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Quick Study Questions
Quick Study 1
1. Q: How might a subculture differ from the dominant culture?
A: A subculture can differ from the dominant culture in language, race, lifestyle, values,
attitudes or other characteristics.
2. Q: What do we call the belief that one man’s culture is superior to that of others?
A: Ethnocentricity is the belief that one’s own ethnic group or culture is superior to that of
others.
3. Q: What do we call detailed knowledge about a culture that enables a person to work happily
within it?
A: Cultural literacy is the detailed knowledge about a culture that enables a person to work
happily within it.
Quick Study 2
1. Q: What are examples of values?
A: Ideas, beliefs, and customs to which people are emotionally attached to are called values.
2. Q: What type of custom might a conservative group oppose in a culture?
A: Authorities in a strict religious district of Indonesia’s ACEH province banned Muslim
women from wearing tight clothing, short skirts and blue jeans.
3. Q: The law that restricts the gift giving by U.S. firms at home and abroad is called?
A: The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act prohibits companies from giving large gifts to
government officials, in order to win business favors.
Quick Study 3
1. Q: Social structure embodies a culture’s fundamental organization, including what?
A: Social structure embodies a culture’s fundamental organizations; including its groups and
resources are distributed.
2. Q: A person and his or her immediate relatives including parents and siblings, is called what?
A: A nuclear family consists of a person’s immediate relatives, including parents, brothers and
sisters.
3. Q: The departure of highly educated people from one profession, region, or nation to another is
called what?
A: The “brain drain” phenomenon refers to the departure of highly educated people from one
Quick Study 4
1. Q: Which denomination of Christianity has a “work ethic” named after it?
A: Protestants believe that salvation comes from faith in God and that hard work gives glory to
2. Q: India is home to more than 90 percent of the adherents of which religion?
A: Hinduism formed around 4,000 years ago in present day India, where more than 90 percent
3. Q: The Dalai Lama is the spiritual and political head of what religion?
A: The Dalai Lama is the spiritual and political head of the Buddhist culture.
Quick Study 5
1. Q: Every culture has a communication system that it uses to convey what?
A: People in every culture have a communication system to convey thoughts, feelings,
knowledge, and information through speech, writing, and actions.
2. Q: A special language understood by two parties who speak different native languages is called
what?
A: A lingua franca is a link language that is understood by two parties who speak different
native languages. English is the lingua franca of global business, higher education, diplomacy,
3. Q: An interesting fact about body language is what?
A: Body language is important because it reflects cultural communication styles through
unspoken movements. It communicates through hand gestures, facial expressions, physical
Quick Study 6
1. Q: People living in different cultures often have different views regarding their what?
A: They have differing beliefs and behaviors that can affect activities in the workplace. Such as,
different perceptions of time, view of work and change.
2. Q: What is an example of cultural imperialism?
A: Fears of cultural imperialism still drive some French to oppose the products of the Walt
3. Q: The Kluckhohn-Strodtbeck framework does investigate whether people do what?
A: The Kluckhohn-Strodtbeck Framework compares cultures along six dimensions, asking the
following questions:
4. Do people desire accomplishments in life, carefree lives, or spiritual and contemplative
lives?
4. Q: In the Hofstede framework, the term “power distance” refers to what?
A: It describes the degree of inequality between a culture’s people in different occupations.
Ethical Challenge
You are the vice president of operations for a U.S.-based software firm that is exploring building a
software design operation in India. Typically when international firms enter the Indian market, they
2-4 Do you think it will be possible to import and uphold a U.S. management style in India despite
lingering effects of the caste system?
A. A caste system is a system of social stratification in which people are born into a social
ranking, or caste, with no opportunity for social mobility. India is the classic example of a
caste culture. Although the Indian constitution officially bans discrimination by caste, its
influence persists. Little social interaction occurs between castes, and marrying out of one’s
2-5 How do you think your company’s stakeholders would feel about your company simply
adjusting to local management practices?
A: Students must understand that understanding cultural differences is crucial to developing
strong relationships. The question in this vignette poses a real dilemma for international
companies operating in India. Local management practices can be very different from the
Teaming Up
Two groups of four students will debate the benefits and drawbacks of individualist versus collectivist
cultures. After the first student from each side has spoken, the second will question the opponent’s
arguments, looking for holes and inconsistencies. The third student will attempt to answer these
arguments. The fourth student will present a summary of each side’s arguments. Finally, the class will
vote on which tem has offered the more compelling argument.
A: Students may want to use the content of this chapter as a guide to create the questions they will ask
the interviewee. Students should include in their report a full account of the cultural elements their
Practicing International Management Case
A Tale of Two Cultures
2-14. Q: If you worked for an international firm doing business in Asia, is there anything you would
suggest to ease the tensions these cultures are experiencing? Be specific.
A: This question presents students with an ethical dilemma. Some students will say that their
company is in business to earn a profit and that Asian consumers are not being forced to buy
Western goods—they make a conscious decision when they make a purchase. Other students
2. Q: Social ills in any country are normally born from a multitude of factors. What role if any, do
you think globalization is having in higher reported rates of divorce, crime, and drug abuse in
Asia?
A: Many students will agree that the forces of globalization are exposing people in all countries
to new ways of thinking and behaving. However, many social ills are not a direct result of
globalization, but of other forces causing social change. Drug use is certainly not a new
3. Q: Broadly defined, Asia comprises more than 60 percent of the world’s population—a
population that practices Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, and numerous other
religions. Do you think it is possible to carry on a valid discussion of “Asian” values? Explain?
A: Clearly, there are important and significant differences between Asian societies. But some
values tend to be Pan-Asian, including the extended family concept—in contrast to the nuclear
family concept in Western cultures. Also, respect for community elders is deeply ingrained
