Hofstede's Five Cultural Dimensions of South American Catholicism

Five Cultural Dimensions
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Five Cultural Dimensions
Geert Hofstede published a book on culture consequences, "International difference in work-related values," to highlight pertinent values of one state of the affair compared to others. Hofstede initially analyzed four basic indices from different countries and how the differences can be meaningful. His four dimensions are power distance and individualism versus masculinity and uncertainty avoidance. Later on, he added the fifth dimension, which is Confucian dynamism (Hofstede, 1984).
Power Distance
Power distance relates to the societal desire for hierarchy; power distance looks at the degree in which society can accept the power in institutions and organizations which is distributed unequally. According to Hofstede, societies accept a certain hierarchical order whereby everybody has a place that needs not to be questioned (Hofstede, 1985). This happens to societies where people are in large power distance. In societies where people experience small power distance; the society strives for equal distribution of power and also demand justification where power inequality occurs. Hofstede indicated that power distance index score were relevant to believers’ behavior (Hofstede, 1985).
Religious preference may be considered within domains of people choice because power distance index is correlated with a country's dominant religious choice. Religion is hierarchical in nature because people worship a supreme being or rather acknowledges a higher power. However, some religions are more hierarchal than other specifically South American Catholicism (Hofstede, 1984).
Catholicism has supreme authority, which is the Pope and other intermediate authorities including the priest who corresponds more to the large power distance compared to the Protestants. Catholicism is associated with high power distance index in countries like South America and Protestant is more correlated with low power distance index countries like Britain (Hofstede, 1984).
Uncertainty Avoidance
This dimension addresses the society's tolerance level and ambiguity and uncertainty. His dimension addresses the rule of orientation, versus stability and stress. For Hofstede, people who seek to avoid uncertainty, approve to the responses consistent with the ideas of the rules that are made and followed. Therefore, people should be within the organized systems of life. This is because of uncertainty in life that can be very stressful (Hofstede, 2001).
According to Hofstede, in Christian countries especially South American, Catholics as compared to Protestants, work to eliminate life ambiguities by offering followers much greater control over their life after death. Specifically, uncertainty-avoiding societies like Mexico look hastier as compared to uncertainty avoiding societies like India, who value meditation. Therefore, an orientation would impact expectation as well as expression of behavior (Hofstede, 2001).
Individualism
Hofstede believes that individualism society is a society where individuals are...