Adapting and Adjusting to Other Cultures What We Know but Don’t Always Tell

Ascrutiny of international management textbooks yields some common themes. Inevitably they present the reader with a set of dimensions on which cultures can be differentiated, the most popular of these being G. Hofstede’s work-related values dimensions. Cultural dimensions are necessary but not sufficient tools for making sense of complex behavior within another culture. There is a danger of using these dimensions in a stereotypical manner that prevents us from seeing and understanding behavior that does not fit the stereotype. Adaptation goes beyond identifying cultural values to encompass both an understanding of the logic of a culture and being able to situate specific cultural values within that logic.