vertinsky, I., & Lee, C. (2012) How the Exchange Climate
Affects Tacit Knowledge Transfer from Foreign Parents. International
Marketing Review (IMR) (SSCI: 1.778), Vol. 29 Issue 2, pp. 151-174
Three type of culture

o National culture

o Organizational culture

o Individual culture
Nutshell

 Components of Culture
 Country difference and value creation
 Hofstede’s Cultural Typology
 Cultural distance measurement
The End