Similarities Between USA and Nigeria in Terms of Hofstede’s Six Cultural Dimensions
Considering the Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory, the U.S. and Nigeria are similar in terms of masculinity, uncertainty avoidance, and long- term orientation, the half of all the suggested factors by Baack (2012). As explained by Saenz, McGregor, and Nguyen (2018), with a masculinity score of 62, American society is characterized as driven by success, achievement, and competition. Similarly to the USA, Nigerians score 60 in masculinity and tend to evaluate an individual’s success upon the material assets (Mordi, 2017). The factor of uncertainty avoidance is slightly lower in both countries: 46 in USA and 55 in Nigeria.
As suggested by Saenz et al. (2018) and Mordi (2017), both cultures feel threatened by uncertain events that may happen. The last similar dimension for the two countries is long term orientation. Both USA and Nigeria are labeled as normative cultures, meaning that they value traditions and maintain old societal norms (Saenz et al., 2018; Mordi, 2017). Despite the striking distinctions in mentality, the USA and Nigeria share three of the six Hofstede’s cultural dimensions.
Differences Between USA and Nigeria in Terms of Hofstede’s Six Cultural Dimensions
Main differences between the U.S. and Nigeria lay in individualism, power distance, and indulgence. With a score of 91, USA is considered a highly individualistic culture, where people mostly look after themselves, being self-reliant and focusing on their well-being (Saenz et al., 2018). Unlike the U.S., Nigeria scores 30 on the individualistic scale, being labeled as a collectivistic society, where people demonstrate a deep sense of belonging to their community (Mordi, 2017).
Nigeria and America also differ in terms of power distance. While Nigerian culture accepts the hierarchy in society with inherent unjustifiable inequalities in the social order, Americans tend to believe in the equality for all citizens regardless of their differences (Saenz et al., 2018; Mordi, 2017). Finally, the two countries have visible distinctions in terms of indulgence. Nigerians have a higher potential for instant gratification, showing weaker control over their impulses than Americans (Mordi, 2017). The aforementioned differences in the two countries’ cultural perspectives have a noticeable effect on their business relationships.
Recommendations for Better Management
To address the issues in intercultural communication, managers in both countries should, first, identify the existing differences in the mentalities. When meeting for negotiations, leaders should adopt the customs, traditions, and norms of their partners, preparing to meet them halfway (Lvina, 2015). Furthermore, for better cooperation, both Nigerian and American management should display sensitivity toward cultural stereotypes and demonstrate a high level of awareness regarding other people’s values.
References
Baack, D. (2012). Management communication. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education.
Lvina, E. (2015). The role of cross-cultural communication competence: Effective transformational leadership across cultures. Jurnal Ilmiah Peuradeun, 3(1), 1-18. Web.
Mordi, F. (2017). My culture is better than yours: A Nigerian perspective on workplace diversity. International Journal of Humanities and Cultural Studies, 4(3), 239-253. Web.
Saenz, M. G., McGregor, T., & Nguyen, M. (2018). A cross-cultural examination of the United States, Argentina, and Mexico using Hofstede’s dimensions and the world values survey. Humanities and Social Sciences Review, 7(2), 227-236. Web.