Cultural Analysis of Australia Report

Running head: CULTURAL ANALYSIS OF AUSTRALIA
Cultural analysis of Australia
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Table of Contents
Introduction:....................................................................................................................................2
Detailed cultural analysis for Australia:..........................................................................................4
Business culture comparison between Australia and Singapore:....................................................6
Hofstede’s cultural dimension analysis:..........................................................................................8
Power distance:............................................................................................................................8
Individualism vs collectivism:.....................................................................................................8
Uncertainty avoidance:................................................................................................................9
Long term orientation:.................................................................................................................9
Indulgence:..................................................................................................................................9
Conclusion:....................................................................................................................................10
References:....................................................................................................................................12

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Introduction:
Culture of a country plays a major role in the market development and economic growth
and stability of the nation. And hence cultural analysis of a particular country also has profound
importance in understanding and evaluating the economic growth trends of the country. For this
paper, the focus of market cultural analysis is on Australia, or commonwealth of Australia as
popularly known. Commonwealth of Australia is a sovereign nation and it contains the mainland
of the entire Australian continent, the Tasmanian islands and a variety of different smaller
islands. Australia is considered to be the largest country in Oceania, however in global
comparison, Australia comes sixth in terms of total area calculation. Before the British
settlement over 50000 years ago, Australia had been predominantly inhabited by the indigenous
communities that can be classified broadly into 250 different groups. However after the British
settlement the periodic invasion of the Europeans led to inevitable colonization procedure which
eventually resulted in establishment of crown colonies in the country. With the onset of the 19th
century the country had began federating the colonies so that a stable liberal democratic political
framework can be facilitated; and the political system of the country in the present age
compromises a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy which has six states and a variety
of different territories (Fiske, 2010).
The history of the country can be subdivided into different sections based on the
monumental event of the colonization. The pre-colonial history of the country states that human
inhabitation of the country began close to 65000 years ago by the means of migration. The
lifestyle of these indigenous communities was mainly of hunter-gatherer style which continued
until the British settlement 50000 years ago. One of the most remarkable events in the Australian

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history can be considered the arrivals of the Dutch in the Australian mainland in the year of
1606, post which the European migration inevitably propelled compartmentalization of the
mainland, and the very first British settlement founded the city of Sydney in the year of 1788.
The next British settlement in the year of 1803 had been established in the Van Diemen’s land
which is now Tasmania, and with the establishment of Tasmania the colonization of the country
began. During the colonial expansion the aboriginal communities went through a consistent
decline phase of almost 150 years due to the massive change in the lifestyle and societal
privileges; which led to a variety of different infectious diseases in the communities. Although
with the onset of the 19th century, as the political establishment of the democracy the federal
settlement has contributed to a massive improvement in the society, however, it has to be
mentioned that there are still a number of discrepancies in society for the backward native
communities (Colquhoun & Dockery, 2012).
Australia has been considered to be the 13th largest economy die to the fact that the nation
has an annual GDP that is considered to be to be the ninth highest per capita income. Along with
that, it has to be mentioned that the country has the second highest human development index
globally. Considering the economic growth of the country, the is also in the second number in
terms of GDP, there are various sources of income for the country such as the mining related
exports, telecommunications, banking and manufacturing sector, and many others. Although the
poverty records of the nation had been reported to increase from 10.2% to 11.8% in the last few
years. Australia had ranked fifth in the index of economic freedom, and hence the nation has
become the 12th largest economy in the world in the matter of a decade with per capita GDP of
US$56291. The commendable economic growth in the nation can be attributed to the emphasis
on the export commodities in place for manufacturing goods which had been a massive growth

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in the terms of trade for the country. Along with that it has to be mentioned that the nation had
been the only country to not face a massive financial meltdown during the recession imposed by
the global financial crisis. With the labour market partial deregulation system, privatization, and
changes taxation system, the major cities of Australia are considered to be the most liveable
cities when compared to the global context. The industrial and economic growth of the nation
had been revolutionary and the country is also one of the most desirable expansion market
worldwide and hence this country had been chosen for the cultural analysis for the paper (Hu,
Chand & Evans, 2013).
Detailed cultural analysis for Australia:
Australia can be considered to be a nation that has a tremendous cultural diversity and
hence the country has enjoyed a rich amalgamation of various cultural norms and traditions for
years. A primary western essence is the Australian culture however, which is predominantly
facilitated by the European invasion and British settlement. Although it also has to be mentioned
that the cultural background of the country has strong links and emphasis from the aboriginal or
indigenous tradition. According to most of the literature, the cultural heritage of the nation is
considered to be anglo-celtic, and there is conspicuous proof of the same in the English as their
predominantly spoken language, a democratic political framework, parliamentarianism and
constitutional monarchy, and lastly constitutionalist and federalist traditions. Considering the
most predominating or prevalent regional inclination in the Australian society, Christianity is the
most frequently observed religious connection, with the aboriginal traditional spirituality and
religion as the only exception (Walton et al., 2014).

