Cross cultural issues Dr Joan Harvey Joan Harveyncl

Cross cultural issues Dr Joan Harvey Joan. Harvey@ncl. ac. uk

What are we covering today? Understanding of culture and cultural differences Looking at two studies using a risk perspective Driving Management differences UK vs Zim Asking the question: to what extent do attitudes, values amd behaviour vary across cultures?

Conceptualising risk issues and culture Culture as shared values “Collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from others” [Hofstede and Hofstede, 1995] Evident in rules, procedures, ‘how we do things around here’ Is learned Risk taking, risk awareness Risk avoidance, loss avoidance or uncertainty avoidance?

Why is cross-culture important? Costly IJV failures Breakdown of expatriate assignments Breakdown of collaborative assignments Product failure, errors, poor quality Failure to understand markets, business partners, consumers Misunderstandings can cause aggression, etc. Perception differences, including risk

How has culture been investigated and studied? Social anthropology International Business Sociolinguistics and communications Early work in Psychology was limited to things such as: Differences in perception of values of coins amongst children from different ethnic bases Linguistics: included class as well as cross-cultural differences We will look at several writers today, including Hofstede, Trompenaars and Hall

Geert Hofstede 1 Dutch social anthropologist Obtained attitude data from IBM worldwide in late 1970 s Factor analysed and looked for factors which differentiated nationalities Data on 50 countries, but only sufficient N for 40 in first book Generally accepted as the most important now in cross-culture But still limitations in his theory

Geert Hofstede: 5 factors Masculinity femininity Essentially the differentiation of sex-roles vs. both sex-roles considered the same Ambition and desire to achieve vs. social concern and interpersonal relationships Power distance The tolerance of small or large power differentials Amount of power that can be wielded Uncertainty avoidance Tolerance of ambiguity, flexibility vs. preference for structure Individualism- collectivism Help and commitment to group versus high personal achievement LT-ST orientation [added later in 1990 s] “Confucian dynamism” principles on both sides, primarily timebased

Geert Hofstede All countries will have changed in last 30 years Eastern Europe Developing countries that are now developed Political changes Changes in technology and global communication Migration of peoples Are cross-cultural differences still as pronounced? In-group vs out-group explanations

Geert Hofstede Issues This study put cross-cultural differences into the mainstream rather than as “error variance” in other studies Encouraged other theorists Recent research has allowed many more countries to be mapped

Country Germany PD 35 UAI 65 MF 66 IC 67 LTO 31 China 80 30 66 20 118 USA 40 46 62 91 29 Japan 54 92 95 46 80 UK 35 35 66 89 25 Finland 33 59 26 63 41 Austria 11 70 79 55 31 India 77 40 56 48 61 Hungary 46 82 88 80 50 Denmark 18 23 16 74 46 Czech Rep 57 74 57 58 13 Slovakia 104 51 110 52 38 Poland 50 72 60 55 31

Comments on these data Short-terms orientation in e. g. UK clearly shown in how the financial markets behave- out to get the quick ‘buck’ Chinese and Japanese businesses into investment for the longer term, built on relationships and ‘family’ structures

Examples of other theories: [a] Trompenaars 7 factors: Universalism versus particularism Work relationships mixed with personal ones Individualism versus collectivism Affective versus neutral culture Specific versus diffuse relationships Distinct relationships versus diffuse ones Achieving versus ascribing status Earned through achievement or recognised e. g. seniority/age Perception of time Sequential [monochronic] or parallel [polychronic] Relating to nature

Example [b] GLOBAL project Assertiveness Future orientation Gender egalitarianism Humane orientation Institutional collectivism In-group collectivism Performance orientation Power distance Uncertainty avoidance

Two more factors that are interrelated. Time perception Polychronic or cyclical [e. g. southern Europe, China, Japan] Monochronic [e. g. northern Europe, US] Context [Edward Hall] High means that perception of what is said is taken in context, including NVCs Low means words are interpreted literally

Other dimensions from indigenous social psychology China Confucian values Filial piety Industriousness Giving and protecting face Thrift Guanxi Social networking crucial to business relationships Ren ching Respectful exchange of gifts, favours and obligations

