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CONTROL

NATIONALCHARACTER LargelyaconscientiousnessfactorsloadingonDisciplineand
ITCCONFERENCE Prudence.CreativityandDisinhibitionlinktothelowendofthis
LIVERPOOLUK1316JULY2008 scale.
NORMANBUCKLEY no rma nb@ redfiel dco nsul ti ng.co m
Co piesofthispa pera ndslidesareavaila blefrom the EMOTIONALITY
author
SimilartoclassicNeuroticismbutmorebroadlydefinedinline
TheconceptofNationalCharacterhasbeenofhugeinterestfor withconceptsofselfworth,selfesteemandJudgesconstructof
generations.Fromliteraturetopoppsychologyandthroughto CoreSelfEvaluation.Thehighendisreactiveandintensewhile
learnedresearchpeoplehavestruggledtodeterminewhether thelowendisstableandselfassured.
thereissuchathingandifthereisthenwhatdoesitmean?Isit
helpfulordoesitdolittlemorethanstrengthenprejudiceand AlthoughFacet5alsocontains13subfactors(facets)all
justifyactionswhichcanextendasfarasgenocide(Rwanda)or calculationswerecarriedoutatthemainfactorlevel.
war.ItisbeyondthispapertodeterminetheoriginsofNational
CharacterorAggregatePersonality(atermusedforexamplein SAMPLE
1
McRaeandTerraccianossignificant2005paper )orevenModal
2
PersonalityasdescribedbyInkeles .Norisitourintentionto Weextractedapproximately50000casesfromourdatabasede
explorethepossibilityofdifferentpersonalitystructuresin identifyingthembutretainingotherdemographicdataincluding
3
differentcultures.FannyCheung inHongKonghasexplained thecompletionlanguageandthelocation.Aftercleaningand
thisverywellashaveothersintheNetherlandsandHungary.Our selectingforsamplesizewehaddatafrom22countries.Structural
intentionwastodeterminewhether,usingacommonmeasure equivalenceforthesedifferentlanguageversionswasestablished
availableinmultiplelanguages,wecouldidentifymeaningful previously.Thisanalysisusedrawscorestoavoidlossofvariance
differencesinfactorsaturationandtoseewhethertheycanhelp duetostandardization.
explainthewaywelive.
ANALYSIS
MEASURES
A1wayANOVAofthedatashowedsignificantdifferencesacross
OurpersonalityinstrumentwasFacet5.Facet5isa5factormodel everyfactoralthoughatestofeffectsize(Eta2)showedthatthe
with13subfactorsfirstpublishedinJanuary1990.Facet5isweb differencesforAffection,ControlandEmotionalitywerethe
basedandavailablein29languages.Ithasprovenpopularwith strongest.
globalorganisationsbecauseofitspracticaldesignand
application.TheFacet5factorsare: MEANDIFFERENCES

WILL Themeandifferencesacrossthesefactorswere:

CharacteristicsincludeDominance,Assertivenessand
nd WILL
Independence.Itissimilartothe16PF2 orderFactorof
Independence.SuchaCharactercanalsobeStubborn,
Germany,HollandandtheUSareattheDominant,Assertiveand
ArgumentativeandAuthoritarian.
Independentend.HongKong,JapanandKoreacomeoutasmore
AccommodatingandDemocratic.
ThescalesarebipolarsotheoppositecharacterisFlexible,
AccommodatingandDemocratic.
ENERGY
ENERGY
HereNorwayandIrelandleadthepackofexuberantfunlovers
justaheadofNetherlands,UK,BrazilandAustralia.TheAsiantrio
ThisissimilartothegeneralinterpretationofExtraversionas
ofHK,SingaporeandKoreaaremuchmorereservedandprivate.
beingEnthusiastic,Sociable,Adaptable.Introvertsaretherefore
NotethatChinamovestothecentreofthegroup.
Quiet,PrivateandDiscreet.

