Product Description

The revolutionary study of how the place where we grew up constrains the way we think, feel, and act, updated for today's new realities. The world is a more dangerously divided place today than it was at the end of the Cold War. This despite the spread of free trade and the advent of digital technologies that afford a degree of global connectivity undreamed of by science fiction writers fifty years ago. What is it that continues to drive people apart when cooperation is so clearly in everyone's interest? Are we as a species doomed to perpetual misunderstanding and conflict? Find out in "Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind". A veritable atlas of cultural values, it is based on cross-cultural research conducted in seventy countries for more than thirty years. At the same time, it describes a revolutionary theory of cultural relativism and its applications in a range of professions. Fully updated and rewritten for the twenty-first century, this edition: reveals the unexamined rules by which people in different cultures think, feel, and act in business, family, schools, and political organizations; explores how national cultures differ in the key areas of inequality, collectivism versus individualism, assertiveness versus modesty, tolerance for ambiguity, and deferment of gratification; explains how organizational cultures differ from national cultures, and how they can sometimes be managed; explains culture shock, ethnocentrism, stereotyping, differences in language and humor, and other aspects of intercultural dynamics; provides powerful insights for business people, civil servants, physicians, mental health professionals, law enforcement professionals, and others. Geert Hofstede, PhD, is professor emeritus of Organizational Anthropology and International Management at Maastricht University, The Netherlands. Gert Jan Hofstede, PhD, is a professor of Information Systems at Wageningen University and the son of Geert Hofstede.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #31827 in Books
• Published on: 2004-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 300 pages

From the Back Cover

The revolutionary study of how the place where we grew up constrains the way we think, feel, and act, updated for today's new realities

The world is a more dangerously divided place today than it was at the end of the Cold War. This despite the spread of free trade and the advent of digital technologies that afford a degree of global connectivity undreamed of by science fiction writers fifty years ago. What is it that continues to drive people apart when cooperation is so clearly in everyone's interest? Are we as a species doomed to perpetual misunderstanding and conflict? Find out in Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind.

A veritable atlas of cultural values, it is based on cross-cultural research conducted in seventy countries for more than thirty years. At the same time, it describes a revolutionary theory of cultural relativism and its applications in a range of professions. Fully updated and rewritten for the twenty-first century, this edition:

• Reveals the unexamined rules by which people in different cultures think, feel, and act in business, family, schools, and political organizations
• Explores how national cultures differ in the key areas of inequality, collectivism versus individualism, assertiveness versus modesty, tolerance for ambiguity, and deferment of gratification
• Explains how organizational cultures differ from national cultures, and how they can--sometimes--be managed
• Explains culture shock, ethnocentrism, stereotyping, differences in language and humor, and other aspects of intercultural dynamics
• Provides powerful insights for businesspeople, civil servants, physicians, mental health professionals, law enforcement professionals, and others

Geert Hofstede, Ph.D., is professor emeritus of Organizational Anthropology and International Management at Maastricht University, The Netherlands. Gert Jan Hofstede, Ph.D., is a professor of Information Systems at Wageningen University and the son of Geert Hofstede.

About the Author

Geert Hofstede (Netherlands) is professor emeritus of organizational anthropology and international management at the University of Limburg, in Maastricht, where he is the founder and director of the Institute for Research on Intercultural Cooperation.

Gert-Jan Hofstede (Netherlands) is a Ph.D. and a professor at Wageningen University.

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Customer Reviews

Breakthrough research into cultural differences
Hofstede identifies 5 dimensions upon which cultures differ - from 1. individual/collective programming 2. relation to authority 3. risk avoidance 4. masculine/feminine societies and 5. short/long term orientation. His research spanned thousands of surveys within the same company IBM to establish the key differences in the way people think. His work marked a breakthrough in this field as he produced tables, maps and clusters to show cultures in relation to each other. Illustrated with historical and real life examples, this still is the starting point into cross-cultural behaviour.

Excellent
Hofstede is, of course, the pioneer of culture studies in business and organizations. This book is a simpler and more accessible version of the more comprehensive - but also more difficult, 'Culture's Consequences'.

He begins with an excellent overview of culture and its levels and explains the concept of cultural `dimensions' - aspects of culture that can differentiate and measure differences among different cultural groups. The book then proceeds to present the four dimensions of culture that he identified as a result of a massive survey he conducted on IBM employees in 72 countries in 1968 and again in 1972. Additional data was later collected from other countries and populations, outside IBM, and used to verify and enhance the original results.

However, in this book, Hofstede discusses his four original dimensions of culture: Power Distance; Uncertainty Avoidance; Individualism & Collectivism; and finally Masculinity & Femininity. The fifth dimension which was later added based on results from the Far East and Asia - Long- versus Short-Term Orientation - is not discussed in this book. Despite that, it remains a very valuable and highly readable introduction to the topic from the man who pioneered the field and popularized it among business people, multinationals and business researchers alike.

Hofstede also uses these dimensions of culture to 'classify' organizations to different types according to where they fall on the Power Distance vs. Uncertainty Avoidance grid. The discussion is highly informative and touches on Mintzberg's theories as well typical models of organization in different cultures. In Part Four, he discusses how intercultural encounters are affected by these dimensions and how awareness and acceptance of these differences can yield more effective results.

Essential if working with Brits, French, Germans, Yanks.....
I was first introduced to Cultures and Organisations in the mid 90s, and since then it has been an invaluable reference guide when working with or managing international teams to avoid the feelings of anger, betrayal or bewilderment that come from cultural mismatches. GH is not, to be honest, a stunningly good writer (so only 4 stars) but the book is an essential refernce guide for managers.