The need for space
Some people need more space in all areas. People who encroach into that space are seen as a threat.
Personal space is an example of a mobile form of territory and people need less or greater distances between them and others. High territoriality - Some people are more territorial than others with greater concern for ownership. They seek to mark out the areas which are theirs and perhaps having boundary wars with neighbors. People with high territoriality tend also to be low context.
Low territoriality - People with lower territoriality have less ownership of space and boundaries are less important to them. They will share territory and ownership with little thought. They also have less concern for material ownership and their sense of 'stealing' is less developed (this is more important for highly territorial people). People with low territoriality tend also to be high context.
Eric Donald Hirsch, Jr. is an Americaneducator and academicliterary critic. He is best known for his writings aboutcultural literacy.
The theory claims that we all need to know a certain set of facts (what Hirsch calls the ‘core knowledge’ of a particular culture) in order to understand what people mean, if those people are writing for or speaking to the general public, because they will use unexplained terms which assume readers or listeners will have this core knowledge What Hirsch claims is that schools are failing to ensure that this knowledge is being imparted, resulting in ‘culturally illiterate’ school leavers who are unable to understand much of what is being said in public and in the media.
Cultural literacy is the ability to understand and appreciate the similarities and differences in the customs, values, and beliefs of one’s own culture the cultures of others.
Hirsch distinguishes between the following levels of CC competence:
Level necessary for survival
Level sufficient for entering a foreign culture
Level providing full-value existence in a new culture,
Level permitting to realize fully the identity of a language personality
Problems in Literacy According: to Hirsch, we must not only understand what words are being said but the context as well. Hirsch feels America has not succeeded in providing the proper level of literacy to it’s people. There are many concerns about the level of literacy Americans acquire throughout life.
Theory of cultural dimensions by Geert Hofstede
Geert Hofstede's theory of cultural dimensions describes the effects of a society's culture on the values of its members, and how these values relate to behavior, using a structure derived from factor analysis. The theory was one of the first that could be quantified, and could be used to explain observed differences between cultures. The original theory proposed four dimensions along which cultural values could be analyzed: individualism-collectivism; uncertainty avoidance; power distance (strength of social hierarchy) and masculinity-femininity (task orientation versus person-orientation). Independent research in Hong Kong led Hofstede to add a fifth dimension, long-term orientation, to cover aspects of values not discussed in the original paradigm.
Power distance: "Power distance is the extent to which the less powerful members of organizations and institutions (like the family) accept and expect that power is distributed unequally." Cultures that endorse low power distance expect and accept power relations that are more consultative or democratic. People relate to one another more as equals regardless of formal positions. In high power distance countries, less powerful accept power relations that are more autocratic. Power distance – comparing cultures according to power concentration and power distribution on different levels of organization. The indicator helps to establish how important various cultures see hierarchical relations between people. Some cultures have hierarchical (vertical ) structural organization, while others – don`t. In cultures with low power distance, people believe that inequality should be reduced as much as possible. There is inconsiderable emotional distance between bosses and subordinates.
Individualism vs. collectivism: "The degree to which individuals are integrated into groups". In individualistic societies, the stress is put on personal achievements and individual rights. People are expected to stand up for themselves and their immediate family, and to choose their own affiliations. In contrast, in collectivist societies, individuals act predominantly as members of a lifelong group or organization. The individualism – collectivism – the degree to which a culture encourages social bonds in comparison with individual independence and reliance on one`s own self. All cultures can be divided into collectivist and individualist. Individualism is peculiar of cultures with loose social structure where everyone has to take care of themselves and families. Collectivism is typical of societies with a rigid social structure. Due to him, the vast majority of people live in collective societies where interests prevail over the interests of a person.
Uncertainty avoidance index: "a society's tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity". It reflects the extent to which members of a society attempt to cope with anxiety by minimizing uncertainty. People in cultures with high uncertainty avoidance tend to be more emotional. They try to minimize the occurrence of unknown and unusual circumstances and to proceed with careful changes step by step by planning and by implementing rules, laws and regulations. In contrast, low uncertainty avoidance cultures accept and feel comfortable in unstructured situations or changeable environments and try to have as few rules as possible. People in these cultures tend to be more pragmatic, they are more tolerant of change. The uncertainty avoidance dimension means comparing cultures along the line of acceptable deviations from established norms and values. In cultures that score in uncertainty avoidance, people become stressed and feel fear in uncertain situations. High level of uncertainty sets free much energy. People from such cultures tend to become aggressive. They are inclined to set definite goals, detailed tasks, rigid schedules (Belgium, Germany, Greece, Peru, France, Japan).
Masculinity vs. femininity: "The distribution of emotional roles between the genders". Masculine cultures' values are competitiveness, assertiveness, materialism, ambition and power, whereas feminine cultures place more value on relationships and quality of life. In masculine cultures, the differences between gender roles are more dramatic and less fluid than in feminine cultures where men and women have the same values emphasizing modesty and caring. Masculinity – femininity – the expected gender roles as well as dominance of feminine or masculine traits in national character. Masculine cultures value competitiveness, ambition and the accumulation of wealth and material possessions, whereas feminine – place more value on relationships and quality of life. Masculine – Austria, Britain, Germany, Japan. Feminine – Denmark, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden.
Long term orientation (LTO), vs. short term orientation: it describes societies' time horizon. Long term oriented societies attach more importance to the future. They foster pragmatic values oriented towards rewards, including persistence, saving and capacity for adaptation. In short term oriented societies, values promoted are related to the past and the present, including steadiness, respect for tradition, preservation of one's face, reciprocation and fulfilling social obligations.
In cultures with low level of uncertainty avoidance, people are not afraid to risk in unfamiliar situations, therefore they are less affected by fear and are less stressed. (Denmark, India, Norway, USA, Sweden).
Kluckhohn and Strodbeck (cultural value orienations):
Perception of the individual
Relationship to nature and the world
Relationship to other people
Primary type of activity
Orientation to time
Orientation to space