Amir is from Saudi Arabia. He is attending college in the United States pursuing a degree in Business. Upon completion of his degree, Amir will return to Saudi Arabia to run the family business with his father and brothers. Amir is not used to having females in the same classroom and the idea of women participating in business is completely alien to him. As a result, Amir pays little attention to the contributions made by females in the classroom. He often interrupts them and discounts what they have to say. He sneers at their comments and laughs at their proposals. When forced to converse with female students he does so condescendingly.
The female students at first ignored Amir’s behavior in hopes that he would quickly become aware of their competence. After all, the other males in the classroom considered them equally. But Amir’s insults were continuous and female students had begun to challenge him on many issues. Amir, whose culture has taught him an emphasis on spoken language, retaliated against the females; challenges and the classroom had turned into a daily battleground. In addition, females received little support from other males in classroom because Amir had chided them in the hallways about letting women make their decisions for them. The situation has escalated to the point that no student interaction where Amir is involved can be facilitated without an argument.
• What would you do to rectify this situation?
• Which component of Hofstede’s theory best describes this scenario? Be specific and explain.
• List and explain the 4 components of Hofstede’s theory.