Intercultural Competence in Business: A Comparison of Bulgarian and British Culture

This report discusses the culture of Bulgaria and United Kingdom with the help of questionnaire in the interview. It compares and contrasts the two cultures using Hofstede cultural dimensions.

INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE
IN BUSINESS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................
Cultural autobiography to identify influence of Bulgarian Culture.............................................3
Cultural autobiography to identify influence of British Culture..................................................4
Comparison and contrast between the two culture......................................................................6
CONLCLUSION..................................................................................................................................
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................
APPENDIX........................................................................................................................................

INTRODUCTION
Intercultural competence plays an important role in the business. It refers to the ability to
work with people from different cultural background. Cultural autobiography provides
information of a person related to its cultural and its influence on individual life. It addresses the
relationship with the term “culture” and “community”. Hosfstede cultural dimension refers to the
cross culture communication identification with the help of different dimension in the framework
(Beugelsdijk and Welzel, 2018). It provides score that differentiate the country culture with
various aspects that include Power distance, Uncertainty avoidance, Individualism, Masculinity,
Long term orientation and Indulgence. Another theory that can be used to understand the
cultural difference is Schwartz framework. It refers to the theory in the field of inter culture
research. This report will discuss about the culture of Bulgarian and British with the help of
interview. Summary will be prepared with the help of questions that will explain the culture of
different countries. Theory of Schwartz framework will be used to understand the culture of a
particular country. It will also focus on the comparison of both culture with the help of Hofstede
cultural dimensions.
Cultural autobiography to identify influence of Bulgarian Culture
Summary
I have ethnicity Bulgarian and Religion of Bulgarian Orthodox and Socio-economic
status of medium level of income family as his father has a business and mother is a teacher at
Mathematics and Natural Science school in Burgas. My Marriage Status is Single. I live in
Burgas and learnt many things from my culture such as proper way of communication.
Traditional dance and respect. I like to have social responsibility towards people, their culture
and work. I communicate politely and greet with the word “Good day”. Culture of Bulgaria
include Wearing “Baba Mantra” it can be defined as Grandmother March. It is a tradition in
Bulgaria to wear Baba mantra that identifies the person without any saying. Traditions are
essential to keep the cultural and value of a country alive in the point of view from me. People
of the country are very connected to traditions as they represent the culture and create a unique
image of the country. I am very linked with the culture of country that helped me in the personal
development. According to me, people of Bulgaria are majorly depended on each other for
complete each other task.
SCHWARTZ FRAMEWORK THEORY

Schwartz framework of basic values refers to the different aspects that identify the culture
and tradition of a country or person (Shvarts, Vignollet and Yastrebov, 2021). It majorly focuses
on the explaining diversity and conflicts in the values. In order to understand the culture and
traditions of Bulgaria flowing points can be helpful to identify the values of the country.
 Self-Direction – Bulgaria's culture will lead to the effective self-direction as people of
the country are majorly independent on themselves.
 Stimulation – Challenges are faced with little preparation by Bulgarian so the result are
not always positive. Helping nature of the people lead to the stage of confusing in the
decision-making process (Gadzhieva, Asulova and Yarova, 2021).
 Hedonism – People of the country believe in their culture and their love towards
themselves makes them feel confident.
 Achievement– Social responsibilities of the people in the country lead to the
achievement in the better growth of the society.
 Power – Bulgarians are not too wealthy, but they believe in power of teamwork and
believe in creating a harmony in the workplace environment.
 Security – People of the country feels safe with the presence of the good relationship
with others in the surrounding.
 Conformity – Citizens of Bulgaria are more likely to be upset or sad as their strong
belief in their culture lead to the increase in the cultural conflicts (Bell, 2019).
 Tradition – Tradition of the country brings unity among the people and their celebrations
and costumes.
 Benevolence – People of Bulgaria have a very helpful nature they believe in growing
together and help each other in the time of need.
 Universalism – Bulgarian people have understanding nature and appreciate other for
their achievement but their tolerance level is quite low. People in the country react
quickly in the situation without any thinking.
Cultural autobiography to identify influence of British Culture
Summary
Jacob Taylor, Male is a British belong from the religion Christianity and his
Socioeconomic status Belong to Upper class Family and his parents are Software engineers.

