Comparative Analysis

Assessment 1

Part 1 - Comparative Analysis

The objective of this report is the analysis and the comparison of the two cultures that have chosen which are; the student’s culture and the Aboriginal culture.

This paper particularly focuses on Hofstede’s model of culture and the UAI dimension (Uncertainty Avoidance Index).

In relation to Uncertainty Avoidance the main purpose of a business entity would be making profit unless it is a non-profit organisation. To do so, managers are expected to make decisions (e.g. improving the quality of the service provided, new promotion ideas on a product etc.) with minimum cost.

Understanding Uncertainty Avoidance Index will not only allow managers to make more confident business decisions, it will also create a stronger trade bond between countries’ cultures.

Hofstede’s Model of Culture

Hofstede’s model of culture is a framework for multicultural communication, designed by Geert Hofstede. It explains the effects of a society’s culture on the values of its members and how they impact on behaviour.

Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI)

It refers to what extent a culture organises its members to feel either uncomfortable or comfortable in unknown situations. A high uncertainty avoidance country would have such strict laws while a low uncertainty avoidance country would stick with more general regulations(Hofstede Uncertainity Avoidance, 2017).

Openness to change

It is crucial for businesses to accept the fact that while the human brain is constantly evolving and developing, the needs it brings along with itself is relatively different.

Doing petite changes in business systems will lead the business to become aware of the social, political, economical and technological change in the environment thus it will reposition itself to grow more sustainably.

Australia has scored 51% in this dimension(Australia - Geert Hofstede, 2017), thus we can assume that the Aboriginal culture are open to change in order to adaptate to the time and environment as well as student’s culture.

Express emotions

“By not only allowing emotions into the workplace, but also understanding and consciously shaping them, leaders can better motivate their employees.” (Harvard Business Review, 2017)

While the Aboriginal culture does contain fundamentals of expressing emotions, the student’s culture has scored 85%(Turkey - Geert Hofstede, 2017), thus it is relatively more common to express your feelings in order to prevent misunderstandings than the Aboriginal culture.

More specific laws and regulations

In a culture that is scored with high Uncertainty Avoidance, the government tend to have more strict laws and regulations to minimise the risks of confusion and misunderstandings in the society.

While managers from high UAI have to be more specific to staff and explain the task clearly, the managers from Aboriginal culture will rather brief explanations and a relaxed behaviour.

Children taught the world is benevolent

Cultures with high Uncertainty Avoidance such as student’s, will often remind the young brains that the events that occur in life will not always be through their benefits.  

Contrary, cultures with low Uncertainty Avoidance such as the Aboriginal culture are more likely to tell their children that the world is hostile.

Cultures are relatively similar or different than each other. In a global business environment, a manager is obligated to become aware with the limitations of it’s own and partner culture in order to perform more successful operations within the business.

When a manager with high uncertainty avoidance interacts with a manager with low uncertainty avoidance, there will be a detailed examination over risk tolerance and procedural controls. While the low UAI manager is briefly talking about the process, the high UAI manager will stop and examine each steps one by one.