Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions (China and Germany) Essay

Gerard Hendrik Hofstede (born October 2, 1928 in Haarlem) is a Dutch expert in cultural studies GHW. Hofstede (1980) surveyed 88,000 IBM employees working in 66 countries and wherefore ranked the countries on different cultural di workforcesions. His research resulted in four dimensions ( provide importanttain individualization versus collectivism dis combine shunning and masculinity and femininity). In the beginning, mainland mainland mainland mainland China was non included in this study but later Bond and Hofstede looked at Chinese treasures. From this research they included a fifth cultural value dimension c eithered long-term versus short orientation SKR.Power Distance indi natest (PDI)The Power Distance baron shows how less military groupful individuals accept and conceptualise an unequal distribution of power. High power distance means that power is unevenly distributed piteous power distance means that power is untold evenly distributed TIP. fit to Geert Hofs tedes 5 dimensions China is located in the postgraduateer rank at 80. That means that this inn believes that inequalities amongst hatful ar acceptable GER. The Power is centralised and the management is autocratic. The subordinate-superior family relationship turn tails to be cleaved and thither is no defence against power abuse by superiors GER. This means that people be less al mortifieding to ch wholeenge authority which is likely imputable to old communism beliefs which still incur a strong enchant on peoples behaviour SKR.Managers involve subordinates to obey them. Subordinates mechanically show respect and know that they take on to earn their respect. They also expect to be told what to do. Therefore affectionate interactions are formal. In general we bottom of the inning study that the Chinese are optimistic about peoples capacity for leadership and initiative GER. The general attitude of the Chinese is that you should not fulfil any duties beyond your rank GE R. In class I have notice that the status of the t sepa roamlyer has to be respected and privileges are expected. To listen to a different showcase In China it is very(prenominal) common that the workers should come 15 transactions earlier to a coming together and the manager with the most(prenominal) power is everto a greater extent five to fifteen minutes later. That shows that the managers delight more privileges. I was able to observe that the compliance ofthe hierarchy is maintained very strictly.Individualism versus socialism(IDV)This mightiness shows the extent to which individuals are structured into groups or not TIP. In societies with a high IDV index in particular individual rights are protected self-determination, I experience and personal debt instrument are important. In a rural area-controlled farming with a low IDV-index contrast, the integration dominates in any kind of networks. The team spirit is much more characteristic of such a culture GHW. ac cord to Geert Hofstede China is located in the lower ranking at 20. In collectivist cultures such as China, people work together in groups and often put the needs of that group ahead of their throw personal wants SKR. They pct responsibility. The Chinese who are doing business tend to stay with the uniform partners and suppliers to withstand loyalty and not worsen relationships SKR.In China the community had always the priority. Tian xia wei gong said the ancients under the sky everything serves the community. In the Confucian influenced social system everyone expects from the individual subordination, self-control and allow foringness to cast sacrifices in order that the family and state toilette benefit from it. Individualism is a term which has always had a negative connotation in China, because people associated it with egoism. The Chinese prefer a holistic thinking. An example, if a Chinese writes his address down he will start with the country, then the city and the s treet and at the end his own name. The tralatitious Chinese medicine is a prime example for holistic thinking.Each disease is always seen in the context of the whole body. Collectivism promotes harmony. In China people focus on harmony and hate the direct confrontation. Harmony is achieved by giving attend to others and avoiding losing your own incline. When I talked to my Chinese friend David Zhang and asked him about his study he will begin in Ger legion(predicate), he told me that this was a family decision. Of course, it was his wish but without the admit of the family he could never study abroad. Even if he had the money for it he would not do so, because his family is much more important to him.Masculinity / Femininity(MAS)This MAS index shows the expression of the dominant values that areestablished in both sexes. Hofstede ranks to the fe phallic values of care, cooperation and modesty. As masculine values Hofstede defines competitive training and self-confidence. A high MAS index shows a dominance of typically male values, a low MAS index shows a dominance of typically egg-producing(prenominal) values GHW. According to Geert Hofstede China is located in the higher ranking at 66. It is more a masculine community a society which is success oriented. You can see it on the occurrence that many of the Chinese sacrifice their leisure time to work SKR. I have noticed that shops are open until very late at night. Officially, nowadays women enjoy the same rights as men in the workplace. The Communist Party in China has made efforts to put both genders on almost the same level.Anyway traditional Confucian thinking does not fit slow with this term of gender equality. It seems to be a bit ironic that the relaxation look policies of the last decade might have turned around many of the advances made by women under the prevalent conditions of the hard-line regimes. Through the traditional values it is the boys who have strong preferences. The men own most of the power and responsibility although there is a high level of acceptance surrounded by genders in China SKR. Unfortunately, women in executive positions enjoy a low appreciation. There are successful women in all fields, they are among the winners of the economical reforms, but also among the losers. If the economic situation in the factories is poor and rung is reduced, they are the first to be fired. If high school fees are as well high, it is usually the daughter, who leave school and has to go to work BUC.Un sealedty avoidance(UAI)The UAI index shows a societys tolerance for skepticism and ambiguity. Cultures with a high UAI, want to avoid the uncertainty and are characterized by many uncommitted laws, policies and security measures. Members are emotional and nervous. Cultures which are tolerant to accept uncertainty have a few rules that are transplantable and thus tend to relativism. The members are phlegmatic and expect from their environment not to show feelings G HW. According to Geert Hofstede China has a low score of 30 on uncertainty avoidance. China has a high degree of acceptance of uncertainty. This society does not try to take control of the future, and therefore Chinas society is not afraid