...Individualism as an American Cultural Value Individualism is often viewed as a positive trait in America, suggesting a certain level of personal confidence. American society tends to reward independent thinkers and those who decide autonomously. To this end, individuality has become a value in many American homes. Although individualism is widely received and respected in American culture, it is not as well respected in other cultures. One culture in particular which frowns on individualism is the Asian culture. Thai family values are very different from American family values. In Asian cultures the family unit is highly valued and emphasized, whereas, in American culture, the focus is on individuality. Values derived from the American family all suggest individuality by stressing autonomy and self-sufficiency of the individual members. In contrast, members of the Thai community are taught to embrace a “we” Identity. The individual does not stand alone, but is seen as the product of all generations of his or her family. One of America’s most prominent cultural values, as seen by Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel in her article Individualism as an American Cultural Value, is individuality. She believes that the way Americans are raised teaches them to become independent and individualistic in their everyday lives, unlike in Thai culture. One of the main values in the United States is individualism. Dr. Sponsel faced a cultural shock when she moved to Hawaii. Being born and raised...
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...Republic, Yuval Levin described characteristics, such as culture, economics, and government intervention, that led to the fragmentation of society in the United States. The most striking quality mentioned the change of the level of individuality within America during the twentieth century. Whether America was full of conformists or individualists depended on the contributions that led to the fracture described by Levin. The variation in culture, the economy, and government intervention not only resulted in a fragmented nation, but it also caused the redefinition of the country’s public identity. Today, individualism in America has caused an even greater divide within communities that were once close, and according to Alexis de...
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...According to Chevalier (2007), the motivation defines as a force of moving enthusiasm towards within individual, not an outside to enhance workplace management. Actually, it arrives from the theory of hierarchy of needs which is one of the main criticisms of Abraham Maslow’s “eupsychian” approach to management. The critical point of Maslow is that people can only be motivated by unsatisfied need. When people’s basic need is satisfied, they are motivated by the next higher level or abundant needs. This theory is known to be successful adopted and developed for managing working environment in United States. However, it is wondering if the needs theories of motivation are appropriate in other parts of the world such as Asia. This essay will examine some discussions about this issue to clarify that question. Colvin & Rutland (2008) claimed that Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a content of motivation theory which its model identifies five basic needs categories constructed ascending hierarchy order to clarify them as arranged elements to arise employee’s motivation. They are psychological needs, safety need, love and belongings needs, esteem needs and lastly needs of self-actualization. Normally employee’s lower level of needs is requested to be satisfied before the progress of seeking into higher level gratification. Due to the fact that the most difficult part of motivating approach in workplace’s supervision is satisfying the mutual benefits between employee and organisation...
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...Scandanavian Cultures Concept of INterdependent Individualism reigns supreme, Discuss concept and importance to the Culture. Interdependent Individualism has been articulated by a few critical writers including Nikolai Grundtvig. “People must know themselves before they can know others.” Is the way Nikolai put it. However other Danish writers have theorized interdependent individualism with a controlling set of guidelines. For example; saying we as an alternative of I, but meaning I. Swedes normally value tradition and still ensure a village culture. They tend to be “horizontal individualists” who prefer customs of equality over fairness, in contrast to the United States. Their Individualism is demonstrated by their great self-reliance and prevention of lasting relations outside the family. They also traditionally had the characteristics of practicality and rationality. When practicality conflicts with other values, practicality usually wins. “We the Swedes love and are interested in nature, not people” Jenkins, 1968 page 149. In Sweden the government provides a substantial amount of programs to make job availability. It also offers pension for the elderly, sick benefits for all workers housing allowance, free education even for universities. Sweden also offers free medical care and part-free dental care. In Hofstede’s 53-nation study of cultural values, Sweden is one of the 53 nations that Highlight individualism. Swedish and American Individualism differ...