AFFECTION AFFECTION

ChinanowmovestothetopwithIreland,AustraliaandCanada
ThisalignswiththenongelementsofOpennessandtheconcepts
closebehind.Theyallcomeoutasaltruistic,helpfulandtrusting.
ofAltruism,SupportandTrust.TheoppositepoleisTaskOriented,
Thetough,pragmaticgroupincludetheHungarians,Dutchand
Critical,Sceptical.ItcanalsobelinkedtoaPeoplevsTask
Germans.Thesedifferencesaresignificantandarethoughttobe
orientation.
ofmoderateimportance(Eta2).
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NationalCharacter
BrazilandGreeceshowsimilaritiesasdoHongKongandKorea.
CONTROL
Andsothesteadyagglomerationofcountriesgoeson.Indiaand
ControlhasthelargestrangewithIndia,GreeceandMalaysiaas Malaysiaaremorelikeeachotherthantheyarelikeanybodyelse.
themostconservativeandprudentandwithAustraliafollowing LastonesthroughthegatearetheJapanese.SowhenaJapanese
upandtakingitsAsianresponsibilitiesseriously. saysweredifferenthemayberight.Theyshareourcommon
personalityconstructsbuttheyputthemtogetherinaunique
ScandinaviansareallmorefreespiritedalongwithGermanyand way.
Japanandpreparedtoobjectonprincipleiftoldtodosomething.
Theywillalwaysquestionandchallengetherules.TheDutchon SNAPSHOTS
theotherhanddonotknowthereareanyrules.Nowthe
inclusionofJapanatthelowendmayraisesomeeyebrows.Itdid InFacet5wehaveaconvenientwayofdisplayinggroupdatathat
forme.SurelythestereotypeofJapanisofaregimented, wecallaSnapshot.ASnapshotreducesanoverallprofiletoa
conservativeandruleboundplace.Butnotsosaythosewho singledatapointandhelpstoshowtrendsandpatternsingroups.
workinandwithJapanesecompanies.Apparentlytheyare
knowntostickrigidlytotherulestheylike,andtoignorethose FromthisSnapshotthesimilaritybetweenGermanyand
thatareabitinconvenient! Netherlandsisobvious.SameforAustraliaandIrelandandNew
ZealandandtheUK.ButhowcomeJapanisntgroupedinwith
Controlhasthelargesteffectsizesoiftherearebehavioural thosetwo?Theylooksimilar.ItsbecauseaSnapshotusesonly
differencesyouwouldexpecttofindthemhere.Sowhichcountry fourofthefivefactors.Emotionalityisleftout.Itsthis
wasitthatfeltinclined,inthespiritoftoleranceandfreedomto dimensionthatmovesJapanawayfromtheothertwo.
allowahippycommunetoestablishitselfinthemiddleofits
capitalandtocontinuetoexistrelativelyunmolested.Delhi?
CONVERGENTVALIDITY
Athens?KualaLumpur,Canberra?Idontthinkso.Copenhagen?
Noproblem.
Convergentvalidityreferstothedegreetowhichourdatais
Andwhichcountryhadtheideatoreducetrafficaccidentsnotby similartootherresearchfindings.Totestthispartwecollected
morerulesbutbyremovingalltherulescompletely?Australia? freelyavailablenationaldatafor7measures:
Yourejoking.Wehaverulesaboutrules.Netherlandscomeon
down.WelcometoMakkingainWesternFrisia.Nowothersmall ROSENBERGSSELFESTEEMINDEX
townsaretryingitbutwhichcountrywasitthatthoughtthiswas
suchabrilliantideathattheyimplementeditinBohmtewithits Rosenberg4createda12itemmeasuretoevaluatefeelingsofself
13,500inhabitants?WelldoneGermany.Itfitsneatlywiththe worthwhichhasbeenusedextensivelyinglobalresearch.Asa
philosophyofunrestrictedautobahns. resultdatawasavailableformostofourcountries.Wewould
expectittorelatetoEmotionalitysincethisembodiesasenseof
EMOTIONALITY selfworth.Anditdoes.Thecorrelationof0.68suggeststhat
lowerlevelsofEmotionalitylinkstoagreaterSelfEsteem.
Themostselfassuredandconfidentnationsappeartobethe HoweverwealsohadcontributionsfromWillandEnergy
Dutch,NorwegiansandGermanswiththeAustraliansandIrishnot indicatingthatDetermined,Outgoingandconfidentcountries
farbehind.Theyallhaveanoticeableassuredness.Butcouldthis haveaprettygoodimpressionofthemselves.Germany,theUS
spilloverintosmugselfsatisfaction?Wellitcouldifyouare andtheNetherlandsmeetthispicture.ConverselyHongKong,
Korean,JapaneseorfromHongKong.OrevenHungarian, KoreaandJapanaremoreselfdoubting.
BrazilianandLithuanian.Allthesearelessselfsatisfied.Sowhen
AustraliatellsJapanthatitmuststopwhaling(eatingwhalemeat
ENGAGEMENT
isthoughttodatetotheJomonPeriod80003000BCsoits
hardlyanewidea.)weseetheirreluctanceasunreasonableand
Theconceptofcorporateengagementisrapidlygainingcurrency
theirresponseasoverreaction.Coulditbeuswhohavefailedto
asitslinktohardmeasuressuchasstaffturnoverandprofitis
seetheimportanceoftheissuetoamoreEmotionalcountry? 5
demonstrated.HewittAssociates defineEngagementasThe
stateinwhichindividualsareemotionallyandintellectually
SIMILARCOUNTRIES committedtotheorganisationorgroup.Wefoundmodestlinks
toFacet5,moststronglyforControlbutalsoforAffection.A
Tocheckforcountriesthatarebehaviourally/culturallysimilarwe largersampleisneededtoconfirmthisbuttheimplicationisclear.
performedasimplehierarchicalclusteranalysisacrossthefive Countrieswithastrongersenseofsocialjustice(Affectionand
factors.YoucanseethatquickasaflashitfoundtheUKandNZ Controltogether)aremorelikelytofeelmoreengaged.Theyare
tobeneatlytwinned.Theyareverysimilarinstylewhichgiven morelikelytoSaygoodthingsabouttheiremployer,Staylonger
theancestryofmuchofNZmaynotbesurprising.Australiaand andStrivetodobetter.
Irelandshowalikeprofilesagainreflectingearlymigration
patterns.AustraliareceivedalargeproportionofBritains
unwantedIrishpoliticalprisoners(andcriminals).

