Quiz 4: The Meanings and Dimensions of Culture

The word culture comes from the Latin cultura, which is related to cult or worship.

While stereotypes and overgeneralizations should be avoided, there are always individual differences and even subcultures within every country that must be addressed.

The characteristic transgenerational means that culture has structure and is integrated; a change in one part will bring changes in another.

Although culture is an important variable in understanding international management, it falls well short of affecting how people think and behave.

According to the text, in Japan, the top cultural priority is independence.

Increasingly, individual rewards are an accepted norm in countries across the globe.

A major dimension in the study of culture is values.

The Japanese earthquake and tsunami in 2011 were the only causes of the meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, and the company worked quickly to initiate emergency measures.

George England found that personal value systems are relatively stable and do not change rapidly.

Because of the Japanese pride in excellence, a problem with the accelerator on some Toyota vehicles was quickly reported to superiors who worked with the designers to fix the problem.

Power distance is "the extent to which less powerful members of institutions and organizations accept that power is distributed unequally."

Countries with low uncertainty-avoidance cultures have a great deal of structuring of organizational activities, more written rules, less risk-taking by managers, lower labor turnover, and less ambitious employees.

Masculinity is defined by Hofstede as "a situation in which the dominant values in society are success, money, and things."

Cultures with a high masculinity index tend to favor earnings, advancement, and challenge.

In describing the concept of time.Trompenaars identified three different approaches: sequential, circular, and synchronous.

Universalism is the belief that ideas and practices can be applied everywhere without modification.

The United Kingdom is considered a high-neutral culture.

Individuals in a specific culture often appear to be indirect and introverted, and work and private life often are closely linked.

An achievement culture is a culture in which status is attributed based on who or what a person is.

Results of the GLOBE project indicate that there are leader behaviors, attributes, and organizational practices that are universally accepted and effective across cultures.

Japanese firms tend to have a culture of deference which is supported by all of the following except: A)the unwillingness of workers to report problems to their superiors B)the unwillingness of workers to question their superiors C)the unwillingness of workers to challenge what has been decided D)the unwillingness of workers to be loyal to the firm

The three completed GLOBE phases explore the various elements of the dynamic relationship between ______ and ______. A)time; the environment B)the culture; organizational behavior C)physical; psychological well-being D)political; economic systems

_____ is acquired knowledge that people use to interpret, experience, and generate social behavior. A)Edification B)Culture C)Symbol D)Cognition

All of the following are accurate descriptions of the main characteristics of culture except: A)Culture is inherited or biologically based; it is not acquired by learning and experience B)People as members of a group, organization, or society share culture; it is not specific to a single individual C)Culture is cumulative, passed down from one generation to the next D)Culture is based on the human capacity to symbolize or use one thing to represent another

The following definitions accurately match their dimension of culture except: A)People as members of a group, organization, or society share culture B)Culture is not structured and is not integrated C)Culture is based on the human capacity to change or adapt D)Culture is cumulative, passed down from one generation to another

Identify the handshake that does not accurately match the culture it is associated. A)Asian―gentle B)French―light and quick C)Latin America―moderate grasp; repeated frequently D)United States―soft

Culturally, a German can be expected to have a _____ handshake. A)Gentle B)Light and quick C)Brusque and firm D)Long and involved

According to the text, the highest cultural priority (or value) in the U.S.is: A)Family security B)Belonging C)Freedom D)Cooperation

According to the text, the highest cultural priority (or value) in Japan is: A)Cooperation B)Individualism C)Family security D)Belonging

If a culture encourages stability, it means that it: A)Is averse to formal procedures B)Encourages innovation C)Is resistant to change D)Focuses on short-term horizons

If cultural norms do not give employees bonuses or commissions as a form of recognition, it means that the culture: A)Encourages stability B)Is informal C)Is high on organizational loyalty D)Frowns upon individual rewards

In the graphic representation of the model of culture, the center or heart of culture is the: A)Explicit artifacts and products of the society B)Norms and values that guide the society C)Implicit, basic assumptions that guide people's behavior D)History of a nation and the resulting norms of behavior

