In this chapter I enjoyed learning about Hofstede’s dimensions. I am slightly familiar with these terms thanks for previous management classes, but I still found it interesting to learn about the dimensions again and see how they relate to culture.
My “favorite” dimension to learn about is the individualism/collectivism index (IDV). The United States is considered to be an individualist culture because we tend to have an “I” mentality and it is normal for people to look after themselves and their immediate family. Japan, however, is a good example of a collectivist culture. In my previous class I remember learning that in Japan it is common for families to continue living together all throughout their life. Whenever an elderly family member becomes ill, it is expected that the rest of the family does everything they can to assist them. Personally, I think this type of lifestyle is really interesting to learn about because it is so different from how we live and behave here in the United States. Would you prefer living in a collectivist culture, or do you enjoy living in an individualist culture like we do today?
Rachel Nehring says
Skyler, I would have to agree that it was interesting to learn about Hofstede’s four dimensions. I cant recall learning about them in the past, but I really like how I could relate the individualism to the United States and could also give us examples like Japan. I feel like this is something you should really know about a country before you visit and especially before you start to do business with. I know in Spain it is very common for shops and places to close mid-afternoon for awhile because it is suppose to be time spent with your family, then thing re-open to stay up late. I can’t imagine living in another country with more of a “we” mentality and doing things more as a family. I was just raised in a fast past family where you were running from sports practice to another, while my parents were working, so there wasn’t a lot of family dinners. This taught me to really work hard for where I want to be in future with my career and I really like that I have the choice to make that, rather than basing it off of my entire family.