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NationalCharacter
NotsurewherethisleavestheGreeks.Istherealatenthigh
HOFSTEDESCULTUREMEASURES
technologyindustryhere?Perhapsotherfactorswillkickinto
GertHofsted6isfrequentlyquotedintherealmofNational preventit.
Character.BuildingonoriginalworkinIBMheidentifiedfive
culturaldimensionswhichareusedtodescribethewayacountry LONGTERMORIENTATION
goesaboutitsbusiness.
MostAsiancountries(China,Japan,HongKong)arethoughtto
takealongtermviewofthingswhereascountrieslikeNorway,
POWERDISTANCE
theUK,GermanyandAustraliatendtoseethingsmoreurgently.
Thisrelatedtonotonlytheequalityofdistributionofpowerina ThisislinkedtolowWill,lowEnergyandhighEmotionality.Such
countrybutalsotoitsimplicitacceptancebythepopulace.Itleads countriesprefertotaketimeoverdecisionsratherthanjumpin
toanElitistsocietyasopposedtoamoreEgalitarianone. andareslowertoadoptradicalchange.TheEmotionalityalso
MalaysiansandChineseshowthisstronglywhereastheDutchand addsalevelofcautionandhesitancytotheirbusinessprocess.
NorwegiansaremoreEgalitarian.ThecombinationofControl
withlowEnergy(Introversion)andhighEmotionalitycontributes SOCIOECONOMICMEASURES
toanElitistview.
SofarweseethattheresultsoftheFacet5dataareinkeeping
INDIVIDUALVSCOLLECTIVE withothermeasuresofpsychologicalconstructs.Itprovidesa
formofConstructValiditybutdoeslittletoexplaintherelevance
HofstedeshowstheUS,AustraliaandtheUKtobethemost totherealworld.Todothiswewenttorelativelyhardsocio
Individualisticofcountries.Insuchcountriesitseverypersonfor economicmeasures.Wechosefive:
themselves.Singapore,HongKongandMalaysiaaremore
Collective.HighWill,highEnergyandlowEmotionalitycontribute
GINI
tothisIndividualisticoutlook.
TheGINIratio(CorradoGini18841965)isameasureofthe
7
MASCULINEVSFEMININE equalityofdistributionofwealthinacountry.TheGINIindex is
theGINIratioexpressedasapercentagewithlowscores
InJapanandHungarytheytendtobelievethatsocietyrolesare indicatingamoreevendistribution,highscoresanunequal
genderspecifici.e.therearejobsthatblokesdoandjobsthat distribution.
shielasdo!InNorwayandDenmarkitismuchmoreevenly
spread.WedonthavestrongFacet5linksforthisdimension.The ThespreadofwealthinacountryappearstoberelatedtoWill,
onlysignificantlinkwasforEmotionality.Oneknown Energy,ControlandEmotionality.Allcontribute.Countriesthat
characteristicofhighEmotionalityisatendencytosticktowhat aremoreprocessoriented,modestandlessselfassuredaremore
theyknowandtoavoidtheriskassociatedwithchange.However likelytohavegreaterinequality.SoinBrazil,HongKong,China,
ifthereisaglobalshiftfromgenderspecifictonongenderspecific MalaysiaandtheUStherichareveryrichandthepoorverypoor.
rolesthenthelevelofEmotionalitywouldbelikelytoinfluence InDenmark,Netherlands,GermanyandNorway,countrieswhich
therateofthischangeratherthanthechangeitself.Perhapsthe aremoreassertive,independent,confidentandfreespirited,
HofstedenumbersforourhighEmotionalitycountriesshouldbe wealthismoreevenlyspread.Youmightarguethattheseplaces
reexaminedintheyearstocome. aremoreegalitarianandlibertarianandforalongtimehavehad
strongsocialistgovernments.Itwillbeinterestingtoseewhere
Swedenfallsonourlist.
UNCERTAINTYAVOIDANCE

