International Business Report: Culture, Customs, and Comparisons

This report on international business delves into the analysis of cultural customs, comparing low and high context cultures, and exploring the iceberg concept of culture. It examines the importance of language in cultural differences and how it impacts business practices. The report also discusses the influence of professional culture and the country-level culture. Furthermore, the report summarizes the cultural theories of Hall and Hofstede, highlighting their contributions to understanding cultural dimensions in international business. The report provides insights into how cultural nuances impact business operations and relationships across different countries, providing a valuable resource for students studying international business.

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INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
by Student’s Name
Class/Course/Code
Professor’s Name
University/School
City, State
Date

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1. Research business customs and explain 2 different cultural customs. Ensure you
identify at least: the culture; country; custom; and the research source.
Low context culture
For instance, in Western countries
individuals’ expertise and performance are
more valuable than their relationships. So,
their agreements accentuate specific and
legalistic contracts. They dismount business
first therefore; give-and-takes are as
efficient as possible.
High context culture
For instance in, Asian countries individuals’
personal relations and goodwill are more
valuable than their expertise and
performance. So, their agreements
accentuate trust more. They create social
trust first therefore, negotiations are slow
and ritualistic.
2. Distinguish between the three layers of the iceberg concept of culture.
Cultural Makeup
That is visible We are aware of We are unaware of
It is high culture involving
fine arts, drama, literature
and classical music of any
country.
It is folk culture involving
humor, religion, folk
dancing, etiquettes,
courtship practice, cooking,
popular music, dress, diet
etc. of any country.
It is a deep culture
involving gender roles,
greeting rituals, family
relationships,
conversational patterns,
attitudes of cooperation vs.
competition, patterns of
decision-making concepts
of beauty etc.
3. What are the main elements of country-level and professional culture?
Country-level culture is the characteristics of a group of individuals within a country.
This involves their values, beliefs, behaviours, norms etc. it is a set of principles which one
can inadvertently use to identify the group an individual belongs to.
Professional culture offers a range of social principles and activities that are accepted in
organization’s environment. It is impacted by the culture of the host and home countries

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depending upon where it is currently residing.
4. Summarise the two different interpretations of culture by Hall and Hofstede
Hall
According to Hall, language is an important factor in describing cultural differences
(McSweeney, 2016). For instance, Amazonian language “Piraha” does not include numbers
which means people there cannot count and do mathematics. While in other regions where
numbers are present in the language, they can do mathematics and IT functions.
Hofstede
Individualistic societies like in Australia, Britain, and Canada, people accentuate self-
interest (Kristjánsdóttir et al., 2017). While collectivist societies like in China, Japan, South
Korea, relationship ties are more important.

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References
Kristjánsdóttir, H., Guðlaugsson, Þ.Ö., Guðmundsdóttir, S. and Aðalsteinsson, G.D., 2017.
Hofstede national culture and international trade. Applied Economics, 49(57), pp.5792-5801.
McSweeney, B., 2016. Hall, Hofstede, Huntington, Trompenaars, GLOBE: Common
Foundations, Common Flaws. In Transculturalism and Business in the BRIC States (pp. 39-
84). Routledge.