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...Paul Meister University of Phoenix Masters of Human Service Culture and Psychology February 16, 2014 Final Project I have chosen a collectivistic culture which is the Amish culture. A few details regarding the background of the Amish culture is they are most concentrated in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana with 273,700 adults and children and nearly 350 settlements in thirty states of the USA and in Ontario (Kuhnova, 2012) The Amish culture tries to live in nonconformity to the world. This is demonstrated by their dialect, their plain clothing, transportation of horse and buggy, and their housing, functioning to the outside world as distinction and to the inside community as confirmation of a shared identity (Kuhnova, 2012). This clothing style is uniform and leaves little room for individualism, although small differences are perceptible in sewing and cloths. Where for non-Amish this might sound like a limitation of freedom. They fear that owning a car leads to individualism, distinction, social inequality, and too much personal freedom (Vonk, 2012). The above behavior choices of the Amish cultural emphasize togetherness and reinforce group cohesion. According to Vonk (2011), “The community and its welfare are ranked above personal freedom and individual rights, what contradicts modern values such as individualism and self-expression the Amish receive a durable and visible ethnic identity” (pg. 68). The traditional community is quite separate from the outside world,...
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...1) Utilizing Hofstede's research in culture discusses one area in which the Disney corporate culture did not fit with the French national culture? Do the US and France rate similarly in this dimension? 2) Which of the four strategic dispositions did Disney seem to use in the case? What is simplification and was Disney guilty of utilizing this process. Describe one specific example to justify your answer. Disney corporate culture did not fit with the French national culture in many aspects. Using the Hofstede’s research I will discuss the individualism in USA and France. Individualism is the “tendency of people to look after themselves and their immediate family only”. The acceptance of the strict dress code by thousands of employees even when it is criticized by labor organizations is an example for the difference in individualism level. The hiring process was heavily criticized by applicants, the press, and even the French unions. The controversy revolved around Disney’s grooming requirements. Disney enforced a strict dress code, a ban on facial hair and colored stockings, standards for neat hair and fingernails, and even a policy of “appropriate undergarments.” Applicants and labor leaders felt that requirements were excessive and much stricter than other employers. It was against the French law, which prohibits employers from restricting individual and collective liberties. The efforts to force Disney loosen the standards were unsuccessful. Another example...
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...1. Some perceptions how Americans see the French can be that they are arrogant, flamboyance, hierarchical, and emotional. On the other hand the French perceptions of Americans views can be that we are aggressive, unprincipled, and workaholics. Power distance is the extent to which less powerful members of institutions and organizations accept that power is distributed equally. Power distance of the American and French cultures is not distributed equally. It is derived from the position and the level of management one has in terms of the power distance relationship. Uncertainty avoidance is the extent to which people feel threatened by ambiguous situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid these. Uncertainty avoidance is relative both in American and French culture. Threatening situations do exist in both cultures and employees are advised to avoid ambiguous situations when possible. It is important to recognize the role an employee is expected to perform to avoid uncertainty whenever possible. Individualism is the tendency of people to look after themselves and their immediate family only. In the American culture it is characterized by individualism. An employee looks after one’s self and his or her immediate family. In the more collective French culture, what is best for the group is emphasized. This is a proponent of communism, which may apply in some industries in France. Masculinity exists in a culture when the dominant values in society are success...
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... George Sharghi Abstract Mr. Kafka is an American of Czech origin. He’s a franchisor for Chicago Style Pizza and decided to expand his business into the Czech Republic and anticipates he will face some difficulties at the new location in Prague, Czech Republic. Born in the United States, he has family and friends in the Czech Republic, speaks Czech fluently, and has visited the country of his origin several times (University of Phoenix, 2010). This paper will identify major differences, incompatibilities, risks, mitigation factor, comparative advantages that exist and how best Steve can benefit, Hofstede's four primary dimensions, trade barriers, assessment of demand, cost, and what Mr. Steve Kafka should know about price and income elasticites. U.S./Czech Cultures & Comparative Advantages Some of the major differences and incompatibilities between the United States and Czech cultures are; norms, values, beliefs and behavior. The citizens of the Czech Republic believe in the firm hand shakes upon introduction and again when departing. They address each other by their first name takes time and occur when the consent is mutual. They raise a hand in order to get their attention. Czech citizens are well informed about politics and religion. The general attitude of Americans tends to be frank and outspoken. They tend to voice their opinions and share their views or a variety of subjects (Cultural, 2009). Americans tend to value innovations, industry, and integrity...