Japan Other dimensions Amae and respect Reliance and dependence upon indulgent love of an older person Kanban Concept of whole transcending sum of parts Ringi Upward communications and decision making Sacred treasures life time employment, seniority, enterprise unions/families Harmony and cooperation [‘wa’] Gakureki Shakai Social system attaching value to education

Example: Theory Z Application of Japanese management principles to American & British businesses Long term focus Zero tolerance Personal responsibility for self-development Positive attitudes to seniority Teamwork rather than individual achievement Commitment and trust Quality and pride Multi-skilling

Other dimensions Africa Cognitive tolerance Not on seat Africa time Indaba [Malawi] Ubuntu [Malawi] Tribal loyalty Power and respect based on experience Managers ‘right to manage’

Other dimensions Several cultures resent ‘intrusiveness’ of western values, western research methods, e. g. Philippines Sub-Saharan Africa India China

Other dimensions Latin American countries: emphasis on Respect Family Hierarchy Honour Affiliative obedience Cultural rigidity Machismo Sympatia

Other dimensions India Detachment as a coping mechanism, therefore working hard is unrelated to success or failure Ingratiation techniques to advance personal goals within hierarchical collective context [similar to parts of western Africa]

Exercise Now to discuss and answer the following question: What are the factors that might determine differences in attitudes to business and risk between China UK Italy Present your reasons for three of the factors

Effects of cultural differences How society functions Basic values and beliefs- lifestyles Relationships in organizations Gambling and investment behaviours Consumer behaviour Driver behaviour

Study into driver behaviour: theories for risk-taking in drivers: Risk homeostasis Risk avoidance Sensation seeking Flow, arousal Motivation, intrigue and curiosity Fatigue Vigilance

But do these apply across cultures? Risk homeostasis and risk avoidance- cultural differences known Sensation seeking- individualism-related so will be less strong in Pacific rim countries Flow- probably a western concept Motivation, intrigue and curiosity- known to be conceptually different in many cultures Arousal and fatigue Vigilance- may vary according to cultural norms

Did we expect cross-cultural differences? …Yes Evidence from Australia and Finland shows differences in safety skills Differences in driver anger between UK and US Finland, UK Netherlands differ from Turkey, Iran and Greece: combination of driving style and culture in determining N accidents Americans more risk-averse than Chinese in relation to buying risky financial options [in 1998, not necessarily now!]

Other findings Significant country differences in: speeding penalties, parking offences, mean annual mileage and mean yrs driving, F 1 responses to under-stimulation, F 3 lapse and error proneness F 4 anxiety Corrrelations of personality factors with F 1 Significant sex differences for F 2 enthusiasm and flow, F 3 lapses and F 4 anxiety Significant age differences for At fault crashes Annual mileage

F 3: Lapse and error proneness UK US Men 26. 02 29. 45 Women 28. 16 33. 18

Possible causal cross-cultural differences? Hofstede factors? Uncertainty avoidance or flexibility Masculinity femininity Individualism collectivism Power distance Long term short term orientation Other relevant factors High or low context cultures Time perception Risk perception, risk awareness Anger management Motivational differences X X X Poss Prob

A reminder for US vs UK/ Europe… Country PD UAI MF IC LTO Germany 35 65 66 67 31 China 80 30 66 20 118 USA 40 46 62 91 29 Japan 54 92 95 46 80 UK 35 35 66 89 25 Finland 33 59 26 63 41 Austria 11 70 79 55 31 India 77 40 56 48 61 Czech 57 74 57 58 13 Slovakia 104 51 110 52 38 Poland 50 72 60 55 31

Implications This was a small study, possibly not representative, but… the evidence here is consistent: drivers in US and UK/Europe show differences in propensity to boredom, personality correlates of driving and a series of driver metrics. So is it the drivers’ culture or the environment that is the cause of these differences, or both?

Cross-cultural differences? Situational/environmental causes? Driving in US rural areas is much lower stimulus driving than UK or Europe Overtaking manoeuvres [more dangerous, more lapses] less likely in US Road planners need to think very hard about putting interest back into the roads more bends in roads, more [not less] scenery, more things to do. Driver causes US and UK relatively similar in Hofstede factors, although other Europeans differ more. So could it be risk perceptions or driving attitudes that differentiate US and Uk/Europe?

