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The Shabby Guitar Player

You are in a restaurant having dinner with an acquaintance. A shabby man with a guitar comes to your table and offers to play. How do you feel about this?

1. The man is a beggar and should find a job.

2. The man is filthy and disgusting.

3. The man is to be pitied.

4. You do not know this man, and you have nothing to do with him.

5. Could be interesting, maybe he plays well.

6. The waiter should remove this man.

Analysis:

1. This is a masculine point of view; the man is a loser. It could also speak of long-term orientation.

2. People from uncertainty avoiding cultures would feel this way. They might even be afraid of contracting a disease from the man.

3. People from feminine cultures might feel this way.

4. If you and you acquaintance are from a collectivist society and belong to a group to which the newcomer does not belong, then you might feel this way. But you might also feel this way if you are from an individualist masculine culture. In that case you might not feel any moral obligation to care for a loser who caused his own misfortune and who is nothing to you.

5. This is how people from uncertainty tolerant cultures might feel. A novel, ambiguous situation piques their curiosity.

6. People from cultures high on power distance might feel this way. Or it might indicate strong uncertainty avoidance: the man is out of place in a restaurant that is unsettling.

A Meeting at the Airport

You are headed to a formal business meeting with somebody you have never met before. When you get off the airplane, a warmly smiling woman wearing jeans and sandals is holding a sign with your name on it. What do you think?

1. She must be a secretary.

2. She is probably the person with whom you will have the meeting.

3. It is wonderful to be welcomed so warmly.

4. How dare someone meet you in such an informal outfit.

5. There must be an error, because you are expecting a formal looking gentleman.

Analysis

1. In a masculine society, gender roles are unequally distributed, and people might have this expectation.

2. This expectation should indicate both femininity (you are not amazed that your partner is a woman) and uncertainty tolerance (you are not taken aback because she is actually dressed).

3. It is wonderful to be welcomed so warmly.

This is how somebody from a collectivist society might feel- or indeed anybody who does not take offense.

4. This might be the reaction of an important person from a large power distance culture, who would have expected an impressive delegation.

5. This would be atypical uncertainty avoiding reaction. If uncertainty avoidance is strong, people are expected to display their position through their clothing, and this woman is not dressed formally.

The Returning Athlete

You are the mayor of a small town. An athlete from your town took part in the Olympic Games. The athlete is due to return tomorrow, having obtained fourth place in an event. What sort of official welcome will you prepare for her?

1. None, because a fourth place is not worth anything. If only it had been a gold medal…

2. None, because there is not protocol for officially receiving returning sports players or participants.

3. A big one, because even if she did not win, she did participate in the Olympic games and that is a great achievement.

4. A grand one, because she is one of us and she has honored our town.

5. You will ask the city council for advice.

Analysis

1. This is a masculine reaction. Only winning counts.

2. This reaction speaks of uncertainty avoidance, because rules are rules.

3. This reaction speaks of a feminine perspective along with short-term orientation. It is feminine because participating is more important than winning. It is short-term oriented because if you are happy, you want to show it.

4. This is a collectivist perspective, along with short-term orientation. When a member of a family comes home, you celebrate.

5. This reaction indicates small power-distance – not deciding alone but asking the others for advice.

A Virtual Contact

On the Web, you have found the site of somebody you might want to start a business relationship with. How would you establish the first contact?

1. Write a formal, polite paper letter on your company letterhead.

2. Send an e-mail starting “Dear Mr. so-and-so” and ending “Kind regards, X.”

3. Send an e-mail starting “My name is X and I have a proposal that might interest you” and ending with your first name.

4. Have your secretary arrange a phone call.

5. Call the person on the phone yourself.

Analysis

1. This speaks of uncertainty avoidance.

2. This is a feminine style, emphasizing a friendly relationship between the addressee and yourself.

3. This is an individualist, masculine style. You briefly introduce yourself as an individual and then get down to business.

4. This approach indicates large power distance. It will convey your status to the person.

5. This seems to indicate femininity because it can lead to a personal contact. It certainly indicates uncertainty tolerance, since you establish a two-way contact with very little idea how the conversation will proceed.