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...Jordan’s Male Academy: An Insight Look American individualism, a conceptualized form of individualism, is the basis through which individuals are believed to be best represented for accuracy to generalized standards of behavior. However, it is the diversity of this country that makes the American individualism more opaque and less clear, when deviations from the standard appear. Jordan High School is an institution in Long Beach, and the place for the project observations to take place. The framework to be used in this project is a combination of Geert Hofstede’s value dimensions and Edward T. Hall’s High and Low Context cultures, to better understand the culture within the school. As part of my research, outside sources are included such as websites, books, scholarly journals, etc. According to data from the academic year 2013-2014, the total enrollment of the school is 3,481 students. The student ethnicity is divided as follows: 67.3% Hispanic or Latino, 21.6% Black or African American, 4.1% Asian, 3.2% Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 1.8% White, 0.2% American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.3% Two or more races, and 0.2% Not reported. The student population is majorly populated by students on the free/reduced meals program, and an estimated 22% are English learners. The most frequent language of English learner students is Spanish, with an 84%, followed by Khmer (Cambodian), 0.8%. The teacher’s ethnicity is described as follows for the 2011-2012 academic school year, 62...
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...1. Discuss the cultural differences, risks, and difficulties of working in Poland compared to the U.S. Culture is the most influential factors in the human life which have deep impacts on the personal behavior. Here in this case same things happen where two different culture believer clash with each other in the working place. The cultural system in America is more focused on individualism. Due to those factors American people work hard to climb up in the upper position in the work place therefore they thrive in any types of work environment and anywhere in the world. Writer, LisaHoecklin (P1, 2012) explains about the American culture and its success. “People in individualistic cultures emphasize their success/achievements in job or private wealth and aiming up to reach more and/or a better job position. Especially in the USA the fight about jobs and trying to climb up in the hierarchy ladder is something very common there. It just counts to get there less caring who will leave behind one. In business they try to improve their connections and to gain more value out of them, not for establishing a good relationship but just to be involved in a calculative way.” The Polish culture focuses more on community or organization rather than individuals where in another term we can define as relationship driven culture. Therefore, in these circumstances American employees more enjoy the competition within the organization between the workers where as their counterpart emphasizes on...
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...Dayra Cerda Extra Credit Assignment Comparing Japan with USA The United States and Japan differ in many things, such as power distance, individualism, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance, long term orientation and indulgence. Power distance refers to how power is distributed and the extent to which the person who is less powerful accept that power is distributed unequally. The power distance in the United States is a 40 on the scale, compared to Japan with a 54. Japan exhibits a more unequal distribution of wealth compared to the USA. US's wealth is distributed more evenly and decisions are more democratic than in Japan. Individualism people believe in taking care of themselves and immediate family only. The scale of individualism in the US is 91. Americans are comfortable with doing business and interacting with those they do not know well. Japanese scale is at 46 which indicates they are oriented more toward collectivism. Japanese are more concerned with groups, family and areas of interest that pertain to many individuals. A masculine society means they enjoy competition, success and achievement. In the United States, the score for masculinity is at 62, which means they strive to be the best. Many Americans display their...
