Intercultural Competence - Cultural Differences

Cultural Differences

See also: Geert Hofstede

Cultural characteristics can be measured along several dimensions. The ability to perceive them and to cope with them is fundamental for intercultural competence. These characteristics include:

  • Collectivism and individualism
  • Masculine and feminine cultures
  • Uncertainty avoidance
  • Power distance
  • Chronemics: monochrone (time-fixed, "one after the other") and polychrone (many things at the same time, "multitasking"). This is also called "long-term orientation."
  • Structural characteristics: basic personality, values, the experience of time and space, selective perception, nonverbal communication, and patterns of behavior
  • Christianity and Confucianism

Read more about this topic:  Intercultural Competence

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