International business 5th griffin chapter 04

influence international business• Identify the means by which members of a culture communicate with each other... Chapter Objectives 2 • Discuss how religious and other values affect t

influence international business

• Identify the means by which members of

a culture communicate with each other

Chapter Objectives 2

• Discuss how religious and other values

affect the domestic environments in which international businesses operate

• Describe the major cultural clusters and their usefulness for international managers

• Explain Hofstede’s primary findings about differences in cultural values

• Explain how cultural conflicts may arise

Culture

Culture is the collection of values,

beliefs, behaviors, customs, and attitudes that distinguish one society from another A society’s culture determines the rules that govern how

firms operate in the society

structure

Social Structure

Individuals, families, and groups

Social stratificationSocial mobility

Map 4.1 World Languages

Map 4.2 Africa’s Colonial Legacy

Translation Disasters

• KFC’s Finger Lickin’ Good

– Eat your fingers off (China)

• Pillsbury’s Jolly Green Giant

– Intimidating green ogre (Saudi Arabia)

Nonverbal Communication

Nonverbal communication

may account for

80-90 percent of all information transmitted among members

of a culture

by means other than language

• Artifacts and verbal symbols

non-• Graphic symbols

• Taste, symbolism of food, oral gratification

Gift Giving and Hospitality

Gift giving is an important means of communication,

but what is appropriate varies.

Religion

• Imposes constraints on roles of individuals in society

• Affects the types of products

consumers may purchase

• Varies from country to country

Religion

Christianity

Hinduism Buddhism Islam

Map 4.3 Major World Religions

Religion

Two million Muslims annually descend on the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi

Arabia as part of the Haij

Values and Attitudes

Values are the principles and

standards accepted by the members; attitudes encompass the actions, feelings, and thoughts that result

from those values

Values and Attitudes

Theories of Culture

• Hall’s Low-Context, High-Context Approach

• Cultural Cluster Approach

• Hofstede’s Five Dimensions

Hall’s Low-Context High-Context Approach

An approach to understanding

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

The Cultural Cluster Approach

An approach to understanding communication based on meaningful

clusters of countries that share

similar cultural values

Map 4.4 A Synthesis of

Country Clusters

Hofstede’s Five Dimensions

Social Orientation Power Orientation Uncertainty Orientation

Goal Orientation Time Orientation

Figure 4.4 Social Orientation and Power Orientation Patterns

Uncertainty Orientation

Uncertainty Uncertainty Acceptance Avoidance

Emotional response to uncertainty and change

Time Orientation

Long-term Short-term outlook outlook

The extent to which members of a culture adopt a long-term or a short-term outlook

on work and life