The above graph shows the comparison between Mexico and the United States in relationship to Hofstede’s 6-D Model. I want to take a closer look at how not only Mexico and the United States stack up, but how they compare. Since the two countries are close in proximity but not in culture I thought it would be interesting to see if Hofstede’s model would give us greater insight into how and possibly how we differ so greatly.
The first interesting thing that pops out when looking at both the United States and Mexico on the graph is that compared to each other they are either very close or very far apart. For example in the categories of masculinity and long term orientation both countries have similar scores. However in the categories of power distance, individualism, uncertainty avoidance, and indulgence the scores differ greatly. Why is this and what does it mean in terms of understanding how each culture is different?
First let’s look at power distance and uncertainty avoidance. Power distance is the “extent to which a society accepts that power in institutions is distributed equally” (Moran, Moran, and Abramson, 2014, pg. 19). The power distance score for Mexico is very high. This suggests that in Mexico accepts the hierarchal system of government without much justification. This could also be relative to their score in uncertainty avoidance. Uncertainty avoidance is the “extent to which a society feels threatened by uncertain situations.”(Moran, Moran, and Abramson, 2014, pg. 19). Mexico having a high score in this category suggests that as a culture they are not comfortable with uncertainty or ambiguous situations. Could their acceptance of a hierarchal government be a result of their need as a culture to have more solid political situations? I think this is an interesting idea that could be argued for. In contrast the United States scored much lower in power distance and in uncertainty avoidance. Note however that the scores for the United States in both categories are similar and so are Mexico’s scores in each category.
Finally let’s look at the scores in the Individualism category. Mexico scored 30. This is much, much lower than the United States score of 91. Does this have an impact on the other scores? The answer is yes. Individualism is defined in our text as “a loose knit social framework in a society in which people are supposed to take care of themselves and of their immediate families only.”(Moran, Moran, and Abramson, 2014, pg. 19). Cultures with a higher individualism scores take care of themselves, while cultures with lower scores are more apt to care for each other in groups of unquestioned loyalty. (Hoftede, n.d.). The United States having a higher individualism score and a lower power distance and uncertainty score makes sense culturally. A high power distance score suggests that people are unequal, that some are more important, if you will, than others. American’s are very cautious of this idea, centering their entire culture on preventing anyone from being treated unequal to anyone else. Similarly the America’s low score in uncertainty avoidance makes sense by the same logic. The United States’ cultural norm of taking care of one’s self and family first supports being “ok” with less certainty outside of their family and personal bubble. Mexico has opposite scores, scoring very low in individualism and high in power distance and uncertainty avoidance. Thinking along the same train of thought as with the United States, this fits in line with their cultural norms.
After comparing a country that we are familiar with based on proximity, I think it is easier to fully grasp Hofstede’s 6 dimensions, and how they work together. I am sure there are more ways in which the scores for each country inform each other but looking at Mexico and the United States over the three categories covered is a quick way to start looking at different cultural preferences and how the effect each other.
- :Routledge.Hofstede, G. (2016). Hofstede’s six dimensional model. Retrieved from https://geert-hofstede.com
- Moran, R. T., Abramson, N. R., & Moran, S. V. (2014). Managing Cultural Differences (9th ed.). Oxford
Very detailed Blog….I was very interested while reading this. However, i believe there is some key information missing that could have helped you define the difference in come graph results. In your article you write, “Power distance is the “extent to which a society accepts that power in institutions is distributed equally” (Moran, Moran, and Abramson, 2014, pg. 19). The power distance score for Mexico is very high. This suggests that in Mexico accepts the hierarchal system of government without much justification. This could also be relative to their score in uncertainty avoidance. Uncertainty avoidance is the “extent to which a society feels threatened by uncertain situations.”(Moran, Moran, and Abramson, 2014, pg. 19).” What are the differences between the two hierarchy systems. I have referenced back to these two via the chart, and it also gives an analysis of the chart, and your descriptions are very much similar. It would be nice to see some of your own thoughts to why you believe the chart ended up the way it did, and what is driving the results.