Just thought I'd observe that I think "cultures" "convergence" and
"divergence" don't do much work under current global conditions and will
probably be less useful in the future. First, it is reasonable to expect
that entirely new social, economic and psychological conditions will emerge
from the flowing mix; second, many options for dealing with cultural mix
are bounded by the brutal realities of military technology. This means that
conquest and subjugation are limited options for dealing with 'the other'.
Third, education in real time, not just in school, makes it more difficult
to mobilize whole populations against each other. Finally, and this is an
example of historical novelty, this is the first time cultural contact has
been so self consciously studied with a view to making it work on the basis
of mutual interest and mutual attraction. History provides many examples of
commercial expansion. Let's hope for something better this time.
H. Greenstein
----- Original Message -----
From: Weech, William A <
WeechWA@STATE.GOV>
To: <
MG-ED-DV@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 1999 8:39 AM
Subject: Globalization and a Single World Culture
> Conna Condon wrote:
>
> << Are you beginning to see the level of international exposure and
> communication impacting people's cultural awareness and tolerance? Is
the
> internet making it easier for expatriates to work in different cultures?
> Will the internet move the world to a single culture ... greater
acceptance
> of differing cultures.... or more segregation by culture ... or...? >>
>
> Conna has touched on some of my favorite topics. I hope that others will
> pick up on these threads.
>
> The idea that people of different cultures will get along better after
they
> have had some contact is known in the cross-cultural literature as the
> "contact hypothesis." (Allport, 1954; Amir, 1969) Research has shown that
> contact between people from two different cultures does not necessarily
lead
> to more awareness and tolerance; in fact, sometimes the opposite is true.
> For example, Laurent (1983) studied multinational corporations and found
> that contact with other cultures tended to strengthen individuals'
> attachments to their own cultures rather than increase their acceptance of
> other cultures. As a person who trains international managers, I am not
> surprised by this finding.
>
> The question of whether globalization will lead to a single, uniform world
> culture has been around for longer than some would imagine. Some call this
> the "convergence versus divergence" debate. I think the best paper on the
> question was written by John Child in 1981. He suggested that whether you
> find cultural convergence or cultural divergence depends on what you look
> at. People who look at macro issues such as organizational structure and
> industrial technology tend to find convergence. Globalization is making us
> more similar in these areas. People who look at micro issues such as
> behavior of people in organizations tend to find divergence. Globalization
> is not erasing our cultural differences in values and attitudes. This is
> another finding that is congruent with my own international experience and
> congruent with the research on the contact hypothesis.
>
> Looking forward to hearing from others.
>
> William A. Weech (
WeechWA@state.gov)
> Leadership and Management School
> Foreign Service Institute
> (703) 302-7198
>