Thisisthedegreetowhichpeopleacceptcomplexityand HUMANDEVELOPMENTINDEX(HDI)
ambiguityintheirlives.Countrieswhichareintolerantof
uncertainty(Greece,JapanandKorea)liketohavesimple,self TheHDI8isanindexthatcombinesmeasuresoflifeexpectancy,
evidenttruths. literacy,educationalattainment,andGDPpercapita.Itshouldbe
notedthattwoofthesemeasures(GDPpercapitaandLife
Tolerantcountries(Singapore,Denmark,HongKong)acceptthat Expectancy)arecalculatedseparatelywhichmeansthattherewill
theworldisacomplicatedplaceandyoucantexpecttoomuch beanelementofredundancyinthismeasure.
clarity.
OurdatasuggeststhatthemaindriverforthisislowControl.
ItappearstobelinkedtoacombinationoflowAffectionandhigh Countriesthatarelessrestrictiveandmoresupportiveof
Emotionality.WeknowthatlowAffectionlikesthingstobeclear individualfreedomputmoreeffortintohumandevelopment.So
cut(asopposedtoatendencyofhighAffectiontobesomewhat India,ChinaandBrazilgotothebottomofthelistwhileNorway,
muddleheaded).Whenweaddintheresistancetochange CanadaandIrelandgotothetop.
associatedwithhighEmotionalitythisintolerancebecomesa
searchforaccuracyandprecision.CouldthisbewhyJapanand
Koreafrequentlywinawardsforqualityintechnology.