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...Chapter 4 – International Accounting Culture Culture is a broad concept that would be expected to impact on legal system, tax system, the way businesses are formed and financed and so on. In recent decades, it has also been used to try to explain international differences in accounting systems. Violet(1983) argued that accounting is a ‘socio-technological activity’ that involved interaction between both human and non-human resources. Violet claims that accounting cannot be considered culture-free. Hofstede(1980) has defined culture as ‘the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one human group from another.’ Gray argues that the value systems of accountants will be derived and related to societal values, Cultural dimension of • Individualism, • Power Distance, • Uncertainty Avoidance and • Masculinity The values of accounting subculture will in turn, it is believed, impact on the development of the respective accounting systems at the national level. Therefore, at this point we can perhaps start to question whether accounting system can be developed in a “one-size-fits-all perspective – an approach which in some respects, the IASC appears to have adopted. Individualism versus Collectivism Individualism stands for a preference for a loosely knit social framework in society wherein individuals are supposed to take care of themselves and their immediate families only. Collectivism stands for a preference for a tightly...
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...Abstract Building on Hofstede’s individualism-collectivism cultural dimension, Pruitt’s negotiation styles model, and Rahim’s conflict management model, this research examines how national culture influence the way people choose negotiation and conflict resolution handling styles through an empirical study of 87 individuals in the U.S. The respondents were divided in two groups: American, and Ethiopians. The results show that the individualism-collectivism cultural dimension did differentiate the members of the American culture from the members of the Ethiopian culture. Among the negotiation and conflict management styles object of this study, the dominating style was found to be preferred by those with high concern for self, whereas the cooperating and the integrating styles were found to be preferred by those with high concern for others. Introduction In order to remain competitive in their respective markets companies around the world are expanding their horizons beyond their original country, and they are increasingly seeking international partnerships and business ventures in different cultural environments. The ability to negotiate across national borders and within the organization has become increasingly important in the past decade, but despite the continuous growth of business globalization negotiation and conflict resolution styles are often misunderstood. According to much of the literature available scholars have conducted substantial research on the subjects...
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...The Differences of Family Values in Chinese and American Cultures ABSTRACT This paper aims to make a contrastive study on family values in Chinese and American cultures from the three parts: the attitude to the family members and their relationships, marriage and family education. As the pace of the global economy integration accelerates, cross-cultural communication between China and America is becoming more and more frequent and important，and the research can undoubtedly help Chinese people and American people to further understand with each other and their family values and to avoid the unnecessary conflict caused by the misunderstanding and mistakes in cross-cultural communication. Key words: the differences of family values, filial piety, marriage, family education Table of Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 Literature Review 2 3 The Definitions of Family, Values and Family Values 3 3.1 The Definition of Family 3 3.2 The Definition of Values 3 3.2.1 The Decisive Values in Chinese Culture: Collectivism 3 3.2.2 The Decisive Values in American Culture: Individualism 4 3.3 The Definition of Family Values 4 3.4 The Meaning of Family to Chinese and Americans 5 4 Differences Between Chinese and Americans Family Values 5 4.1 The Attitude to the Family Members and Their Relationships 6 4.1.1 The Attitude to the Family Members and...
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...The Values Americans Live by: A Summary University of San Diego MSGL 510: Cohort 54 The Values Americans Live by: A summary It doesn’t matter if you are a foreigner coming to America to live or an American moving abroad, culture shock is an important issue. To be successful in another culture, one has to understand their values. In looking at the United States, Kohls (1988) determined that there are 13 values that Americans live by and he discussed those in an article. Commentary on the List of Basic American Values 1. Personal Control over the Environment/Responsibility Americans believe they have control over nature and that this is part of their natural destiny and that there are few things man cannot achieve. Americans believe that everyone should look out for their own self-interests and not depend on others (Kohls, 1988). 2. Change Seen as Natural and Positive Kohls (1988) talks about the fact that many cultures view change as not always something positive. These cultures value stability, continuity, tradition, and a rich and ancient heritage (Kohls, 1988). 3. Time and Its Control Time is critically important to Americans. Time is the given and people are the variable. To people from other countries Americans may be a little obsessed about being on time, scheduling their time, and making the best use of their time (Kohls, 1988). 4. Equality/Fairness The general premise is that people should be...
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