International Business Communication Research Assignment

International Business Communication
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
International Business Communication
Introduction
The role of communication in the corporate world is pervasive. Essentially, given the inter-relatedness and interdependence of global business institutions as well as the need to remain relevant in the global scene, most institutions commit themselves to trying to integrate more than one communication culture and pattern. Essentially, globalization necessitates the need for a multicultural corporate landscape.
Possible Advantages, Uses or Problems of Frameworks Describing National Cultures
Cultural differences in the global community have an influence on business operations. Without cultural disparities knowledge, cultural misunderstandings may hinder organizational progress. In permeating foreign markets, it is imperative that businesses strive to understand the prevailing cultures in the regions that they hope to operate in. This initiative transcends the need to inspire a following in the subject market, and to further understand the nature of the subject market. There are several frameworks that can be used in the assessment of cultural differences between countries. These frameworks fall under Hofstede’s dimensions of culture. Hofstede’s dimensions of culture frameworks include the Power Distance Index (PDI), Individualism (IDV), Masculinity (MAS), Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI) and Long-Term Orientation. I will compare the cultural differences between Sweden, china, America and the UK by using the six frameworks. This is because members of these nations form part of my group.
Power Distance Index
The power distance index can be described as the willingness with which a given person in a given community is ready to accept the unequal distribution of power, which is predicated on financial prowess (Hofstede, 2001). Essentially, countries with high power distance indices reflect the inequalities in wealth and power that exists between the citizens of a given country and the degree of acceptance of the statistic in the subject community. Alternatively, countries with low power distance indices have less tolerance for differences which are predicated on wealth. China has a high-power distance index, which is at 80 (Tamas, 2007). It mirrors the wide gap that exists between the poor and the rich in the Chinese economy, and further reflects the levels by which the less powerful and wealthy in the Chinese community are willing to accept the disparities between the rich and the poor. Among the four nations, china has the highest power distance index, with Sweden having the lowest power index at 31. The power indices between the United States and the UK are at 40 and 35 respectively, which attests to the relativity of the culture in the two regions (Tamas, 2007). In the two countries, individuals who are poor are less tolerant of the disparities between them and the rich, thus willing to engage policies and initiatives that mitigate the disparities in the subject society.
Individualism
Individualism as a cultural element reflects on the loose ties that exist between members of a given society. Essentially, for a community that has high rates of in...