Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions - Explained
What are Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions?
Written by J. Mance Gordon
Updated at April 22nd, 2024
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What is Hofstede's Framework?
Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions Theory is a framework for cross-cultural communications. The framework seeks to demonstrate the effects of a society's culture on the values of members of the culture and their behavior.
The theory proposes six dimensions through which cultural values can be analyzed:
- Individualistic vs Collectivistic
- High vs Low Power Distance (strength of social hierarchy)
- High vs Low Uncertainty Avoidance
- Masculinity-Femininity (Task Orientation vs Person Orientation)
- Long-Term vs Short-Term Orientation
- Indulgence vs Self-Restraint
Researchers assess individual cultures on each dimension on a scale of 1-100. This allows for comparison of cultures based upon the individual dimensional scores.