Marriage Status of Jacob is Single. He grew up in London. Primary schools and middle school
provided me general knowledge related to culture and country. Culture thought him various
things such as disciple and punctuality. Politeness, self-discipline and sense of humor in behavior
and speech are prioritized by Jacob. His values and attitude include tolerance, Entrepreneurial
Spirit and Humour. Traditions in his country include tea and biscuit in that represent the ethics
and behavior of the country. He believes that traditions are created by the activities of the people
in the country. Major traditions in England are going to pub, paying for drinks in round, saying
sorry and identification of accent. His point of view on his culture states that the British are
involved in the cultural and traditional activities so much. British traditions are rarely linked with
the cultural stories. Jacob explained that the culture of England is celebrated by the people, but
they are rarely linked with their culture. People of that country are majorly self-dependent.
FRAMEWORK OF SCHWARTZ THEORY
Framework of Schwartz can also be applied in identification of the culture of British people.
The following points can be helpful in the analysis of the culture or values of United Kingdom.
 Self-Direction – British people are majorly self-dependent as they believe in the
improvement of self by completing task alone. It increases the critical thinking ability of
a person (Davies and Blanco, 2017).
 Stimulation – Challenges are faced by the people of the country alone as they do not like
to take help from others. People of the country has created the culture where they are less
likely to get involved in others problem.
 Hedonism – British people love their culture and believe in themselves. Gaining
knowledge on their own behalf make them love in their own growth.
 Achievement – British people are majorly dependent on the government or laws in order
to complete social responsibilities in the society.
 Power – Power of people in the United Kingdom is majorly identifies with the financial
status of the person (Jabbarov, 2020).
 Security – People of the country feels safer with the stable financial conditions of a
person.
 Conformity – Britishers are less likely to be sad or upset as they do not believe in
incising conflicts.

 Tradition – traditions of the country followed b the People at mass level as they
contribute less to the traditional activities.
 Benevolence – People of United Kingdom also have a good helping nature if they are
asked for the help but are less likely to take help from others in the workplace
environment.
 Universalism – Britishers have good understanding and level of tolerance. People of
United Kingdom have a good humour and appreciate other for their achievement in order
to motivate them.
Comparison and contrast between the two culture
Cultures of the countries can be compared with different methods. Different countries have
their own different cultures that distinguish countries and people. Cultures of the country are
majorly impacted by the behaviour of the people. Culture of Bulgaria and British culture can
be compared with the help of Hofstede cultural dimensions. It compares the different cultures
of the countries with major 6 dimensions that include power distance, uncertainty avoidance,
individualism, masculinity, long term orientation and Indulgence (Kristjánsdóttir and et.al.,
2017). Following is the compare and contrast two culture biographies in order to find out the key
difference between Bulgaria and United Kingdom with the help of Hofstede Insights.
HOFSTEDE CULTURAL DIMENSIONS
Power distance
It shows the fact that the all the individuals of the country are not equal. It focuses of the
attitude of the people in the country towards inequality among the people in the country. Person
1 who belongs to Bulgarian culture prefers working as per the hierarchy that reflecting inherent
inequalities.
 In contrast to this, the person belonging to British culture believes in equality. This
difference is evident as Bulgaria has a score of 70 while UK has a score of 35 on Power
distance dimension. Bulgaria has a good score on the power distance. It indicates that
people of the country have accepted hierarchical order where every class has their own
place (COUNTRY COMPARISION, 2021).
 While the United Kingdom have 35 score, that means most of the people have thinking
the inequality need to be removed among people.

Uncertainty avoidance
Uncertainty avoidance deals with the fact that future cannot be predicted. People either
prepare for the uncertain changes in the life or hey avoid the uncertainty. The uncertainty
avoidance index is also highly different of both the culture as one has 35 score while another 85.
 As per the 1-person autobiography, the citizens of Bulgaria have a high preference for
avoiding unexpected changes thus they are not ready to accept the change. Such as 85 is
score of Bulgaria that is people highly prefer to have Strick rules and regulation while
completing their work that create challenge to quickly adapt to the changes.
 On the other hand, people in the United Kingdom are more likely to be prepared for the
future by increasing their knowledge and skills along with flexibility as they have low
index of uncertainty avoidance that is 35.
Individualism
There is high difference between the culture of Bulgaria and United Kingdom, so this
insight of the Hofstede framework deal with the strength or degree of interdependence of the
individual in the society. It shoes the ability of self-dependency and team work in the culture of
a particular country (Jackson, 2020).
 Such as, 1 person cultural biographical depict that the culture of the Bulgaria makes
people dependent on each other, child grow and dependent on their parent and family.
 While, other biography represents that United Kingdom having score of 89 that means
the people of the country are highly self-dependent.
 1 person biography represent that it always gets help of my family on contrast the Jacob
Taylor has always being taught to live independent, to think of itself only. So, Britishers
are less likely to take help from others. However, Bulgarians are more committed to the
group working and are more likely to take help from friends, family and other relatives.
Masculinity
This factor shows the things that makes a person successful. Masculinity with high score
indicates that the people of the country motivate for being the best in the society or surrounding.
On the other hand masculinity, a low level defines success for being unique or for doing what
they love (COUNTRY COMPARISION, 2021).
 There is less difference between both countries in terms of masculinity as Bulgaria- 40,
while United Kingdom- 66. So, People of Bulgaria thinks that dominant values in the

