Cultural Value Dimensions and Implications for International Management

Abstract

This paper  identifies the cultural value dimensions as defined by Hofstede and the implications they hold for international management. The goal is to establish an understanding of the importance of culture for the management of foreign operations. The four cultural value dimensions being discussed are individualism/collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity/femininity. Culture has serious implications on the attitude, behavior and value of employees and therefore on management practices and theories. The paper discusses the aspects of each of the four dimensions and how the underlying cultural attributes affect employee and organizational behavior. Difficulties of the cultural differences on the foreign operation are outlined