Masculinity
Table of Contents
This refers to the gender roles in society. According to Hofstede, people living in high masculinity index cultures accept as true the accomplishment and aspiration, in brazen masculinity. These cultures have a clear cut view towards the role of males and females in the society. The cultures that tend towards low masculinity index deem less in external shows of masculinity achievements (Hofstede, (1980). With this in mind, the Mexican family may not have valued Sarah’s opinion tremendously as she is a female as compared to how they would have if the student had been a man. This is because; high masculinity index cultures believe that men are the ones who should be more assertive than the women. Sexual inequalities are accepted and even seen as beneficial.
DECISION CRITERIA AND ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS
The criteria against which the alternative solutions are evaluated against is acceptability to management. This is because; the tangible costs may be high and the time for implementation may be long thus making acceptability by management a more viable criteria.
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Alternative solutions
Choose a different exchange country with less cultural differences to the United States.
Pros
The students will be able to adapt well to the differences in cultures.
There will be minimal complains by the students hence better and stronger ties with the host family and the institution the higher learning in the host country.
Students will be able to enjoy the cultural differences without going against their cultures or beliefs.
Cons
Looking for an alternative institution to host the students from PLU may be time consuming, and may also be a costly venture.
By using a country like Mexico with vast cultural differences helps the student to learn how to adapt to a diverse culture.
Remove the semester/ internship abroad requirement for the course.
Pros
This will entirely eliminate the problem.
Cons
The course, International business, may not be thoroughly covered without the semester abroad.
Prepare the students well for cross cultural exchange so as to reduce the problems experienced (Arthur, 2004).
Pros
Students will enjoy the program more as they will be able to deal with any upcoming problem.
The student will be able to focus more on academic work since he or she will not e experiencing and social hindrances.
Cons
Training the student may be s costly and time consuming venture.
Training may not cover all the problems the student may face and may also not be 100% applicable.
RECOMMENDED SOLUTION, IMPLEMENTATION AND JUSTIFICATION
The solution to McGill’s problem is training of the students about to embark on the journey to the foreign county. The student will have to undergo vigorous cross cultural training before leaving for the host country. This training will include language, Spanish for Mexico, and how to deal and adapt to cultural differences.
Contingency plan
Through training, the student will know what to do in case they are utterly unable to cope with the living situation of the host family (Brubaker, 2006). The student will also know who to contact in case that they are unable to live with the host family and prefer to reside alone. Hofstede’s Dimensions of Culture show the difference between cultures. This means that changing the host family may be devilishly hard as it involves changing their way of thinking which may not be easy. Training the student, who is more open to learning, may be more rewarding and effective than a student who is not willing.