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NationalCharacter
toohardandbeatthemselvesupaboutit.OfcourseinIndias
PRESSFREEDOM
casetheremighteasilybesomesignificanteconomic,nutritional
ReportersWithoutBorders9isanactiveprofessionalbody andhealthissuestoconsider.
dedicatedtothedefenseandmonitoringoffreespeecharound
theworld.Theyproduceanindexforeachcountrybyasking SUMMARY
correspondents,journalists,researchers,juristsandhumanrights
activists,tocompletea52itemquestionnaireaboutthestateof Thisstudywaspromptedbyasteadystreamofenquiriesfrom
pressfreedomintheircountry.Thereare167countriesinthe clients.Theywantedtoknowwhatdifferenceswefoundworking
surveyandtheresultsproducevaluesrangingfrom0.5(placeslike withdifferentnationalities.Thereweretworeasonsforthe
Denmark,Netherland,IrelandandNorway)to107forNorth question.Thefirstwasfromorganisationsthatwantedtoknow
nd th st
Korea.TheUSAranks22 ,theUK28 andAustralia41 .The howtheyshouldapproachaparticularmarket.Werethe
lowerthevalue,thefreerthepress. differencessufficienttowarrantadifferentstrategy?Thesecond
(muchmorecommonone)wasfrompeopleworkingwithmulti
ControlisthestrongestcontributortothisindexbutEnergycomes culturalteams.SoaMalaysianshippingcompanywouldhave
close.China,Singapore,IndiaandMalaysiaareallrestrictiveand Americans,British,Dutch,SingaporeChineseandMalaysworking
managetheirpressclosely.Denmark,NorwayandNetherlands together.AndtheSingaporeansallseemedtohavelowWill.So
areveryfree.ThiscouldexplainwhyaDanishpaper(Jyllands whatdowedo?
Posten)askedagroupofDanishcartooniststodrawtheProphet
Mohammedastheysawhim.Theythenhadnohesitationabout Toanswerthefirstone,theredoseemtobesomedifferent
publishingthewittycontributions. NationalCharactersandtheANOVAsuggeststhesedifferences
arereal.ThebiggestdifferenceswereonControland
Itmightalsoexplainwhy,whenthepaper(andthecartoonists) Emotionality.Ofthe12measureswechoseControlwasrelated
wereattackedfortheireffortsitwastheDutchwhowereamong to7.Emotionalitywasrelatedto7andEnergyto5.Willwas
thefirsttoleaptotheDanesdefense.Anditwastheywhore relatedto4andAffectionto2.
publishedthecartoonstoprovethattheycouldntbepushed
aroundandwouldnotbowtopressure. Soifyouaretryingtobuildabusinessinaforeignclimethese
countrydifferencesaresignificantandsomeareimportant.You
cannotopenapaperwithoutseeingreferencetotheemerging
GDPPERCAPITA 10
economiesofChinaandIndia.Punditstellustheyarethesource
offutureworlddevelopmentandpossiblythesavioursofthe
Thismeasureisverywidelyusedandunderstoodevenifnot
westerneconomies.Soweneedstrategiestoapproachthemand
everyoneagreesaboutwhatitmeansorwhetheritstandsasa
theyneedtobestrategiesthatareappropriate.Thetypical
measureofhappiness.Itisameasureofacountryswealth.So
WesternEuropeanwayistochargeinwithadealthatcantbe
whoaretherichguys?Andwhy?
refused.TheUSputsadealonthetablebutwrapsitupinabit
OurresultsshowedasingleclearlinktolowControl.Countries moreprocessandregulation.Meanwhileoursavioursneed
suchasNorway,theUSandIrelandareallverywealthycompared moreconsultation,moreconsiderationandalessinyourface
toIndia,China,BulgariaandBrazil.Theyarealso,mostly,more style.InChinascasewealsoneedtoshowrespectforthepeople
freethinkingandcreative.Emotionalitycomesclosesuggesting involvedandtaketimetogettoknowthem.Bothhavemore
thatselfassurednessmayalsobeacontributortoeconomic ControlthanalotofEuropeancountriessowillwantmore
performance. assurance,referencesandhistory.Theyvaluetraditionandthis
shouldnotbeignored.
Asthechartshowstherearesomebigresidualsaswell.TheUSis
thewealthiestcountrybutitisactuallysomewhathigheron OnthisbasistheUKisprobablybetterequippedtoworkwith
Control.NetherlandsisverylowControlbutitisnotaswealthyas IndiaandChina(althoughtherecouldbeanelementofshort
Denmark,NorwayorHongKong. termismfromlowControl)thanassertiveanddominantGermany.
TheUSisprettywellsetbutneedstolearnpatienceandhumility.
Australiaisactuallyquitecomfortablesharingaconservative
LIFEEXPECTANCY 11 approachwithanemphasisonfairness.Itmustavoidprojecting
toomuchofasmugselfsatisfiedmanner.Ohanditreally
Sowholivesthelongest?JapanslongevityislegendarybutHong
wouldhelptolearnMandarin.
Kongsissimilar.LesswellknownisAustraliaatNo.3withCanada
closebehind. Thesecondquestionisdifferent.Whatdoyoudowithamulti
culturalteam?LetsrememberourANOVA.Wevelookedatthe
AgainlowControlseemstocontributegenerallybutAustralia
WithinGroupSSandtheBetweenGroupSSandwiththehelpof
messesitupabitbybeingquitehighControl.Itsthemultipler
SPSSdeclaredthattheresenoughheretosayheytheyre
thatgivesthegameaway.Theregressionequation,while
different.WeveevenropedintheCohenstohelpussayand
weightinglowControlheavily,alsofactorsinabitoflowWill,abit
someofthesedifferencesareimportant!Butletsnotlosesight
oflowEmotionalityandabitofhighAffection.Putittogetherand
ofthefactthattheWithinGroupSSisstillwaybiggerthanthe
yougetafairlyeasygoing,selfeffacingandrelaxedgroup.And
BetweenGroupSS.Thedifferencebetweenindividualsismuch
thisconvertstolongerlife.TheIndians,Bulgarians,Brazilianstry
ITCConference1316July2008LiverpoolUK Page4
NationalCharacter
biggerthanthedifferencebetweenCountries.SoashyChinese
personisstillshyeventhoughhesChinese.Andswitchingthe
normsdoesntmakehimlessso.AbelligerentDutchmanisstill
belligerentandswitchingthenormsisntgoingtochangethat.So
formulticulturalgroupsitishowtheycomparetoeachother
thanmatters,nothowtheycomparetothepeopleintheirvillage,
townorcountry.

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