Chapter 8

The socio-cultural
environment


Introduction
What is culture?
Levels of culture
High and low context cultures
The fundamentals of culture
Individualism and collectivism
Hofstedes cultural value dimensions
Trompenaars cultural value dimensions
Lecture overview


The values theory and the measurement
of cross-cultural values
Using social axioms to augment the
measurement of value dimensions
Cultural analysis
Self-reference criteria
The relationship between culture and
international marketing
Summary
Overview (continued)


Learning Outcomes
Identify the different levels of culture.
Evaluate Hofstedes and Trompenaars cultural
value dimensions respectively.
Explain the values theory and discuss the
measurement of cross-cultural values.
Discuss different forms of cultural analysis.
Examine the meaning and role of the self-
reference criteria.
Analyse the relationship between culture and
international marketing.
Introduction
This chapter focuses on issues related to the socio-
cultural environments the international marketer
faces in foreign markets.
In order for an international marketer to be
successful in a foreign market, it is important to:
be familiar with the socio-cultural aspects of this market
take these aspects into account when developing a
marketing strategy for the specific foreign market.



What is culture?
Culture is learned, shared and transmitted from
one generation to the next (Czinkota &
Ronkainen).
It is an an integrated system of learned
behaviour patterns that are distinguishing
characteristics of the members of any given
society (Czinkota & Ronkainen).
Encompasses all traditions, habits, religion, art
and language (Jeannet & Hennessey).


What is culture? (continued)
A subculture can be defined as an:
identifiable subgroup within a culture that
shares values and patterns of behaviour
that are distinguishable from the overall
culture
Anderson & Vincze



8
Levels of culture
Levels of culture
National culture National culture
Industry culture Industry culture
Firm culture Firm culture
Individual Individual
behaviour behaviour


High and low context cultures
Low-context cultures
individuals rely on what is said and written for
meaning.
individuals communicate through words exactly what is
meant.
High-context cultures
individuals do not say and write exactly what is meant.
read between the lines.
gestures, moods and environmental clues form part of
the message.




The fundamentals of culture (continued)
Material culture reflects the societys exposure to
technology.
Aesthetics is expressed in a cultures art, colour,
form and music.
Social organisation involves kinship, common
territory, special interest groups, class or caste
groupings, age and the role of women in society.
Manners and customs refers to what the society
considers as good manners and appropriate.
The fundamentals of culture (continued)
Education refers to the level of education and
education system in place in a society.
Religion and beliefs dictate how individuals live
their lives.
Attitudes and values influence aspects such as
time, achievement, work, health and willingness to
take risk of members of a society.
Language is seen as key to culture and is verbal
and non-verbal.
Individualism
Culture is made up of individuals connected to
each other
Individuals are motivated by their preferences,
needs and rights
Personal objectives are more important than
the objectives of others
Collectivism
Describes a culture consisting of closely connected
individuals
Individuals view themselves as part of a collective
including families, church groups or work groups
Individuals are motivated by what the collectives
want or expect from them
Personal goals are secondary to that of the collective
The linkage between members of the collective is
very important


Hofstedes cultural value dimensions
Power distance the way in which inequality between
different members of a society are dealt with.
Uncertainty avoidance the way in which members of
a particular society deal with uncertainty.
Individualism the extent to which members of a
society promote individual self interest.
Masculinity masculine cultures prize assertiveness,
materialism and limited concern for other members of
society. Less masculine cultures value members of
society, good relationships with others and quality of life.
Time orientation members of a societys orientation to
the future.
Trompenaars cultural value dimensions
Universalism versus particularism steadfast
principles in terms of what is right and wrong versus
obligations that come with relationships.
Individualism versus communitarianism individuals
consider themselves as individuals first versus group
obligations are seen as more important than individual
desires.
Neutral versus affective individuals repress their
emotions versus individuals tend to express their
emotions.
Specific versus diffuse get to the point without delay
when interacting with others versus value relationships
and focus only on business dealings once relationships
have been established.
Trompenaars cultural value dimensions
(continued)
Achievement versus ascription a persons status in
society is derived from his or her own achievements
versus status is dependent upon the persons age,
gender, family relations and social contacts.
Attitudes to time achievements of the past are not
important versus past accomplishments are viewed with
more regard than present and planned future
performance.
Attitudes to the environment the major focus
influencing a persons life exists within a person versus
the environment is far stronger than an individual.
The values theory and the measurement of
cross-cultural values
Identifies a set of 10 different value constructs which
are recognised across cultures
The Schwartz Value Survey (SVS) is used to
measure these 10 value constructs
The SVS requires abstract thinking and employs
value concepts outside of any specific context
The SVS works well in western industrialised
countries where education emphasises such thinking


