Customs of the World: Using Cultural Intelligence to Adapt, Wherever You Are by David Livermore
I love to travel, but I do it so little that if I'm honest I'd have to say I love the idea of travel. I can count the number of places I've visited on one hand and still have some fingers left over. There are so many places I want to go, but for now they are only a dream. The list is mostly the tourist-y places. Not a lot of places outside the norm, because frankly, I'm a little scared of a lot of places. You hear so many bad things. And I don't want to be an "ugly American". I think that is what led me to listen to this course - I want to be able to understand how other cultures work so that, on the wildly implausible chance I can ever afford to travel, I will understand what I am entering into and hopefully enjoy myself more.
Professor David Livermore talks about 10 cultural dimensions that differ to some degree from culture to culture. They are:
1. individualism vs. collectivism - he talks about how babies are treated, how they are encouraged to sleep alone in individualistic cultures and how they are constantly surrounded by people in collectivist cultures. So in some places it really does take a village to raise a child.
2. high vs. low power distance - this is how comfortable people feel with others who are or who are perceived to be their superiors. It encompasses how formal or informal names are used.
3. low vs. high uncertainty avoidance - this is how comfortable a society is with ambiguity
4. cooperative vs. competitive achievement - this is whether a society prizes teamwork over individuals striving to out-do others
5. clock time vs. event time - We all know that person who is perpetually late. This may not explain their actions, but it explains why some cultures seem to operate on a totally different idea of time. Like me - most of the time 8:00 means 7:45. Some people it means 8:30. Those people drive me nuts.
6. direct vs. indirect communications - in some cultures you have to read between the lines more to understand what a person is actually saying
7. being vs. doing lifestyles - this is basically how a culture understands an individual. Are they more interested in who you are or what you do. This would be where we would say that some people live to work and some people work to live.
8. universalism vs. particularism - is a culture more likely to be loyal to the laws or rules or more likely to be loyal to friends or family. Can a law be bent to accommodate an specific situation and are people more likely to lie to protect their friends.
9. neutral vs. affective expressions - I'll admit, you can tell exactly what I'm feeling just by looking at me, no matter how I hide it. This is how expressive a culture is with their facial expressions and body language
10. tight vs. loose social norms - how willing is a cultural to accept more unusual behaviors
He then looked at ten cultural clusters and commented on where they fell on each of these ten cultural dimensions. The ten clusters are:
1. Anglo
2. Nordic
3. Germanic
4. Eastern European/Central Asian
5. Latin European
6. Latin American
7. Confucian Asian
8. South Asian
9. Sub-Saharan
10. Arab
It is really interesting to hear him explain the values of each culture and how these values are the results of the history of the region and /or peoples. He stresses that these are not stereotypes and that you are very likely able to find people who do not fit into these specific pigeonholes, but concentrates on looking at a culture in a broader sense. I think the lectures did help me understand a great deal about the different cultures. At the end Professor Livermore gives you tips on how to increase your cultural intelligence should you find yourself traveling to or coming into contact with a culture that differs from yours. I really think that this is a valuable course in this increasingly global-minded world. Gone are the days of isolationism. You can turn on your TV and see news from all across the world. Understanding the different cultures makes us all better global citizens.
Professor David Livermore talks about 10 cultural dimensions that differ to some degree from culture to culture. They are:
1. individualism vs. collectivism - he talks about how babies are treated, how they are encouraged to sleep alone in individualistic cultures and how they are constantly surrounded by people in collectivist cultures. So in some places it really does take a village to raise a child.
2. high vs. low power distance - this is how comfortable people feel with others who are or who are perceived to be their superiors. It encompasses how formal or informal names are used.
3. low vs. high uncertainty avoidance - this is how comfortable a society is with ambiguity
4. cooperative vs. competitive achievement - this is whether a society prizes teamwork over individuals striving to out-do others
5. clock time vs. event time - We all know that person who is perpetually late. This may not explain their actions, but it explains why some cultures seem to operate on a totally different idea of time. Like me - most of the time 8:00 means 7:45. Some people it means 8:30. Those people drive me nuts.
6. direct vs. indirect communications - in some cultures you have to read between the lines more to understand what a person is actually saying
7. being vs. doing lifestyles - this is basically how a culture understands an individual. Are they more interested in who you are or what you do. This would be where we would say that some people live to work and some people work to live.
8. universalism vs. particularism - is a culture more likely to be loyal to the laws or rules or more likely to be loyal to friends or family. Can a law be bent to accommodate an specific situation and are people more likely to lie to protect their friends.
9. neutral vs. affective expressions - I'll admit, you can tell exactly what I'm feeling just by looking at me, no matter how I hide it. This is how expressive a culture is with their facial expressions and body language
10. tight vs. loose social norms - how willing is a cultural to accept more unusual behaviors
He then looked at ten cultural clusters and commented on where they fell on each of these ten cultural dimensions. The ten clusters are:
1. Anglo
2. Nordic
3. Germanic
4. Eastern European/Central Asian
5. Latin European
6. Latin American
7. Confucian Asian
8. South Asian
9. Sub-Saharan
10. Arab
It is really interesting to hear him explain the values of each culture and how these values are the results of the history of the region and /or peoples. He stresses that these are not stereotypes and that you are very likely able to find people who do not fit into these specific pigeonholes, but concentrates on looking at a culture in a broader sense. I think the lectures did help me understand a great deal about the different cultures. At the end Professor Livermore gives you tips on how to increase your cultural intelligence should you find yourself traveling to or coming into contact with a culture that differs from yours. I really think that this is a valuable course in this increasingly global-minded world. Gone are the days of isolationism. You can turn on your TV and see news from all across the world. Understanding the different cultures makes us all better global citizens.
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