of unforeseen situations SKR. TheChinese consider written and ad-lib arrangements sceptical.Contracts should be structured so that there is still the surmise to change the contract afterwards. The Chinese are very flexible. In case of conflict, a mentor is used, which takes care of the problems of both families instead of going to court. Uncertainty avoidance means for the Chinese first What does my boss want? If he agrees with my ideas, then I can put it on. But I do not certainly know if he will like my ideas, I quite not ask him indeed I better wait for instructions. In this case, I can do no wrong, because the manager is responsible for all decisions, therefore the uncertainty is resolved. I could observe that the Chinese remain lull when unforeseen situations occur. They do not get upset about the situation. They can quickly accept the situation and adapt their surroundings.Long-term or short orientation(LTO)This LTO index deals with the issue of virtue. Long-term cultures value thrift and perseverance short-term cultures value tradition, the fulfilment of social obligations and protecting ones face or honour. A long-term orientation is associated with East Asian countries TIP. According to Geert Hofstede China has a high score of 118. Hofstede analysed that China has the highest ranking of all countries in long-term orientation. It is 30% higher than the Asian average score. China is a country with a strong long-term orientation. It can be seen from the fact that China preferred a long-term development and validating enforcement strategies SKR.According to the Chinese way of thinking it is not the shortest route that leads to the terminal but the more difficult path. Therefore the Chinese can divvy up complex s ituations without a lot of stress neither they let push button themselves through time. The key for the Chinese is to build up strong, reliable, lasting relationships. skipperly any decision is met there must be gained a certain amount of trust. Obviously this takes longer to finish a business deal. They do not like to rush into things SKR. Once you build up the trust and a strong relationship you can rely on it. This culture is marked by loyalty and respect. If you are willing to maintain this relationship you can trust your entire life on Guanxi.Comparison amidst China and GermanyAs you can see there are a few differences between Germany and China. In contrast to China the power is decentralised. The German culture is marked by a low power distance and the subordinates expect to be consulted as well as they expect to produce their ideas to the managers. Flashing back to my work experience I can say that I often had to take initiative. Often people are confronted with the pow er saw think by yourself. The other difference is that the management and subordinates respect each other and treat one another as equals. Usually it is as described, but there are of course exceptions. In most cases, however, I have had the experience that I had a good relationship to my boss. Compared to China, Germany has a highly individualistic society. Personal responsibility, independence, self-determination and I-experience are highly treasured in Germany. A prolonged stay abroad is much respected. It shows that you can independently fulfil tasks.Companies wish to have workers with international experience collectible to growing globalization. That individualism counts, can also be seen in the fact that you put your name first when writing an address. This is wholly different to China where you put the country at first as I have already mentioned. According to Hofstede Germany and China have the same MAS index. Mostly it is the men who hold the most of the power. I have n oticed women get more and more acceptance in the man dominated business world. For example we now have a char (Angelika Merkel) as chancellor and not a man. I can see more and more woman taking part in higher positions. Therefore I would rate Germany at 55 because there is no doubt about the change magnitude acceptance of women. Another example shows that a womens quota should be introduced in Germany, which includes that at least 10% of women should sit in the top management. furthermore Germany is a country full of bureaucracy. We have laws for almost everything, insurance companies are supposed to protect us and the institutions should regulate everything imaginable. We want to have everything controlled in order to control the future. Therefore we make contracts and then we act accordingly. This is totally different to the Chinese Culture where people like to keep the possibility to change things afterwards. The highest difference between China and Germany is the LTO index. Un like China, Germany is more short-term oriented. Managers in Germany try to make high profits in no time. We puttruth and directness before diplomacy. Furthermore I have noticed that German employers are impatient because they want to get sporting results.CriticismUnfortunately, I could not check if I would spread as much points as Hofstede because there was too less time to make an intensive investigation. However, I found out through discussions and research that Hofstede was exquisite accurate with his assumptions. Furthermore, I want to mention a couple of criticisms of his study. The main point is listed by critics that the drawn samples were not representative. So in the original study(1967-1972 ) information were used from a global survey made by IBM.Thus, it is uncertain whether the system actually worked out measures of national cultures or quite a differences in corporate culture between the countries. Furthermore, Hofstedes approach ignores differences inside a nation. The model treats a nation as a akin state of individuals who all share the same value system. This is in most cases incorrect. In addition, criticism of the validity of the items was practiced 4. Hofstede cites no theoretical excuse for the selection of items. House and other people criticizes in particular the chastisement to distinguish between values and behavior. This is problematic because negative values and behavior are linked.Source MaterialTIPGeert Hofstede, Cultures Consequences Comparing Values, Behaviours, Institutions and Organisations crosswise Nations (Place Corwin Press, 2001). http//www.tiplady.org.uk/pdfs/LEA502-5-culturalissues.pdfGERThe Hofstede Centrehttp//geert-hofstede.com/china.htmlSKRHofstede comparison of Germany and Chinahttps//www.google.de/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDgQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fbuinternationalmanagement.wikispaces.com%2Ffile%2Fview%2FHofstede%2Bcomparison%2Bof%2BGermany%2Band%2BChina.doc&ei=vDRYUb6mKo7EswaMoIC QAg&usg=AFQjCNHgjNwXhFqhxu015my2P3qIqIftMQ&sig2=MGY08eJFzKV1EQ6iME-w&bvm=bv.44442042,d.Yms GHWGeert Hofstedehttp//de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geert_HofstedeBUCDer China Knigge Yu-Chien Kuan, Petra Hring-Kuan September 2006 ISBN 978-3-596-16684-8Persons I have talked toDavid King (Banker / Chinese)David Zhang (Student / Chinese)Primel (Chinese Girl who studies German)Kim Lao (Chinese Business Man / employed by an American company) Lio (Student / Chinese)