Response to Chapter 11

I think the four main dimensions of leaderships are very important when interacting with other countries. In the Intercultural Communication Course at St. Norbert College, we spent a great amount of time studying: individualism-collectivism, masculinity-femininity, uncertainty avoidance, and power distance. Based on the different cultures, people will interact and interpret verbal and non-verbal communication and roles of people differently. An individual culture focuses on the individual success of a person to get ahead in society, whereas collectivistic culture focuses on working together within the community for group success. Depending on if a culture is individualistic or collectivistic, will affect the structure of groups and the roles of leaders. Uncertainty avoidance is another key factor for leadership in different cultures. If people do not know about a culture or people within the culture, than they avoid them to reduce uncertainty. A leader needs to feel confident and learn about cultures, so that they can interact within a culture without feeling uncertainty. Power distance is in different cultures indicates how much space should be allotted for the people in power or who with stand leadership roles. This needs to be understood for different cultures to respond to power distance and the acceptance of behaviors based on status.

Cultures have different forms of leadership based on the expected roles for people within the culture and the people in power. The culture dimension discussed need to be examined to determine the bases of the culture and their leadership roles. Assuming these dimensions, may lead to failure for leaders in different cultures. Cultures are not usually adaptable to change because they have been participating and following a system they have always believed in.