How are culture and society responsible to built value system?

Answer 1

Values: Values represent basic convictions that "a specific mode of conduct or end state of existence is personally or socially preferable to an opposite or converse mode of conduct or end-state of existence. It has been observed that values differ across cultures. One of the most widely referred approaches for analyzing variations among cultures was by Geert Hofstede. According to Hofstede, managers and employees vary on five values dimension of national culture. They are:

Power Distance: This dimension measures the social equality i.e. the degree to which people in a country accept that power in institutions and organizations is distributed unequally. Ranges from relatively equal (low power distance) to extremely unequal (high power distance)

Individualism versus Collectivism: Individualism is the degree to which people in a country prefer to act as individual rather than as members of groups. Collectivism is a national culture attribute that describes a tight social framework in which people expect others in group of which they are a part to look after them and protect them.

Achievement versus nurturing: Achievement is the degree to which values such as assertiveness, the acquisition of money and material goods, and competition prevail. Nurturing is the degree to which people value relationships, and show sensitivity and concern for the welfare of others.

Uncertainty avoidance: The degree to which people in a country prefer structured over unstructured situations. In countries that score high on uncertainty avoidance, people have an increased level of anxiety, which manifests itself in greater nervousness, stress, and aggressiveness.

Long-term versus Short-term orientation: People in cultures with long-term orientations look to the future and value thrift and persistence. A short-term orientation values the past and the present and emphasizes respect for tradition and fulfilling social obligations.

With his research Hofstede found that how countries and cultures differed. A few of highlights are: China and West Africa secured high on power distance; the United States and the Netherlands secured low. Most Asian countries were more collectivist than individualistic; the United States ranked highest among all countries on individualism. Germany and Hong Kong rates high on achievement; Russia and the Netherlands rated low.

The GLOBE framework for assessing cultures:

Global Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Effectiveness (GLOBE) research programme started in 1993, is an ongoing cross-cultural investigation of leadership and national cultures. Using data from 825 organizations in 62 countries, the GLOBE team identified none dimensions on which national culture differs.

Assertiveness: The extent to which a society encourages people to be tough, confrontational, assertive, and competitive versus modest and tender.

Future Orientation: The extent to which a society encourages and rewards future oriented behaviours such as planning, investing in future, and delaying gratification.

Gender differentiation: The extent to which a society maximizes gender role differences.

Uncertainty avoidance: In was defined by GLOBE team as a society's reliance on social norms and procedures to alleviate the unpredictability of future events.

Power distance: As did Hofstede, the GLOBE team defined this as the degree to which members of a society expect power to be unequally shared.

Individualism / Collectivism:Again, this term was defined, as was Hofstede's, as the degree to which individual are encouraged by societal institutions to be integrated into groups within organizations and society.

In-group collectivism: In contrast to focusing on societal institutions, this dimension encompasses the extent to which members of a society take prode in membership in small groups, such as their family and circle of close friends, and the organization on which they are employed.

Performance Orientation:This refers to the degree to which a society encourages and rewards individual for being fair, altruistic, generous caring, and kind to others.

A comparison of the GLOBE dimension against those identified by Hofstede suggests that the former has extended Hofstede's work rather than replaced it. The GLOBE project confirms that Hofstede's five dimensions are still valid. However, it has added some additional dimensions and provides us with an updated measure of where countries rate on each dimension. For instance, while the United States led the world in individualism in the 1970s, today it scores in the mid-ranks of countries.