Comparison of Indian and Malaysian Cultures: A Study Based on Hofstede and Trompeanaars Dimensions
Verified
Added on 2023/04/23
|3
|1127
|138
AI Summary
This paper compares and contrasts the cultures of India and Malaysia based on Hofstede and Trompeanaars dimensions. It discusses the similarities and differences in cultural values, attitudes towards time, and societal relationships.
Contribute Materials
Your contribution can guide someone’s learning journey. Share your
documents today.
SOCIOLOGY1 With the globalised business environment, workplaces are becoming more culturally diverse with the inclusion of workforce from varied areas of globe. The paper is aimed at comparing the cultures of India (country of origin) and Malaysia (country of choice). In terms of the Hofstede Model, the comparison and contrast of the cultures of India and Malaysia is presented as follows. In terms of first pillar of the model that is the power distance, India has a higher appreciation of top-down structure and hierarchy in organizations and in society as compared to Malaysia (Taras, Steel and Kirkman, 2011). Thus, the individuals in an organisation are more dependent on directions in India unlike in Malaysia. For the second dimension of Individualism, India, is a society possessing both collectivistic and Individualist traits. An instance of the belief lies in religion belief of Hinduism where an individual is responsible for his or her own life. In contrast to this Malaysia is moreof a collectivist society wherestrong relationships are fostered and everyone takes responsibility for fellow members (Jogulu and Ferkins, 2012). For third criteria of masculinity, it must be noted that India is considered a Masculine society with display of more men in success and power. There is more natural inclination towards men as evident from the cultural practices and religious philosophies. For Malaysia, there is a balance masculine and feminine characteristics. The country Malaysia has a low preference for avoiding uncertainty which is evident by the flexible work schedules, and innovation is not seen as threatening. The country India too has a low medium preference for avoiding uncertainty, the rules are mostly existing the place, but generally are meant to be surpassed. In terms of long term orientation, Malaysia has a normative culture, in contrast to this in India there is an absence of a cleardominant preference in Indian culture and a lot reliance has been laid on the concept of “karma.” Indian societies are more pragmatic and have a great tolerance for varied religious views. For the next dimension of Indulgence, India has a culture of restraint or savings, and not much emphasis is laid down on leisure time and desires are often controlled. In contrast to this, the culture of Malaysia is more indulgent and people of the societies exhibit a willingness to fulfil the enjoyment and desires in life. A great focus is laid on leisure time as the money is spent in the manner people like. Thus, as per the Hofstede model, the culture of India and Malaysia greatly varies in terms of power distance, individualism and indulgence. In rest of the dimensions, there is no strong
Secure Best Marks with AI Grader
Need help grading? Try our AI Grader for instant feedback on your assignments.
SOCIOLOGY2 variation in both the cultures, with India ranking superior to Malaysia in terms of cultural values of uncertainty avoidance, long terms orientation and masculinity. ThecomparisonoftheculturesofIndiaandMalaysiathroughtheaidofthe Trompeanaars dimensions and as per the Ferraros model,is stated as follows. In terms of Universalism and Particularism, India is a fairly particularistic oriented culture as evident through the apparent focus of Indians on relationships (Kulkarni, 2012). Similarly in Malaysia too, social groups are preferred over the universalist system (Ramalu et. al, 2010). Further to state, India is a consensus – oriented culture where there is priority to cooperation. Similar culture is evident in Malaysia as demonstratedthroughthe‘Kampong’(village)culture(Rahman,Hasshimand Rozali, 2015). Further to note, India is a relatively diffuse culture as there are strong connections established between the private lives and work lives. In slight contrast to this, there is no distinct characteristics in Malaysian work environment in terms of specific or diffuse culture as the people are generally known to be friendly. It must be essentially noted that India mostly values ascription because of strong reliance on caste system till today as evident in reservations in various fields. In Malaysia the caste system is not prevalent, in spite of a lot of Indian people in the country. The country India further has a more outer directed culture similar to that of Malaysia. It must also be noted that India is a synchronic oriented culture and the similar values are instilled in Malaysians as they too are not very punctual at work and social priorities are given more preference over time. Religion too is a significant aspect of both the countries.In terms of education systems both the countries have similar landscapes where primary students have maximum rate of education and cultures and caste systems often create hindrances in education. Thus, as per the discussions conducted in the previous parts it can be states that there is a strong similarity in cultural values of India and Malaysia. The points of similarities are the significance of religions, attitude towards time, and overall societal relationships. The point of difference is mostly in terms of India is that country is more pragmatic and still has a strong display of masculinity in the society as opposed to Malaysian society.
SOCIOLOGY3 References Jogulu, U. and Ferkins, L. (2012) Leadership and culture in Asia: The case of Malaysia.Asia Pacific Business Review, 18(4), pp. 531-549. Kulkarni,S.(2012)AstudyonculturaldiversitymanagementforIndian organizations.Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 37, pp. 267-276. Rahman, A. A., Hasshim, S. A. and Rozali, R. (2015) Residents’ preference on conservation of the Malay traditional village in Kampong Morten, Malacca.Procedia- social and behavioral sciences, 202, pp. 417-423. Ramalu, S. S., Rose, R. C., Uli, J., and Kumar, N. (2010) Personality and cross- cultural adjustment among expatriate assignees in Malaysia.International Business Research, 3(4), 96. Taras, V., Steel, P., and Kirkman, B. (2011) Three decades of research on national culture in the workplace: Do the differences still make a difference?.Organizational Dynamics, 40(3), pp. 189-198.