This dimension focuses on how cultures adapt to changes and cope with uncertainty. Emphasis is on extent to which a culture feels threatened or is anxious about ambiguity. It is not risk avoidance but rather, how one deals with ambiguity.
Review Hofstede’s country ranking for Uncertainty Avoidance.
High Uncertainty Avoidance
Low Uncertainity Avoidance
social norms
conservatism, law and order
openness to change, innovation
xenophobic
tolerance of diversity
express emotions
supress emotions
politics / legal system
weak interest in politics
high interest in politics
citizen protest repressed
citizen protest accepted
more and specific laws and regulations
fewer and general laws and regulations
religion
Catholic, Islam, Judaism, Shintoism
Protestant, Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism
aggressively fundamentalist
little persecution for beliefs
Ritualized / ceremonial
Avoid ritualization and ceremony
school
teachers have all answers
teachers may say “don’t know”
structured learning
open-ended learning
family
traditional gender roles
fewer gender roles
children taught world is hostile
children taught world is benevolent
Uncertainty avoidance deals with a society’s tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity; it ultimately refers to man’s search for Truth. It indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either uncomfortable or comfortable in unstructured situations. Unstructured situations are novel, unknown, surprising, and different from usual. Uncertainty avoiding cultures try to minimize the possibility of such situations by strict laws and rules, safety and security measures, and on the philosophical and religious level by a belief in absolute Truth; ‘there can only be one Truth and we have it’.
For example, in Germany there is a reasonable high uncertainty avoidance [65] compared to countries as Singapore [8] and neighbouring country Denmark [23]. Germans are not to keen on uncertainty, by planning everything carefully they try to avoid the uncertainty. In Germany there is a society that relies on rules, laws and regulations. Germany wants to reduce its risks to the minimum and proceed with changes step by step.
The United States scores a 46 compared to the 65 of the German culture. Uncertainty avoidance in the US is relatively low, which can clearly be viewed through the national cultures.
Power Distance Index | Individualism | Masculinity | Uncertainty Avoidance Index | Long-Term Orientation
Uncertainty Avoidance Index | ||||||
1-20 | 21-40 | 41-60 | 61-80 | 81-100 | 101-120 |
Country | PDI | IDV | MAS | UAI | LTO |
Greece | 60 | 35 | 57 | 112 | |
Portugal | 63 | 27 | 31 | 104 | |
Guatemala | 95 | 6 | 37 | 101 | |
Uruguay | 61 | 36 | 38 | 100 | |
Belgium | 65 | 75 | 54 | 94 | |
El Salvador | 66 | 19 | 40 | 94 | |
Poland | 68 | 60 | 64 | 93 | |
Japan | 54 | 46 | 95 | 92 | 80 |
Peru | 64 | 16 | 42 | 87 | |
Argentina | 49 | 46 | 56 | 86 | |
Chile | 63 | 23 | 28 | 86 | |
Costa Rica | 35 | 15 | 21 | 86 | |
France | 68 | 71 | 43 | 86 | |
Panama | 95 | 11 | 44 | 86 | |
Spain | 57 | 51 | 42 | 86 | |
South Korea | 60 | 18 | 39 | 85 | 75 |
Turkey | 66 | 37 | 45 | 85 | |
Hungary | 46 | 55 | 88 | 82 | |
Mexico | 81 | 30 | 69 | 82 | |
Israel | 13 | 54 | 47 | 81 | |
Colombia | 67 | 13 | 64 | 80 | |
Brazil | 69 | 38 | 49 | 76 | 65 |
Venezuela | 81 | 12 | 73 | 76 | |
Italy | 50 | 76 | 70 | 75 | |
Czech Republic | 57 | 58 | 57 | 74 | |
Austria | 11 | 55 | 79 | 70 | |
Pakistan | 55 | 14 | 50 | 70 | |
Taiwan | 58 | 17 | 45 | 69 | 87 |
Egypt | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
Iraq | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
Kuwait | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
Lebanon | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
Libya | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
Saudi Arabia | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
United Arab Emirates | 80 | 38 | 52 | 68 | |
Ecuador | 78 | 8 | 63 | 67 | |
Germany | 35 | 67 | 66 | 65 | 31 |
Thailand | 64 | 20 | 34 | 64 | 56 |
Finland | 33 | 63 | 26 | 59 | |
Iran | 58 | 41 | 43 | 59 | |
Switzerland | 34 | 68 | 70 | 58 | |
Ghana | 77 | 20 | 46 | 54 | 16 |
Nigeria | 77 | 20 | 46 | 54 | 16 |
Sierra Leone | 77 | 20 | 46 | 54 | 16 |
Netherlands | 38 | 80 | 14 | 53 | 44 |
Ethiopia | 64 | 27 | 41 | 52 | 25 |
Kenya | 64 | 27 | 41 | 52 | 25 |
Tanzania | 64 | 27 | 41 | 52 | 25 |
Zambia | 64 | 27 | 41 | 52 | 25 |
Australia | 36 | 90 | 61 | 51 | 31 |
Norway | 31 | 69 | 8 | 50 | 20 |
New Zealand | 22 | 79 | 58 | 49 | 30 |
South Africa | 49 | 65 | 63 | 49 | |
Indonesia | 78 | 14 | 46 | 48 | |
United States | 40 | 91 | 62 | 46 | 29 |
Philippines | 94 | 32 | 64 | 44 | 19 |
China | 80 | 20 | 66 | 40 | 118 |
India | 77 | 48 | 56 | 40 | 61 |
Malaysia | 104 | 26 | 50 | 36 | |
Ireland | 28 | 70 | 68 | 35 | |
United Kingdom | 35 | 89 | 66 | 35 | 25 |
Hong Kong | 68 | 25 | 57 | 29 | 96 |
Sweden | 31 | 71 | 5 | 29 | 33 |
Denmark | 18 | 74 | 16 | 23 | |
Jamaica | 45 | 39 | 68 | 13 | |
Singapore | 74 | 20 | 48 | 8 | 48 |