. You need to submit your response on blackboard by 1pm on Wednesday the 21st of April (today). Key terms and theories: Culture: system of values and norms that are shared among a group of people and that when taken together constitute a design for living Values: abstract ideas about what a group believes to be good, right and desirable Norms: social rules and guidelines that prescribe appropriate behaviour in particular situations High-context cultures: cultures where establishing social trust, personal relations and rituals are given priority Low-context cultures: cultures where expertise, performance and efficiency are given priority Power distance: This dimension expresses the degree to which the less powerful members of a society accept and expect that power is distributed unequally. The fundamental issue here is how a society handles inequalities among people. Individualism vs. collectivism: The high side of this dimension, called individualism, can be defined as a preference for a loosely-knit social framework in which individuals are expected to take care of only themselves and their immediate families. Its opposite, collectivism, represents a preference for a tightly-knit framework in society in which individuals can expect their relatives or members of a particular ingroup to look after them in exchange for unquestioning loyalty. Uncertainty avoidance: The Uncertainty Avoidance dimension expresses the degree to which the members of a society feel uncomfortable with uncertainty and ambiguity. The fundamental issue here is how a society deals with the fact that the future can never be known: should we try to control the future or just let it happen? Masculinity vs. femininity: The masculinity side of this dimension represents a preference in society for achievement, heroism, assertiveness and material rewards for success. Society at large is more competitive. Its opposite, femininity, stands for a preference for cooperation, modesty, caring for the weak and quality of life. Society at large is more consensus-oriented. Also, the extent to which a society differentiates and emphasises traditional gender and work roles. Long-term orientation: extent to which a society adheres to values about time, persistence, ordering by status, protection of face, respect for tradition and reciprocation of gifts Indulgence: Indulgence stands for a society that allows relatively free gratification of basic and natural human drives related to enjoying life and having fun. Restraint stands for a society that suppresses gratification of needs and regulates it by means of strict social norms.