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Reply to 3 students 90 words each.Book Reading: Chapters 6 & 11BOOK: Applying Communication Theory for Professional Life: A Practical Introduction, 4th Editionhttps://books.google.com/books?id=ho5EDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Hofstede’s Dimensions of Culture
Your textbook presents Hofstede’s dimensions of culture and describes US culture in several
of the subsections. Do you agree with these descriptions? Please explain why you agree or
disagree.
1. Hofstede’s Dimensions of Culture is understanding of cultural differences in societies across the world. All
of which provide insight into how different cultures approach things like freedom, tolerance, orientation,
and authority to name a few. Now in the text there is a table that breaks down the ranking of the countries
based off Hofstede’s dimensions. The US is on the table which highlights it from Individualism Collectivism, Uncertainty Avoidance, Power Distance, Masculinity-Femininity, and Long-Term and ShortTerm.
In terms of Individuals and collectivism, in the US I would agree with the assertion that Individualism ranks
high, however some could make a case for collectivism. Based in certain areas of the country you generally
live in would determine that assertion. If we are speaking on the uncertainty, then clearly I would have to
agree with that assertion of low uncertainty. This would be based solely on experience. I am not sure whether
I agree or disagree with the moderate label for the power. I could see it go either way, again based solely on
location within the United States. The last two, there is no question as both masculinity and short term are
agreeable. Every day highlights the short term with those on social media posting on a simple life with all
the amenities that normal individuals do not have.
2. From my understanding of Hofstede’s descriptions of U.S. culture, I agree with all of them. As per Hofstede’s
research, which was cited in Dainton & Zelley (2018), the United States is an individualistic cu lture, which
means that it values independence over dependence and uniqueness over sameness. In such cultures,
individual achievements are rewarded, and merit pay and employee recognition programs are often used by
organizations to recognize and elevate the performance of certain individuals above their peers.
Additionally, competition is highly valued in individualistic cultures, and it is often seen as a driving force
behind individual achievement. The United States is known for its individualistic cultur e, particularly when
it comes to child-rearing. It is the only culture that encourages young adults to leave home at the age of 18.
The proverb “every man for himself” is often used to describe American culture. In a collectivistic culture,
the needs and goals of a group take precedence over those of an individual. This is why family is highly
valued in collectivistic cultures. Some examples of countries with high collectivism are Mexico, Arab
countries, South Korea, and Venezuela (Dainton & Zelley, 2018). On the other hand, Italy, Sweden, and the
United States are known for high individualism. I can appreciate both individualism and collectivism in
culture, believing that each can provide valuable benefits to an individual throughout their life.
3. Hofstede’s cultural dimensions can act as a framework for how we understand a society’s culture based on
five categories: power distance, individualism versus collectivism, masculinity versus femininity,
uncertainty avoidance, and long term and short term orientation (Dainton and Zelley, 2018). Power distance
is defined as the degree to which members in a society recognize and accept power imbalances, and our
textbook cites that the United States aligns with a culture of low power distance (Dainton and Zell ey, 2018).
While I do agree that one of the core pillars of US culture is equal opportunity to achieve success, I would
argue there are many social factors that come into play that do not necessarily guarantee success as a product
of hard work. The dimension of individualism versus collectivism refers to the values members of society
hold with regards to those around them (Dainton and Zelley, 2018). Individualistic cultures value the
individual over the whole social group, while collectivist cultures value group membership (Dainton and
Zelley, 2018). The United States is labeled as an individualistic culture, which I strongly agree with, as our
society praises individual achievement, independence, and in general, putting yourself and your needs above
all else. Masculinity/ femininity discusses how biological sex and gender expression relate to each other
(Dainton and Zelley, 2018). The United States is categorized as a masculine culture, which emphasizes
traditional gender roles based on biological gender (Dainton and Zelley, 2018), which I both agree and
disagree with. I would argue that the elements of masculine culture are the prevailing norm, but the LGBTQ+
community has also made significant strides in redefining gender and sexuality, which can be seen in the
legalization of same sex marriage or the emerging number of working women in powerful professional
positions. Uncertainty avoidance explains how members of a society react and respond to uncertain/
ambiguous social situations (Dainton and Zelley, 2018). Our textbooks describes the US as a lowuncertainty-avoidance culture, which means that we do not rely on structure and are more inclined to
embrace uncertainty (Dainton and Zelley, 2018). I would argue this is context -dependent, as there are some
organizations, such as the military or hospitals, for example, that rely on rigid structure in order to be able
function appropriately. The final element is long-term or short term-orientation refers to whether cultures
value “thrift, savings, and perseverance” or instant gratification (Dainton and Zelley, 2018). The United
States is recognized as a short-term oriented culture, which I strongly agree with as members of our society
tend to gravitate toward promises of rapid results or immediate gratification, whi ch we can see through the
success of businesses such as Amazon Prime, which offers overnight or next-day shipping on their inventory
for a monthly fee. In conclusion, the United States is a diverse society, so while these dimensions create a
basic framework for studying cultural differences, it is also important to understand how different subgroups
deviate from the established norm.
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