Chapter 3: The Role of Culture Flashcards
1
Q
Culture
A
An integrated system of learned behavior patterns that are distinguishing characteristics of the members of any given society.
Culture is learned, shared, and transmitted from one generation to the next.
2
Q
In the definition of culture, what are “integrated systems”?
A
In a culture, there are multiple elements.
3
Q
The culture definition mentions “distinguishing characteristics,” what is another way other definitions call it?
A
Other definitions use the term personality. The distinguishing personality.
4
Q
Acculturation
A
Adjusting and adapting to a specific culture other than one’s own.
One of the keys to success in international operations.
5
Q
What is mainstream identity and ethnic identity?
A
- Mainstream identity: refers to an individual’s identification with the dominant or majority culture or society in which they live. This identity is often associated with the values, norms, and behaviors that are considered typical or conventional within that culture.
- Ethnic identity: the identification with a specific ethnic or cultural group that is distinct from the mainstream culture. It is often rooted in shared cultural, historical, linguistic, or ancestral ties that differentiate this group from others.
6
Q
What are the components of the acculturation model?
A
- Separation
- Integration
- Assimilation
- Marginalization
7
Q
What is assimilation?
A
Occurs when individuals adopt the cultural norms of a dominant or host culture, over their original culture.
8
Q
What is separation?
A
Occurs when individuals reject the dominant or host culture in favor of preserving their culture of origin. Separation is often facilitated by immigration to ethnic enclaves.
9
Q
What is integration?
A
Occurs when individuals are able to adopt the cultural norms of the dominant or host culture while maintaining their culture of origin. Integration leads to, and is often synonymous with biculturalism.
10
Q
What is marginalization?
A
Occurs when individuals reject both their culture of origin and the dominant host culture.
11
Q
What is high-context culture?
A
Context is as important as what is actually said:
Speaker and the listener rely on a common understanding of the context
12
Q
What is low-context culture?
A
Most of the information is contained explicitly in the words
13
Q
Roles of an international manager
A
- Identifying cross-cultural and intra-cultural differences
- Isolating potential opportunities and problems
14
Q
Elements of culture
A
- Language (verbal, nonverbal)
- Religion
- Values and attitudes
- Manners and customs
- Material elements
- Aesthetics
- Education
- Social institutions
15
Q
Language
A
is described as the mirror of culture and is multidimensional by nature:
Includes both verbal and nonverbal communication
16
Q
Language capability serves four roles in international marketing:
A
- Aids in information gathering and evaluation efforts
- Provides access to local society
- Is important in company communications
- Provides more than the ability to communicate.
17
Q
Back-translation
A
Translating a foreign language version back to the original language by a different person from the one who made the first translation
18
Q
Nonverbal language: Five key topics that managers need to understand
A
- Time
- Space
- Material possessions
- Friendship patterns
- Business agreements
19
Q
Religion
A
Defines the ideals for life, which are reflected in the values and attitudes of societies and individuals.
Religion provides the basis for transcultural similarities under shared beliefs and behavior.
20
Q
The major religions include:
A
- Christianity
- Islam
- Hinduism
- Buddhism
- Confucianism
21
Q
Christianity
A
It consists of two significant groups: Catholic and Protestant
Lays stress on frugality and accumulation of wealth from hard work
22
Q
Islam
A
Plays a pervasive role in the life of its followers
It supports entrepreneurship and discourages exploitation
23
Q
Hinduism
A
Family is an important element in Hindu society
The extended family structure has an impact on the purchasing power and consumption of Hindu families
24
Q
Buddhism
A
Views life as an existence of suffering
Emphasizes on spiritual achievement rather than worldly goods
25
Confucianism
Is characterized by a code of conduct.
Stresses on loyalty and relationships
26
Values and attitudes
- Values are shared beliefs or group norms that have been internalized by individuals
- Attitudes are evaluations of alternatives based on these values
27
Manners and customs
Understanding manners and customs is important in negotiations
28
Cultural convergence
Significant uniformity generated by globalization.
Globalization cannot be rejected because it represents a transformation that we ourselves have brought about—and which has already transformed us.
