Hofstede’s Five Dimension comparison of Germany and China

Hofstede’s Five Dimensions

Hofstede’s five dimensions are a useful tool to give someone an insight of different cultures. These elements give a country’s behaviour tendencies rather than an exact prescription.

There are weaknesses to Hofstede’s Five Dimension theory as it may too easily encourage stereotyping. Even in countries as small as the UK, not all citizens are alike – e.g. it is argued that the culture in the North of England is quite different to the South. Hofstede has also been criticized for being too simplistic; however Hofstede’s theory does give us a general base to work from.

74 countries are listed on Hofstede’s website from which information can be drawn to make comparisons not only between countries but against the world average to give a broader picture. The following graph gives a comparison between Germany and China. It also allows for assessment against the Asian average and World average and our own British culture as benchmarks.

Hofstede Comparison: UK, Germany, China
Asian Average and World Average
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Comparison of Germany and China

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Power Distance Index Germany 35 LOW China 80 HIGH

Individualism Germany 67 HIGH China 66 LOW

Masculinity Germany 66 HIGH China 66 HIGH

Uncertainty Avoidance Germany 65 HIGH China 30 LOW

Long Term Orientation Germany 31LOW China 118 HIGH

Power Distance Index – PDI

Power Distance measures equality of power in society and how much people are willing to allow or give in to superiority. Countries with high scores tend to operate with power being given to the top few, with little room for lower rank intervention. Low scoring countries either spread power through delegation or encourage input from more levels of society.

Germany 35 China 80 World Average 55

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