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Elaborating on the development of the diverse cultural background of the country it can
be stated that the oldest cultural traditions originated in the indigenous communities, which has
been still surviving in the aboriginal territories and the Torres Strait islands. The most interesting
or peculiar cultural norm of the aboriginal culture can be their dreamtime, which refers to their
spiritual connection to their ancestors and their own cultural heritage.
Considering the dialect characteristics, the Australian English is the most spoken
language with a unique emphasis of their native accent which makes it distinguishable from the
other major variants like British or American English. According to the most of the literature,
English is spoken predominantly among almost 80% of the population and along with that other
languages that are spoken very rarely include Mandarin (1.7%), Italian (1.5%) and Arabic
(1.4%). Although when discussing language, a significant part of the Australian culture, the
indigenous communities and their language preferences has to be mentioned. It has to be
mentioned that the aboriginal communities had more than 200 different language patterns among
which most have been lost after the colonization period. According to the recent statistics, almost
70 original traditional languages of the indigenous communities are surviving among which 20
are still endangered to be obliterated completely in a few years, due to the fact that the aboriginal
language is only used by the 0.25% of the total Australian population.
Considering the consumer behavior, there are a few unique characteristics that can be
considered which has traditional or cultural links to it. The Australian indigenous culture has
deep traditional values and responsibilities towards every aspect of life and their living standards
are primarily influenced by the sense of responsibility, thankfulness and punctuality. And a
profound impact of the same cultural values can be observed in the present cultural behaviors of
the Australian citizen as well. Punctuality can be considered a highly significant factor in the

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lifestyle of the Australians which is uniquely reflected in their consumer behavior. Along with
that, thankfulness and giving gifts is considered to be one of the most common norms in the
society which is also uniquely reflected in their consumer behaviors and business practices as
well. Formal respect to individual opinion and perception is another characteristic features of the
cultural behavior of the Australian which they have retained even in the age of cut-throat
competition and consumerism (Dockery, 2010). The respecting individual ideas and preferences
is the third unique feature which is reflected in their consumer behavior as well. Hence, the
impact of traditional values and cultural heritage is paramount in the behaviors and lifestyles of
Australia which makes Australian consumer market unique from the other markets as well.
Business culture comparison between Australia and Singapore:
Business culture in Australia is quite different from that of Singapore. Australians prefer
straightforwardness when it comes to business. Therefore an individual who is keen to develop a
professional relationship with an Australian firm does not need to develop long-standing
relationship before he does business with them. They are very direct in the way they
communicate. Australian professionals like to implement an element of humor which even
involves self deprecating in their own speech. Australians consider appointments to be necessary
but also believes that they are relatively easy to schedule (Cavusgil et al., 2013). They believe
that these should be made with as much lead time as possible in the situation. Punctuality is very
important for them and prefers Australians to reach a few minute before the starting of a
meeting. Meetings are usually relaxed. If a individual feels otherwise to the suggestion in a
meeting, they directly say mention that in direct communication. They prefer doing business
providing a lot more importance on fact and figures and do not involve emotions and feelings as
a part of business etiquettes. They do not prefer in extensive introductory sessions. They start

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meetings directly after a small talk. They are quite direct in their approach and expect the same
in return (Ferraro & Briody, 2017). They do not like brevity in decision making procedures.
They also do not get impressed by too many details. Bargaining is not customary and their
negotiations proceed quickly. They mainly expect the initial proposal to have a small margin for
negotiation. High pressure techniques are not liked by them. Their decision making is rather slow
as the decisions made by the subordinates are then passed onto the topmost seniors of the
company for approval. Therefore decision making is rather slow. Business apparels are quite
conservative in Melbourne and Sydney where men need to wear dark colored and conservative
business suit whereas women wear smart dress or business suit. However in Brisbane and similar
other tropical places men may wear shirts and informal depending on their job functions.
Exchange of business cards is not a ritual and a necessity. One may provide the card in initial
introduction. However, no issues arise if this custom is not followed as well (Rabi et al., 2014).
However, in Singapore, exchange of business cards is very important upon meetings and
should be treated respectfully. They should be given and received with both hands. It needs to be
placed on the table in accordance with the placement of the people with whom the meeting is
held. Putting the business card in the back pocket or haphazardly stashing it into a folder shows a
symbol of disrespect to the Singaporeans (Chan & Tong, 2014). Punctuality is important just like
the Australians. Although certain Singaporeans are happy with firmly shaking hands, some
follow slight bowing of head which should be reciprocated back. This is not necessary in
Australia (Chokkar, Broadbeck & House, 2013). Like the Australians they also believe in direct
discussions while handing certain issues or discussion about finance. Unlike the Australians who
do not believe in establishing relationship at the very first instance of meeting, Singaporeans
prefer personal relationships and networking. They believe these to be important elements for