society and developing quality of the life and caring other is a better way to success. As
per the autobiography of the first person, people believe to have working in order to live
and conflict are being resolved through negotiation.
 While in comparison with, Britishers are in competition of being better or best in their
profession, likewise they have highly success oriented and driven.
Long term orientation
It identifies the culture of the country that maintain link with the past in order to deal with
the challenges of present or future.
 There is minor difference between the Bulgaria and United Kingdom culture in terms of
long-term orientation. Such as Bulgaria has 69 score in long term orientation that means
it have pragmatic culture that believes that truth is majorly depended on the time,
situation and context. It can be evident that the First person is more preservative of its
tradition while adapting to new things.
 On the contrary note, However, Britisher's long term orientation cannot be determined
as they have score of 51 which shows equal distribution towards both side.
Indulgence
While comparing and contrasting both the cultural biography, it can be stated that the
Indulgence scale have high differences. For example: United Kingdom has score of 69 and
Bulgaria only 16. Indulgence dimension of the frameworks defines the scale of controlling the
desire and impulses of person (Schimmack, Oishi and Diener, 2005).
 United Kingdom with the high score of 69 shows that people are more likely to have fun
and willingness to release their desire and impulses by enjoying their life.
 On the other hand, Bulgarians are more likely to control their desire and do not put much
time and money on leisure and tries to control the gratification of their desires.
 Likewise, the first person avoids spending money on having fun and entertainment.
While the second person that belong to British culture emphasis on having enjoyment to
maximum extend.
CONLCLUSION
From the discussion in the report, it can be concluded that the different culture of the
countries leads to the changes in the development of a person. Report discussed the culture of
Bulgaria and United Kingdom with the help of questionnaire in the interview. Summary of the

questions were prepared in order understand the culture of the country. Culture of Bulgaria is
majorly represented by the people of the country. Britishers were not too engaged with their
culture and traditions. Culture and tradition of Bulgaria include Kukeri, Baba Matra, Jordanov
Day, Nestinarsvo and Winemaker's Day.
Culture and traditions of United Kingdom included British Morris Dancing, British
Maypole Dancing, English Cheese Rolling and British bonfire Night. Cultures and values of
United Kingdom and Bulgaria were compared with the help of Hofsetde dimension. Bulgaria has
a good score on the power distance as compared to United Kingdom. Citizens of Bulgaria had a
high preference for avoiding unexpected changes while, Britishers believed in being prepared for
the uncertainty in the future. Masculinity defined the fact that represent the success of the person
in the country. Britishers were more likely to have fun and spend on the leisure as compared to
the people of Bulgaria.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Beugelsdijk, S. and Welzel, C., 2018. Dimensions and dynamics of national culture:
Synthesizing Hofstede with Inglehart. Journal of cross-cultural psychology, 49(10),
pp.1469-1505.
Shvarts, A.G., Vignollet, J. and Yastrebov, V.A., 2021. Computational framework for
monolithic coupling for thin fluid flow in contact interfaces. Computer Methods in
Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 379, p.113738.
Gadzhieva, N., Asulova, D. and Yarova, Y., 2021. Semiotics in The Ethnic Culture of Bulgaria
And Macedonia. Научный альманах стран Причерноморья, (1), pp.37-43.
Bell, J.D., 2019. Bulgaria in transition: Politics, economics, Society, and culture after
communism. Routledge.
Davies, J.S. and Blanco, I., 2017. Austerity urbanism: Patterns of neo-liberalisation and
resistance in six cities of Spain and the UK. Environment and Planning A, 49(7),
pp.1517-1536.
Jabbarov, U., 2020. CRITERIA FOR THE EVALUATION OF PROGRESSIVE FOREIGN
PEDAGOGICAL EXPERIENCE IN THE UK. Mental Enlightenment Scientific-
Methodological Journal, 2020(2), pp.28-36.
Kristjánsdóttir, H., and et.al., 2017. Hofstede national culture and international trade. Applied
Economics, 49(57), pp.5792-5801.
Jackson, T., 2020. The legacy of Geert Hofstede. International Journal of Cross Cultural
Management, 20(1), pp.3-6.
Schimmack, U., Oishi, S. and Diener, E., 2005. Individualism: A valid and important dimension
of cultural differences between nations. Personality and Social Psychology
Review, 9(1), pp.17-31.
Online
COUNTRY COMPARISION, 2021. [Online]. Available through <https://www.hofstede-
insights.com/country-comparison/bulgaria,the-uk/>