Quiz questions 1 In sub-Saharan Africa, it is important not to be late for meetings Yes No 2 In sub-Saharan African countries, a manager should use command rather than persuasion Yes No 3 It is important to get to know your host before doing business in the Middle East Yes No

More…. 4 When given a business card by a Japanese business person, what should you do with it and why? 5 Would you start a presentation to Japanese business people with an apology? Yes no 6 If offered coffee by an Arab, if you didn't like coffee, should you refuse it? Yes no

For doing business……. 7 Trust is important in Japan Malaysia USA China 8 Seniority or age is important Japan Malaysia USA China

Study example: UK vs Zimbabwean Managers Attitude and motivational differences measured Status, prestige, loyalty Social approval Motive strength and work values 117 African managers, mostly from Zim but a few from Botswana 32% women 82 British managers 58% women Similar ages

Study results Cultural differences found in Importance of status, position, pride and prestige Social approval Loyalty to work colleagues… [tribal] No differences found for Courtesy Accept criticism Admit mistakes Loyalty to friends and family

A few more to compare… Country PD UAI MF IC LTO China 80 30 66 20 118 USA 40 46 62 91 29 Japan 54 92 95 46 80 UK 35 35 66 89 25 Arab Cs 80 68 53 38 - E Africa 64 52 41 27 25 Zim W Africa 77 54 46 20 - Spain 57 86 42 51 19 Italy 50 75 70 76 34

What can other research add? Specific aggressive behaviours in driving are associated with cultural norms [Shinar, 1998] Chinese from PRC more risk-seeking in investments than USA [Weber and Hsee, 1998] US more risk-averse than Spanish [Zinkhan & Karande 1990] Differences in risk preference between PRC, USA, Germany and Poland [Weber and Hsee 1998] Many nationality differences found in sensationseeking and risk taking [Pizam et al, 2004]

More research… Risk judgements taken by HK and Taiwan more sensitive to magnitude of potential losses and less mitigated by prob [positive outcomes] than Netherlands and US [Bontempo et al, 1997] Culturally diverse groups had more problems with interaction behaviours that interfered with problemsolving [Watson and Kumar 1992] Risk perception ratings of drivers: Spanish highest, US lowest, younger perceived less risk [cf West German and Brazil] [Sivak et al 1989]

And more…. Australia- issues in risk-taking include selfimprovement, emotional engagement and control [Lupton & Tulloch, 2002] Turkish drivers: smaller safety margins that do not allow corrective manoevres [Ozkan et al, 2006] Using simulated intersection crossing, West Germans made fewer attempts, greater p(success), greater safety margins than US or Spanish [Sivak et al, 1989]

Summary of cultural difference issues across the studies Power distance Individualism-collectivism LT/ST orientation Risk aversion Motivation Respect and piety Responses to errors Context & communications Social approval In-group bias and tribalism Uncertainty avoidance Masculinity-femininity Risk perception Affect, including anger Need for harmony Trust Violations Time perception Groupthink, shift to risk Leadership/ management And all these can affect how we work and behave in many situations!

But we should not forget. . That the scores for countries have considerable within-groups variation. That some countries [e. g. India, US] have large ethnic sub-groups which will be different to the country averages. So I can propose that countries may divide on each dimension into 3 [perhaps Individualismcollectivism into 5] broad groupings.

Key texts Hofstede G and Hofstede G (2005) Culture and Organizations: Software of the mind. 2 nd ed London: Mc. Graw Hill Lewis RD (2007) When Cultures Collide. 3 rd ed London: Nicholas Brearley

Thank you for your attention Joan Harvey Newcastle University, United Kingdom and Visiting Professor, Czech University of Life Sciences [CZU] Joan. Harvey@ncl. ac. uk With thanks to Neil Thorpe, Newcastle University, United Kingdom Corinne Mulley, Professor of Transport Economics, University of Sydney, Australia Ludek Kolman, CZU