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doing business in Singapore. Australians do not believe in top seniors taking the most decisions.
They mainly allow subordinated deciding which then passes on to seniors for approval. In
Singapore decisions are mainly taken by senior management and they follow a top down
structure for decision making (Warner, 2014). However like Australians, they believe in small
informal tasks before starting of the meetings which help both of them to establish a comfort
level. Hence, it becomes very important for business professionals for both the countries to be
acquainted with business etiquettes and cultures of each of them so that no cultural conflicts arise
(Harrison, 2012).
Hofstede’s cultural dimension analysis:
Power distance:
The power distance can be defined as the characteristics that explore and defines the
inequality in the various societal sectors on the basis of socio-economic determinants. In case of
Australia, the analysis score for this element is 36 where as the score for the same in case of
Singapore is 74. It can be stated n this context that for Australian society the hierarchy is based
entirely on the convenience and along with that there is significant communication, respect and
co-operation between the different sectors of the hierarchy. Whereas for Singapore, the societal
inequalities are much more pronounces which can be a direct result of their Confucian
background. It has to be mentioned that a Confucian background is predominantly based on the
societal inequalities and hence societal power pattern imparts a profound effect on the gradient
system in the society.

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Individualism vs collectivism:
Singapore can be considered as a collective society with a score of 20, now a collective
society refers to the fact that different individuals of the society think and behave in a responsible
manner towards a connected group or community patterns; where each and every individuals are
expected to care for one another. Whereas Australia with a largely westernized culture is an
individualistic society with individualism score of 90. Here, the societal characteristics are not
based on groups or community pattern, with loosely kint societies and nuclear families in the
most part, the Australian only care for themselves and their immediate families.
Uncertainty avoidance:
This factor deals with the idea of how capable a society is with coping with any uncertain
change or transition. This factor in this cultural dimension analysis hypothesizes that the future
of a society can never be known or secure. The uncertainty avoidance score for Australia is 51
with a highly intermediate status in having the ability of uncertainty avoidance. Whereas, for
Singapore the score is 8 which shows a relatively low uncertainty avoidance (Dandy & Pe-Pua,
2010).
Long term orientation:
Long term orientation can be considered as the ability that a society shows in maintaining
the links or connection with its past along with the challenges or adversities presented by the
present and future. Singapore has a score of 72 in this dimension which shows that the cultural
qualities in Singapore support different elements of long term investments with perseverance and
sustained efforts. In case of Australia, the score is 21 which indicate at its normative culture
incapable of much long term investments.

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Indulgence:
According to this element, the indulgence states how capable the citizens are in
controlling their impulses and desires and to what extent they indulge in it. The score for
indulgence is 71 which state that the country or its citizen is indulgent at most with the citizens
more inclined to acting as per their needs and desire in leisure times. For Singapore, the
indulgence score is 46 which shoes that the country is intermediate in this element and a secure
and valid judgment cannot be made on the indulgence of the Singaporean citizens (Wiewiora et
al., 2013).
Figure source: Country Comparison - Hofstede Insights., 2017
Conclusion:
On a concluding note, it can be stated that Australia is a rising country with an
astounding economic growth and developmental practices. With the technological advances and

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formal and righteous business culture of this county, they are undoubtedly one of the most
frequent choices for business expansion for any corporate industries. However, it has to be
understood in this context that the cultural impact on the economic and societal characteristics
has to be taken into account when discussing the cultural analysis of the nation. Therefore, in
case of business expansion in the Australian market, the unique business culture of the country
has to be taken into account. According to the Hofstede analysis the country has an
individualistic nature with the least power distance. Hence with careful consideration of the
unique business cultural factors the Australian market can continue to grow further and reach
astounding success.

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