Buildings and art are considered to be the _____ of a culture. A)Explicit artifacts and product B)Norms and values C)Formal values D)Basic assumptions that govern behavior

All of the following are true regarding business customs in South Africa except: A)Most South Africans prefer face-to-face interactions B)First meetings are less about business and more about establishing a relationship C)Appointments should be made as far in advance as possible D)Men and women in business expect to be treated equally

The U.S.cultural value that suggests that individuals can influence the future is reflected in which management function? A)Goal setting and career development B)Loyalty and commitment C)Career development and marketing D)Planning and scheduling

_____ are basic convictions that people have regarding what is right and wrong, good and bad, important or unimportant. A)Tenets B)Edicts C)Norms D)Values

Differences in work values have been found to reflect: A)Culture only B)Culture and education C)Culture and industrialization D)Industrialization only

Which of the following would be considered a typical U.S.cultural value? A)Competition leads to imbalances and disharmony B)Withholding information to gain or maintain power is acceptable C)Competition stimulates high performance D)Symbols and the process are more important than the end points

Even though there are distinctions among organization cultures, research shows that managers from different countries often have: A)Same organization policies B)Value similarities C)Class similarities D)Similar political views

According to a cross-cultural study of differences in work values, _____ managers place a high value on deference to superiors, on company commitment and on the cautious use of aggressiveness and control. A)U.S. B)German C)French D)Japanese

According to a cross-cultural study of differences in work values, _____ managers place a high value on the tactful acquisition of influence and regard for others. A)Chinese B)German C)French D)U.S.

According to a study conducted by England and Lee, all of the following are accurate descriptions of the similarities in cultural values across nations except: A)Although there are country differences in the relationship between values and success, findings across the four countries included in the study are quite similar B)It is evident that value patterns predict managerial success and could be used in selection and placement decisions C)There is a relatively weak relationship between the level of success achieved by managers and their personal values D)The general pattern indicates that more successful managers appear to favor pragmatic, dynamic, achievement-oriented values, while less successful managers prefer more static and passive values

According to Trompenaars, it is important to play hardball, test the resilience of the opponent, win some objectives, and always lose from time to time when dealing with those from cultures that believe: A)in dominating the environment B)in letting things take their natural course C)they play a significant role in the new world economy D)they do not have enough control over the direction their lives are taking

Which of the following is an accurate values profile of successful U.S.managers? A)High moral orientation, highly individualistic, and a strong focus on organization compliance and competence B)Highly pragmatic, highly individualistic, and strong achievement and competence orientation C)Highly pragmatic; high achievement and competence orientation; an emphasis on profit maximization, organizational efficiency, and high productivity D)Highly pragmatic, strong emphasis on size and growth, and high value on competence and achievement

Which of the following is an accurate values profile of successful Japanese managers? A)Highly pragmatic, highly individualistic, and strong achievement and competence orientation B)Highly pragmatic, strong emphasis on size and growth, and high value on competence and achievement C)Highly pragmatic; high achievement and competence orientation; an emphasis on profit maximization, organizational efficiency, and high productivity D)High moral orientation; high humanistic orientation; and low value on achievement, success, competition, and risk

Identify common characteristics found between Australian and Indian managers. A)Both are highly individualistic B)Both are highly pragmatic C)Both have high moral orientation D)Both strongly lay emphasis on competition and risk

Paternalism, measured by a manager's involvement in both personal and off-the-job problems of subordinates is very important in: A)The United States B)Australia C)Japan D)France

According to Dutch researcher Geert Hofstede, there are four original dimensions of culture.These are: A)Power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, and masculinity B)Tolerance, group orientation, aggressiveness, and forwardness C)Group orientation, uncertainty avoidance, aggressiveness, and masculinity D)Tolerance, power distance, individualism, and aggressiveness

Confucianism, associated with China, does not emphasize: A)Respect for authority B)Balance C)Harmony D)Profit

According to Hofstede, countries with a high _____ index encourage individuals to be independent decision makers and to define achievement in terms of recognition and wealth. A)Power distance B)Masculinity C)Uncertainty avoidance D)Individualism

Which of the following questions is not included in the specific objectives of the GLOBE project? A)Are there leader behaviors, attributes, and organizational practices that are accepted and effective in only some cultures? B)What is the effect of violating cultural norms that are relevant to leadership and organizational practices? C)What is the relative standing of each of the cultures studied on each of the nine core dimensions of culture? D)How do attributes of societal and organizational cultures affect the behaviors of lower-level workers in an organization?