APPENDIX
UNDERSTANDING BULGARIA'S CULTURE
QUESTION RESPONSES
Where did you grow up? I grew up in Burgas. It is a city on Bulgaria's Black Sea
Coast. Church of Saint Cyril is known as heart of the city.
Ethnographic Museum explore fol culture of Bulgarian
with colourful costumes and everyday items.
What’s your native language? My native language is Bulgarian.
In what ways have your culture
been taught to you?
I have learnt many things from my culture. It shows me a
proper way of communication. Traditional dance and
costumes influence me to promote culture and respect the
cultural activities of every country. The Bulgarian cultural
has thought me dance and singing as I used to participate
in folk music and dances of the festivals.
What are your values and
attitude?
I believe in team work to gain success in any task. The
culture of team work and effective collaboration lead to
the better efficiency in the performance. Cultural activities
are also very helpful in contributing the professional
behavior. I m very obsessed with class of the people as it
shows their level of comfort and income.
How is your Social and
professional behavior?
I believe in team work to gain success in any task. The
culture of team work and effective collaboration lead to
the better efficiency in the performance. Cultural activities
are also very helpful in contributing the professional
behavior. I m very obsessed with class of the people as it
shows their level of comfort and income.
11

How do you feel about traditions
in general?
Tradition plays an important role in the identification of a
person, community, group, city or country. I think beliefs,
communication, wearing and day to day activities of
people represent the tradition and culture of a country.
Festivals we celebrate are the part of traditions. Traditions
keep us connected to the country or society. So traditions
are essential to keep the cultural and value of a country
alive.
Are traditions very important in
your country?
Yes, traditions plays an important role in the country of
Bulgaria. People of the country are very connect to
traditions as they represent the culture and create a unique
image of the country. People of Bulgaria follow the
culture that include wearing of “Kukeri” it belong to the
ancient traditional story of Bulgaria that stats that the
customs designed to chase away the monsters. Celebration
of festivals such as Jordanov Day, Nestinarsvo and
Winemaker's Day shows that traditions are very important
in our country
UNDERSTANDING UNITED KINGDOM'S CULTURE
Where did you grow up? I grew up in London, England. It is the capital of England.
London is most popular city in the United Kingdom.
What’s your native language? My native Language is English.
In what ways have your culture
been taught to you?
I learnt culture from my parents. They taught me about a
good behaviour. Family gatherings and festivals helps me
to learn a good behaviour and ways of communication.

The culture of celebrating festivals with family gatherings
taught me importance of relationships as building
relationship lead tote better and happier life as I believe
better connection with people makes better life.
What are your values and
attitude?
Manner in the behavior is the most important as it identify
the behaviors. I majorly focus on manners, dress and
speech. Professional behavior of me include honesty,
respectful, punctual and always being prepared. I prefer to
handshake while greeting with others. It increases comfort
and effectiveness in the communication.
How is your Social and
professional behavior?
I respect beliefs and values of other culture. I am very
concerned about the legal laws and regulations of the
country that include democratic right to everyone related
to freedom of speech and equality. Safe and secure
environment of work makes me more comfortable in
working.
How do you feel about traditions
in general?
Traditions represent the behavior of people. It very
important to follow the traditions as we pass our traditions
to the next generations. Representation of country and
community is done with the help of traditions and cultures
of the country. Major traditions in England are going to
pub, paying for drinks in round, saying sorry and
identification of accent.
Are traditions very important in
your country?
Yes, traditions are important in our country. The British
traditions such as British Morris Dancing, British Maypole
Dancing, English Cheese Rolling and British bonfire
Night are celebrated by the people of United Kingdom that
13

represent love of people towards its traditions. People in
the country are still connected with the traditions and
traditions are given priority by many people in the
country.