Barbados, Cyprus, and Chile Culture Comparison

DISCUSSION BOARD FORUM 5: Hofstede Analysis 

Section 1: Dimensions of Management Culture Comparison 

Dimension	Chile	Barbados	Cyprus	USA
PDI	63	84	60	40
IDV	23	30	39	91
MAS	28	76	45	62
UAI	86	37	86	46
LTO	31	0	0	26

(Venaik & Brewer, 2016) 

Section 2: Analysis of Section 1 Results 

How the dimensions of management culture of the 3 countries differ from Each Other 

Every society has its unique culture which differentiates it from other communities. The differences or similarities between different cultures can be categorized using different elements. Geert Hofstede and his friends came up with dimensions used to classify and compare the cultures of different countries. The scores range from 0 to 100. Five of the six available aspects are used in this paper to compare and contrast dimensions of management of culture of Barbados, Cyprus, Chile, and compare against the United States Cultural dimensions. 

Power Distance Index (PDI) is used to describe the level of inequality that exists and is acceptable between individuals with and without power. If the PDI of a region is high, then the people of society accept hierarchical and unequal power distribution. Everyone in that society belongs to a particular power position in such a society. Low PDI means that power is widely dispersed and shared among the members of the nation. Members of the society do not accept the unequal distribution of power in these regions (Venaik & Brewer, 2016). Among the three countries, Barbados has the highest PDI of 84, Chile has 63, and Cyprus has 60. The difference is that in Barbados, power equality is massive and is accepted by the citizens. This high index means that the country is characterized by complex hierarchies. Chile and Cyprus have lower PDI, that means that in power inequality in the two countries are lower. 

Individualism (IDV) describes the ties and closeness people are with one another within the community. High IDV shows that people have a weak interpersonal connection with others who are not close members of their family (Minkov et al., 2017). People care less about the actions and outcomes of other non-family members of the community. Low IDV is referred to as collectivism, and it describes a situation where people have strong ties and interest in other people’s actions and outcomes. Among the three countries, Chile has the lowest IDV, meaning that the citizens tend to be close and take an interest in one another’s affairs. Barbados follows it at 30, then Cyprus at 39 (Venaik & Brewer, 2016). 

Masculinity (MAS) refers to the difference between male and female roles. High values of MUS show patriarchal societies. Chile is the least patriarchal country with a score of 28 followed by Cyprus at 45. Barbados has a vast difference between men and women’s roles with a score of 76. Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI) describes people’s ability to cope with anxiety. Chile and Cyprus have high UAI meaning that people make their life predictable and controllable. If things get complicated, they stop trying. An index of 37 in Barbados implies that people are relaxed and open to go through any situation. The final dimension is Long-Term Orientation (LTO), used to describe pragmatism within a country (Venaik & Brewer, 2016). Barbados and Cyprus have scores of 0, meaning that people are shot-term oriented. At Chile, there is 31 score level of pragmatism. 

How the Dimensions of Management Culture of the 3 Countries Differ From the United States 

In the United States, the PDI score is 40. This score means that there is more power equality in the US than the three other countries. The IDV score in the US is the highest. People in the United States have stronger interpersonal ties than the other countries (Minkov et al., 2017). Masculinity score is 62 in the US. Patriarchy in the United States is higher than Chile and Cyprus but lower than Barbados at 76. US citizens have a moderate ability to cope with uncertainties reflected in their national score of 46. It is higher than in Chile and Cyprus but lower than Barbados. Finally, the US believes in short-term achievements and quick results. This is reflected in a score of 26. It is slightly lower than Chile but higher than Barbados and Cyprus who are totally short-term oriented (Venaik & Brewer, 2016). 

How the Dimensions of Management for the 3 Countries are Similar to Each Other 

The PDI values are at least 60 in the three countries. It means that they all believe in unequal power distribution and hierarchical levels of power. Individualism scores are below 40 in all the nations. People are less concerned with others’ actions and outcomes. Patriarchic beliefs and behaviors in Chile and Cyprus are almost similar and are low reflected in scores of less than 50 but high in Barbados (Minkov et al., 2017). UAI in Cyprus and Chile are similarly high but less than 40 in Barbados. All the three countries are more short-term oriented with both Barbados and Cyprus being short-term oriented nations. 

