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Hofstede's theory of cultural dimensions has attracted also some criticism. Some argued that his methodology was not valid. For example, Galit Ailon (2008) finds several inconsistencies at the level of both theory and methodology and cautions against an uncritical reading of Hofstede's cultural dimensions.Others said that we can not generalize the results that extracted from a survey on a company level to a nation or culture.

For example, professor Brendan McSweeney in the article "Hofstede's Model of National Cultural Differences and Their Consequences: A triumph of faith - A failure of analysis" questioned Hofstede's assumptions.He said that:

  1. IBM Company as a micro-location is not typical of a nation.
  2. Employees of a company are not representatives of a country
  3. The main dimensions of culture can not be identified by a questionnaire.
Despite growing criticism towards Hofstede's cultural paradigm over the years there is the widespread usage of Hofstede's culture types.
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Read the article by Brendan McSweeney "Hofstede's Model of National Cultural Differences and Their Consequences: A triumph of faith - A failure of analysis".  http://geert-hofstede.international-business-center.com/mcsweeney.shtml

Do you agree with his critics? Why or why not? Share your opinion with your study group or tutor.


Sirje Virkus, Tallinn University, 2009