29
Potential problem areas for marketers arise from insufficient:
- Understanding of different ways of thinking
- Attention to the necessity of saving face
- Knowledge and appreciation of the host country
- Recognition of the decision-making process and the role of personal relations and personalities
- Allocation of time for negotiations
30
Material culture results from...
Technology
31
Material culture is directly related to...
The way a society organizes its economic activity.
32
Material culture is manifested in the availability and adequacy of the following basic infrastructures:
- Economic
- Social
- Financial
- Marketing
33
Aesthetics
- Each culture makes a clear statement concerning good taste as expressed in the arts and in the particular symbolism of colors, form and music
- International firms have to take into consideration local tastes and concerns in designing their facilities
34
Education
- Formal and informal education play a major role in the passing on and sharing of culture
- Educational levels of a culture can be assessed by using literacy rates and enrollment in higher education
- Educational levels have an impact on business functions
35
Social institutions
Affect the ways in which people relate to each other.
The family unit, which in Western industrialized countries consists of parents and children, in a number of cultures is extended to include grandparents and other relatives. This will have an impact on consumption patterns and must be taken into account, for example, when conducting market research.
36
Social stratification
Division of a particular population into classes.
37
Reference groups
Provide the values and attitudes that become influential in shaping behavior.
- Primary or secondary
38
Divisions of culture are:
- Individualism–collectivism
- Power distance
- Uncertainty avoidance
- Gender-role orientation
- Long-term versus short-term orientation
39
Self-reference criterion
- Unconscious reference to one’s own cultural values
- You are coming to a different culture and are evaluating everything you see and hear through your own culture.
40
To reduce the influence of one's own cultural values...
Define the problem in terms of domestic and foreign cultural traits, habits, or norms
41
Ethnocentrism
The belief that one's own culture is superior to others.
42
How can ethnocentricism be achieved?
It can be achieved by acknowledging and properly adjusting to its possible effects in managerial decision-making.
43
Consumer Ethnocentricism (CE)
We believe that our domestic products are better than the products from another country.
44
How do you use culture for marketing success?
- Embrace local culture
- Build relationships
- Employ locals to gain cultural knowledge
- Help employees understand you
- Adapt products and processes to local markets
- Coordinate by region
45
The challenge for the marketing manager is to:
Handle the differences in values and attitudes, and subsequent behavioral patterns that govern human interaction, on two levels:
- first as they relate to customer behavior
- second as they affect the implementation of marketing programs within individual markets and across markets.
46
What mistakes would be made if the approach was based on the premise of standardization?
- First, a wide variety of metrics show that just 10 to 25% of activity is truly global.
- Second, overseas success is very much a function of cultural adaptability: patience, flexibility, and tolerance for others’ beliefs.
47
To take advantage of global markets or global segments...
marketers are required to have or attain a thorough understanding of what drives customer behavior in different markets and to detect the extent to which similarities exist or can be achieved through marketing efforts.
48
Cultural competence must be recognized as...
a key management skill
49
What can cultural incompetence, or inflexibility do?
can easily jeopardize millions of dollars through wasted negotiations; lost purchases, sales, and contracts; and poor customer relations.
50
How is culture passed on?
Culture is primarily passed on by parents to their children but also by social organizations, special-interest groups, the government, the schools, and religious institutions.
51
What is "collective programming of the mind"?
Common ways of thinking and behaving that are developed and then reinforced through social pressure.
52
What does it mean that culture is multidimensional?
Culture consists of a number of common elements that are interdependent. Changes occurring in one of the dimensions will affect the others as well.
53
What does culture include?
It includes everything that a group thinks, says, does, and makes.
- its customs
- language
- material artifacts
- shared systems of attitudes and feelings.
54
Culture is inherently...
conservative, resisting change, and fostering continuity.
55
What are two examples of countries with high-context cultures?
Japan and Saudi Arabia
56
What is an example of countries with low-context culture?
North American cultures.
57
What is a difference between the U.S. system and the Japanese system?
The U.S. system emphasizes the individual’s development, whereas the Japanese system focuses on the group within which the individual works.
58
What is a difference between the U.S. and Japan in regard to criticism?
In the United States, criticism is more direct and is recorded formally, whereas in Japan it is more subtle and verbal.
59
When would an international marketer be accused of cultural imperialism?