How Dimensions of the 3 Countries are Similar to USA 

The only similarity in power structures between the US and the United States is that they all have some level of equal distribution with the US leading with the lowest score of 40. There is no similarity in individualism behaviors. Patriarchal behaviors in the US is as high as 62 and is close to Barbados and Cyprus. UAI of the US is as low as 46, almost similar to Barbados. All the LTOs are similarly low. 

DISCUSSION BOARD FORUM 6: Trompenaars Analysis 

Section 1: Trompenaars Dimensions of Management Culture Comparison Chart 

Dimension	Chile	Barbados	Cyprus	USA
U v. P	Particularism	Particularism	Universalism	Universalism
I v. C	Communitarian	Communitarian	Communitarian	Individualist
N v. E	Emotional	Neutral	Emotional	Typical neutral
S v. D	Diffuse	Diffuse	Diffuse	Specific
A v. A	Moderately Achievement	Ascription	Moderately Achievement	Typical Achievement
S v. S	Sequential time	Sequential	Sequential	Sequential
I v. E	External	Internal	External	Internal

( Vaiman & Brewster, 2015) 

Section 2: Analysis of Section 1 Results 

How the Dimensions of Management Culture of the 3 Foreign Nations Differ 

In universalism, people value and behave according to laws, values, obligations, and rules, while particularism describes behavior based on each circumstance. Cyprus believes in universalism, Barbados has a moderately particularistic culture, while Chile is a typical particularistic nation. All three countries are communitarian. Chile and Cyprus are emotional, while Barbados people are neutral in terms of how they express emotions (Hauff, Richter, & Tressin, 2015). All three foreign countries have a culture which diffuses work and personal life. In both Chile and Cyprus, people are valued for what they are and what they have achieved. This is different from Barbados, where judgment is based on who one is and power positions. In all the countries, time culture is sequential meaning that events are based on some order. Beliefs about the ability to control the environment and its influence on goals differ (Vaiman & Brewster, 2015). Both Cyprus and Chile people believe that they cannot control nature while Barbados people believe they have internal control ability. 

How the Dimensions of Management Culture of the 3 Foreign Nations Differ from the US 

The United States is a typical Universalist culture where there is a total belief in rules and laws. It is different from the three countries which are either moderate Universalist or particularistic. While the other countries are communitarians, the US believes in individual achievement and freedom. Also, the US people are typically neutral as they always find ways to control their emotions, unlike Cyprus and Chile. The US is a typical culture where work and personal life are separate, while the three countries are diffuse cultures. While Chile and Cyprus partially judge their people based on achievement and Barbados on power, US culture is a typical achievement (Hauff et al., 2015). There is a slight difference in the manner in which the cultures manage their time and events. However, all are sequential time cultures, just like the United States. Finally, both Barbados and the United States believe in internal control of nature while the other two are external direction cultures. 

How the Dimensions of Management Culture of the 3 Nations are Similar to Each Other 

Based on the analysis in section 1, there are some dimensions where either two or all the countries are similar in cultural beliefs and practices. For example, all three foreign nations are communitarian, diffuse, and are sequential time managers (Vaiman & Brewster, 2015). Chile and Cyprus share beliefs on emotional response, individual judgment criteria where they are both moderately Achievement Nations, and lack of internal control over environmental factors. However, even the areas of similarities might differ in one way or another from one country to the next. 

How the Dimensions of Management Culture of the 3 Nations are Similar to the US 

The United States and the three countries share dimensions such as time and planning. It shares the following aspects with Barbados: Emotional response and belief in internal direction (Hauff et al., 2015). 

References 

Hauff, S., Richter, N. F., & Tressin, T. (2015). Situational job characteristics and job satisfaction: The moderating role of national culture. International business review , 24 (4), 710-723. 

Minkov, M., Dutt, P., Schachner, M., Morales, O., Sanchez, C., Jandosova, J., ... & Mudd, B. (2017). A revision of Hofstede’s individualism-collectivism dimension: A new national index from a 56-country study. Cross Cultural & Strategic Management , 24 (3), 386-404. 

Vaiman, V., & Brewster, C. (2015). How far do cultural differences explain the differences between nations? Implications for HRM. The International Journal of Human Resource Management , 26 (2), 151-164. 

Venaik, S., & Brewer, P. (2016). National culture dimensions: The perpetuation of cultural ignorance. Management learning , 47 (5), 563-589.