Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions Of Intercultural Communication

As more of the world becomes accessible, intercultural communication is becoming an evolving field of study that combines the interactions between individuals and groups from different cultural backgrounds. It has taken a considerable amount of time to get to the diverse point that the world’s society is at now, with more acknowledgment, acceptance and discussion around diversity. However, one can question is what ascribes and defines this identity that we acknowledge as being diversity. It can be argued that it is a combination of societal constructs around us, and the consequential interaction of emotional forces that follow us from childhood. This essay will discuss the concepts relating to intercultural communications including Hofstede’s …show more content…
Gert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions, he argues, were developed to act as constructs. They are concepts that allow individuals to simplifly the complex world around them (Hofstede, 2001). Although the country itself is not statistically analysed on Hofstede’s website (Hofstede, n.d.), the surrounding countries of Macedonia are, they all display a low individualism score when contrasted to New Zealand. Individualism is the idea that there is a significant amount of independence a society has among its members. In individualist societies, individuals are expected to only take care of their immediate family and friends alone (Hofstede, 1991). However, in contrast to this collectivist societies have a strong group dynamic, which is highlighted further below with ethnolinguistics; collectivists work together to hold equal responsibility. Collectivism demonstrates a collaborative spirit, and a relational interdependence. There is a strong focus on the “we” idea rather than the “I” idea (Ting Toomey, 1999 & Sedikides & Brewer, 2001). Serbia, Bulgaria, Albania and Greece all hold a individualism score of between 20-35, in contrast to this, New Zealand’s score is double this at 79 (Hofstede, n.d.). This group ideal, Rimbovska highlighted was evident when she started to become aware of her surroundings. She discovered that it was typical in New Zealand to have a meal in a restaurant, and then not stay for long after the meal. In …show more content…
As Oetzel (2009) states this high identification with the Macedonian or the home culture, and a high identification with the host, New Zealand, culture, is commonly referred to as being bi-cultural. Rimbovska stated “to say that I’m a Kiwi feels to me like I’m neglecting the culture I was born in and grew up (partially in) which I don’t want to do”(B. Rimbovska, personal communication, August 8, 2015). This connection between the home culture and the host culture actively helps to justify the argument that culture can be a mix of socio and cultural products. Rimbovska commented when she returned to Macedonia for the first time recently, she found that her elders were concerned that had ‘lost’ a number of the Macedonian culture elements, she commented that her language was one that, although, spoken at home and in the confines of the Macedonian community, adopting the New Zealand language had also been a negative of migrating to New Zealand. Triandis (1980) counter argues this by stating that when an individual feels a strong connection to an ethnic group or host country, they find learning and developing their language to be easier than in a country that they did not feel apart of. It can therefore be argued that Rimbovska identifying with her host country - New Zealand, she has fulfilled the argument stated in this essay that it is possible to take elements of different cultures which allows