The values theory and the measurement of
cross-cultural values (continued)
Research conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa, India and
Malaysia (amongst others, failed to obtain support for
the theory
The Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) was
developed to measure the 10 value-constructs in a
more concrete manner
The PVQ is useable with populations for which the
SVS is not suitable
The PVQ is an independent test of the values theory
Using social axioms to augment the
measurement of value dimensions
Social axioms are fundamental principles that people
support
These principles guide behaviour in everyday life
Social axioms differ from one person to another and
mirror the unique experiences of individuals
Two examples of social axioms:
belief in a religion helps one understand the meaning of
life
failure is the beginning of success.
Dynamic externality. Reflects an outward orientation
and a basic dealing with outside influences where
fate and the presence of a supreme being are
important to people.
Societal cynicism in cultures with high levels of
societal cynicism, individuals are disengaged from
their work and view their work as instrumental in
obtaining what they want from life.
Two social axiom dimensions
Cultural analysis
Develop an analytical framework to deal with
cultural differences.
The framework can be used to adapt or
develop new marketing strategies to enter
foreign markets.
Cultural analysis (continued)
The following guides exist to better understand
cultures and analyse different cultures:
Communication typologies
The work of Triandes, Hofstede and Trompenaars,
The values theory
The use of social axioms
Communication typologies
Culture is analysed based upon the manner in which
communication takes place.
Communication typologies include:
Contextual versus personal
Direct versus indirect
Elaborative versus succinct
Instrumental versus affective
The cultural value dimensions identified explain the
differences between cultures around the world.
Understanding the values assists the international
marketer in deciding on the marketing strategy for a
specific group or culture.
Social axioms involves focusing on the fundamental
principles that people support and that guide their
behaviour
This assists the international marketer to obtain a
better understanding of the culture and the way
individuals in the culture perceive it.
Self-reference criteria
Is when a person views another culture with an
evaluative and egotistical approach with reference to
his/her own culture.
International marketers should view a foreign within
the context of the country or market where the culture
is found.
Other cultures should be seen as being different
NOT inferior!
Focus on reducing the influence of the self-
reference criteria by:
Defining the problem or goal in terms of the
home countrys cultural traits, habits and norms.
Defining the problem or goal in terms of the host
countrys cultural traits, habits and norms.
Isolating the influence of the self-reference
criteria and carefully investigate how it
complicates the problem.
Redefining the problem by excluding the
influence of the self-reference criteria and
focusing on solving the problem or achieving the
goal optimally.
The relationship between culture and
international marketing
The customer in the international market:
It is important for the international marketer to
determine religion, attitudes, beliefs, customs,
manners and many more elements when trying to
understand the customer in a market.
To understand or predict the consumers behaviour
have knowledge of the culture of the foreign market.
The marketing mix in the international market:
Country of origin influences the perception of a product
positively or negatively watches from Switzerland.
Take the role of discount pricing, bartering and other
pricing practices in a particular market into account.
Alter distribution decisions in particular foreign markets
due to cultural influences using bicycles in some
markets to distribute Coca-Cola.
Promotion that works well in the home country may not
be effective in the foreign market Vodacom Yebo Gogo
ads may be humorous in South Africa but not in others
The relationship between culture and
international marketing (cont.)
Delivering value in the international market:
It is not always easy to deliver similar value to all
customers all over the world
- The international marketer might have to change
marketing strategy to deliver value in the host
market
- For example, It is difficult to provide internet
banking in a market without necessary
infrastructure.
Ethical standards differ from one culture to another
and could pose major challenges for the
international marketer
The relationship between culture and
international marketing (cont.)