If the changes brought about are dramatic or if culture-specific adaptations are not made in the marketing approach.
60
What is the Convocation of the Protection and Promotion of Diversity of Cultural Expressions, passed in 2005?
declares the right of countries to “maintain, adopt, and implement policies and measures that they deem appropriate for the protection and promotion of music, art, language, and ideas as well as cultural activities, goods and services.”
61
What are measures that France has taken to protect their cultural industries through rules and subsidies?
- France’s measures include prix unique du livre, a limitation on the percent of discount on books (to support small publishing houses and help maintain small bookstores)
- quotas on non-French movies on French national TV channels and mandatory financing of films by TV channels (as a provision in their license) as well as for French music on radio channels
- avance sur recettes or fonds de soutien, a state financial advance on all French films.
62
What is a rule that the European Union has on programming?
The European Union has a rule that 40 percent of its programming has to be domestic, anyone wanting a U.S. program can choose an appropriate channel or rent a video.
63
In the United States in the last five years, what have been many of the greatest successes among cultural products?
Imports.
For example, in television programming, The X Factor and Pop Idol are a British concept, as is the best-seller in children’s literature, the Harry Potter series. In cartoons, Pokémon hails from Japan.
64
What are cultural universals?
Generalizations that may apply to all cultures. They are manifestations of the total way of life of any group of people.
65
What do cultural universals include?
These include such elements as:
- bodily adornments
- courtship
- etiquette
- family gestures
- joking
- mealtimes
- music
- personal names
- status differentiation
- trade.
These activities occur across cultures, but their manifestation may be unique in a particular society, bringing about cultural diversity.
66
Language capability serves four distinct roles in international marketing:
1. Language aids in information gathering and evaluation efforts. Rather than rely completely on the opinions of others, the manager is able to see and hear personally what is going on. People are far more comfortable speaking their own language, and this should be treated as an advantage. The best intelligence on a market is gathered by becoming part of the market rather than observing it from the outside. For example, local managers of a multi-national corporation should be the firm’s primary source of political information to assess potential risk.
2. Language provides access to local society. Although English may be widely spoken and may even be the official company language, speaking the local language may make a dramatic difference. For example, firms that translate promotional materials and information are seen as being serious about doing business in the country.
3. Language capability is increasingly important in company communications, whether within the corporate family or with channel members. Imagine the difficulties encountered by a country manager who must communicate with employees through an interpreter.
4. Language provides more than the ability to communicate. It extends beyond mechanics to the interpretation of contexts. Realize that in several cultures, “yes” will not mean “I agree” but rather only signals “I hear what you’re saying,” so it does not convey consent.
67
What are examples of differences in language between the U.S. and the British?
- "Tabling a proposal" in the U.S. means they want to delay a decision, whereas the British understand it to mean that immediate action is to be taken.
- "By the end of the day" for the British does not mean within 24 hours but rather when they have completed the job.
- "Bombed" for the British means that there was success, however for the U.S. this means exactly the opposite.
68
What are five different terms for the word tires in Spanish-speaking Americas?
- cauchos in Venezuela
- cubiertas in Argentina
- gomas in Puerto Rico
- neumaticos in Chile
- llantas in most of the other countries in the region
69
Dealing with the language problem invariably requires the use of...
Local assistance.
A good local advertising agency and a good local market research firm can prevent many problems. When translation is required, as when communicating with suppliers or customers, care should be taken in selecting the translator or translation software.
70
Back-translation
the translating of a foreign language version back to the original language by a different person from the one who made the first translation.
71
What does it mean that international marketers should never translate words?
international marketers should never translate words but emotion, which then in turn may well lead to the use of completely different words
72
Why is time important in international business?
In many parts of the world, time is flexible and not seen as a limited commodity; people come late to appointments or may not come at all.
73
What is an example of why international body language must be included in the nonverbal language of international business?
U.S. manager may, after a successful completion of negotiations, impulsively give a finger-and-thumb OK sign. In southern France, the manager will have indicated that the sale is worthless, and in Japan that a little bribe has been asked for; the gesture is grossly insulting to Brazilians.
74
To define religion requires the inclusion of...
the supernatural and the existence of a higher power.
