The Cultural Dimension Perspective Cultural Differences

Cultural differences exist everywhere in an era featured by economic globalization and cultural diversity. The way people think and behave directly influences the output of cross-cultural communication. To help"dialog"between cultures, scientists developed different Cultural Dimension Theories on the basis of extensive research. The most popular theories include the National Cultural Dimensions Theory by Geert Hofstede, Low-context & High-context Theory by Edward T. Hall, Value Orientations Theory by Florence Kluckhohn & Fred Strodtbeck , Individualism and Collectivism Theory by Harry C. Triandis and the Cultural Frame Theory by Fons Trompenaars etc. This paper starts with a general introduction of the research status on cultural differences in China and around the world and proceeds with a description of the five popular cultural dimensions theories. The core section of this paper deals with the analysis of different cultural phenomena by applying related theories, and develops from four aspects namely value orientation, time orientation, thinking mode and non-verbal communication. Hopefully the analysis will be of help in preventing culture shock and cross-cultural communication failure.