Countries in which people blindly obey the orders of their superiors have a high: A)Uncertainty avoidance B)Masculinity index C)Power distance D)Individualism index

_____ is "the extent to which people feel threatened by ambiguous situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid these." A)Power distance B)Uncertainty avoidance C)Individualism versus collectivism D)Masculinity versus femininity

Cultures with low _____ have people who are more willing to accept that risks are associated with the unknown and that life must go on in spite of this. A)Individualism versus collectivism B)Power distance C)Uncertainty avoidance D)Masculinity versus femininity

Hofstede's _____ dimension focused on the tendency of people to look after themselves and their immediate family rather than the tendency to belong to groups to look after each other in exchange for loyalty. A)Individualism versus collectivism B)Masculinity versus femininity C)Uncertainty avoidance D)Power distance

Hofstede's _____ dimension looked at the relationship between gender and work roles. A)Power distance B)Uncertainty avoidance C)Masculinity versus femininity D)Individualism versus collectivism

Cultures with a low masculinity place great importance on conservation of the environment and tend to favor: A)Third world countries B)Less developed countries C)Underdeveloped countries D)Small-scale enterprises

Countries that have high individualism and relatively low power distance show the following features: A)Prefer others to do things for them B)Are upset when others have more power than they do C)Are not upset when others have more power than they do D)Are collectivist in their approach

Nations that are collectivist in their approach tend to be characterized by: A)Large power distance and low individualism B)Low power distance and high individualism C)Small power distance and weak uncertainty avoidance D)Large power distance and weak uncertainty avoidance

Trompenaars's discussion of the dimension of _____ explores whether people believe in controlling outcomes (inner-directed) or letting things take their own course (outer-directed). A)Time B)The environment C)Masculinity D)Ascription

_____ is the belief that circumstances dictate how ideas and practices should be applied. A)Universalism B)Individualism C)Communitarianism D)Particularism

In his early research, Trompenaars found that in countries such as the United States, Australia, Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom, there was high: A)Particularism B)Communitarianism C)Universalism D)Specificism

According to Trompenaars, _____ refers to people regarding themselves as individuals, while _____ refers to people regarding themselves as part of a group. A)Individualism; communitarianism B)Individualism; specificism C)Universalism; particularism D)Communitarianism; universalism

A(n) _____ culture is one in which emotions are held in check. A)Emotional B)Buoyant C)Neutral D)Specific

A(n) _____ culture is one in which both public and private space are similar in size and individuals guard their public space carefully, because entry into public space affords entry into private space as well. A)Diffuse B)Neutral C)Emotional D)Specific

Austria, the United Kingdom, the United States and Switzerland are all _____ cultures. A)Diffuse B)Specific C)Emotional D)Neutral

A(n) _____ culture is one in which people are accorded status based on how well they perform their functions. A)Achievement B)Ascription C)Diffuse D)Specific

A(n) _____ culture accords status based on age, gender, or social connections. A)Diffuse B)Ascription C)Specific D)Achievement

Societal collectivism refers to the degree to which: A)Individuals express pride, loyalty and cohesiveness in their organizations or families B)Individuals in organizations or societies encourage and reward individuals for being fair C)Organizational and societal institutional practices encourage and reward collective distribution of resources and collective action D)Individuals in organizations or societies are confrontational

Under GLOBE analysis, which of the following countries were the most assertive? A)Spain and U.S. B)Egypt and U.S. C)Spain and Ireland D)Ireland and Sweden

Describe the term culture.Is culture one thing or are there many dimensions to culture?

Discuss Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions.

Discuss the notions of individualism and communitarianism as given by Trompenaars.

Describe the difference between an achievement culture and an ascription culture.How does an understanding of these differences help an international manager be effective in dealing with clients outside his or her own culture?

What is GLOBE? Discuss its cultural dimensions.