75
How does religion impact values and attitudes?
Religion defines the ideals for life, which in turn are reflected in the values and attitudes of societies and individuals. Such values and attitudes shape the behavior and practices of institutions and members of cultures and are the most challenging for the marketer to adjust to.
76
What is a prominent difference between Catholicism and Protestantism?
A prominent difference between the two is their attitude toward making money. While Catholicism has questioned it, the Protestant ethic has emphasized the importance of work and the accumulation of wealth for the glory of God.
77
What is the shari'ah?
The law of Islam
78
What are areas in which religion affects business?
- The role of women in business, especially in the Middle East, where women are not able to function as they would in the West.
- The marketing of products and service delivery. When beef or poultry is exported to an Islamic country, the animal must be killed in the halal method and certified appropriately.
79
In addition to being a religion, Hinduism is also...
A way of life predicated on the caste, or class, to which one is born.
80
How does an extended family in Hindu society impact business?
The family is an important element in Hindu society, with extended families being the norm. The extended family structure will have an impact on the purchasing power and consumption of Hindu families.
81
Buddhism
Life is seen as an existence of suffering, with achieving nirvana, a state marked by an absence of desire, as the solution to suffering. The emphasis in Buddhism is on spiritual achievement rather than worldly goods.
82
What is Confucianism characterized as?
Has been characterized as a code of conduct rather than a religion. Its teachings that stress loyalty and relationships have been broadly adopted.
83
What is guanxi?
The Chinese believe that one should build the relationship first, and if that is successful, transactions will follow. The relationship, or guanxi, is a set of exchanges of favors to establish trust.
84
When does the international marketing manager have to move more cautiously?
The more rooted values and attitudes are in central beliefs (such as religion)
85
Some of the potential areas in which marketers may not be prepared include:
(1) insufficient understanding of different ways of thinking
(2) insufficient attention to the necessity of saving face
(3) insufficient knowledge and appreciation of the host country—its history, culture, government, and image of foreigners
(4) insufficient recognition of the decision-making process and the role of personal relations and personalities
(5) insufficient allocation of time for negotiations.
86
What is an ideal gift?
An ideal gift is one that represents the giver’s own culture while being sensitive to the recipient’s.
87
How is material culture manifested?
In the availability and adequacy of the basic economic, social, financial, and marketing infrastructures.
88
The basic economic infrastructure consists of:
- Transportation
- Energy
- Communications systems
89
Social infrastructure refers to:
- Housing
- Health
- Educational systems
90
Financial and marketing infrastructures provide...
the facilitating agencies for the international firm’s operation in a given market in terms of, for example, banks and research firms.
91
What is color often used for?
often used as a mechanism for brand identification, feature reinforcement, and differentiation.
In international markets, colors have more symbolic value than in domestic markets.
92
What are primary reference groups?
Primary reference groups include the family, coworkers, and other intimate groupings.
93
What are secondary reference groups?
secondary groups are social organizations in which less-continuous interaction takes place, such as professional associations and trade organizations.
94
Cultural knowledge
can be defined by the way it is acquired. Objective or factual information is obtained from others through communication, research, and education. Experiential knowledge, on the other hand, can be acquired only by being involved in a culture other than one’s own.
95
Factual and experiential information can be...
General or country-specific.
96
What is interpretive knowledge?
not only comprehensive fact-finding and preparation but also an ability to understand and fully appreciate the nuances of different cultural traits and patterns.
97
Cultural lifestyle can be accounted for by five major dimensions of culture.
(1) individualism-collectivism (e.g., “I” consciousness versus “we” consciousness),
(2) power distance (e.g., level of equality in a society)
(3) uncertainty avoidance (e.g., need for
formal rules and regulations)
(4) gender-role orientation (e.g., attitudes toward achievement, roles of men and women)
(5) long-term versus short-term orientation (e.g., virtues oriented toward future rewards).
98
What is GLOBE?
The Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Research Project
99
What does GLOBE do?
is an international group of social scientists and management
scholars who study cross-cultural leadership. GLOBE has focused on universals and culture-based differences in perceived effectiveness of leadership attributes by asking middle managers whether certain leader characteristics and behaviors would help or hinder a person in becoming an outstanding leader.
