Culture is the collection of values, beliefs, behaviors, customs, and attitudes that distinguish a society. Culture is important to companies because it determines the rules within which businesses operate.
Culture is a learned behavior that may be transmitted intergenerational or intragenerationally. Culture’s elements are interrelated, and may change to adapt to external forces. Culture is shared by members of a society.

ELEMENTS OF CULTURE
The basic elements of culture are social structure, language, communication, religion, and values and attitudes. The way in which the elements interact affects the local environment in which international businesses operate
Islamic Law (known as Shariah) forbids charging interest. Instead, lenders under Islamic Law may charge “fees” or “rent” to borrowers. Shariah scholars say there is no prohibition against using an interest rate as a benchmark to calculate appropriate fees or rents. Several U.S. lenders (including Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae) are now offering “Islamic home mortgages.” Such mortgages are described in detail in the textbook. The price of the Islamic mortgages tends to be very comparable to the price of traditional mortgages.

Values and Attitudes

* Values are the principles and standards accepted by members of a society; attitudes encompass the actions, feelings, and thoughts that result from those values. Attitudes about time, authority, education, and rewards reflect an individual’s deep-seated values and shape the behavior of, and opportunities available to, companies operating in a given culture. * Time. In Anglo-Saxon cultures, the prevailing attitude toward time is that it is valuable and should not be wasted. Conversely, Latin Americans and Arabs do not share this attitude and think nothing of starting a business meeting late, or being interrupted during a meeting. * In low-context cultures, business meetings follow a precise, well-planned agenda, while in high-context cultures, time is initially spent deciding whether there is trust between the participants before focusing on the business at hand. * Age. Attitudes toward age differ by culture. In the United States, youthfulness is considered a virtue and young “fast-trackers” are nurtured, while in Asian and Arab cultures, age is respected and reflects a manager’s stature. * Education. A country’s formal education system transmits and reflects the cultural values of its society. Individualism is stressed in the U.S. education system, and education is available to everyone. In the U.K., however, education is linked to the class system, and an elite education is available only to a few. The text also provides examples of German, French, and Japanese attitudes toward education. * Status. Status in some cultures is inherited, while in others it is earned through individual achievements. How status is acquired affects job attitudes and performance. The text provides several examples of attitudes toward status and its effect on business.

Abraham (1995) felt that the 1990 census estimate of 870,000 Arab Americans living in the U.S.
(U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1990) is inaccurate, since some Arabs, suspicious of government authorities, conceal the ir e thnic a f f i l i a t ion. In any case, the number of Arab immigrants to North America is growing wi th continuing pol i t i c al instability in the Arab world (El- adry, 1994), and unof f i c i al estimates place the number of Arab Americans at closer to three mi l l ion. Immigration Patterns Historically, Arab Americans arrived in the U.S. in three different major waves, each under special circumstances that affected the acculturative process (Barazangi, 1989). First wave. Occurring in the late 19th century, the first wave of Arab immigration was comprised primarily of Arab Christians from Syria and Lebanon (Abraham, 1995). They were predominantly males who had left their families behind, intending to stay in the U.S. only u n t il they had earned sufficient money to improve their lives back home (Abu-Laban & Suleiman, 1989). From this early wave emerged a group of poets, artists, and writers (e.g., Kahil Gibran), who became permanent residents of the U.S., settling in such major urban centers as New York and Boston (Abraham, 1995).
Second wave. The second wave of immigration took place about the middle of the 20th century, and included many more Muslims than did the first (El-Badry, 1994). Many of them were Palestinians displaced after the establishment of Israel in 1948. Also included in this wave were Iraqis and Syrians who were escaping political conflict in their countries of origin. Third wave. Starting in the mid-1960s, and continuing to the present, the third wave includes many professionals and entrepreneurs fleeing political unrest and wars (Abraham, 1989) who would otherwise have remained in their country of origin (El-Badry, 1994). This group is more educated, young, and affluent than the average Arab, and most have become U.S. citizens. They held executive positions in their homelands and, in bringing their entrepreneurial skills to the U.S., have proved attractive to the corporate world (El-Badry,1994)
Effects on Some Arab American Students and Some Classroom Solutions:
What effect does this stereotyping have on the increasing numbers of Arab American students in U.S. schools? What can classroom teachers do about these problems? The following suggestions may help educators correct the bias. It is recognized that the more positive a student's self-concept, the higher his or her achievement level will be. Teachers use various techniques to make students feel worthy and important. But when Arab students see negative and erroneous portrayals of Arabs in films and on television, they begin to feel inferior and ashamed, or perhaps belligerent and aggressive. Students suffer as a result of this. And learning suffers. Caught in this spiral, Arab American students may begin to believe that they, as a people, are inferior. They may stop trying to do their best and become convinced that they can never amount to anything. For many it becomes a self-fulfilling. prophecy. As educators we must break this cycle by finding ways to intervene effectively. In Dearborn, Michigan the schools' bilingual programs use Arab language and literature to make students from homes in which Arabic is spoken feel more culturally comfortable. Special programs, however, are not enough. It is important for mainstream teachers to consciously rid themselves of negative and ill-informed media images of Arabs (and other ethnic groups). It is also important for them to learn about their students' histories and cultures and to be prepared to teach about them in their classes. The historic achievements of Arab culture are arely discussed in American schools or are perhaps limited to 6th and I0th grade world history courses. In the culturally sensitive classroom, there is no good reason why a historical and cultural dimension cannot be provided for classes in mathematics, for example. Math teachers can explain the cultural origins or development of “Arabic numerals,” the decimal system, geometry and al-jabr (algebra) in ancient Greece, India and the medieval Arab world. Science teachers can present the history of astronomy in ancient Babylon, Hellenic culture, and medieval Arab civilization as the precursor of modem science. Music classes can teach about Arabic music. Home economics classes can teach about Arab cuisine and its cultural meanings.

References: http://www.bnamericas.com/ – business news for Latin America http://www.latintrade.com/newsite/index.cfm – Latin trade news site http://www.latinnews.com/ – Latin America news and up-to-date headlines http://www.mercantil.com/ – Latin America business portal http://spitswww.uvt.nl/web/iric/hofstede/page3.htm – Hofstede’s own website to access current thoughts on culture http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/hofstede.htm#geert_hofstede_countries – list of countries which Hofstede has scored. Also access this site by country for scores to use in class discussion or team activity – http://www.geert-hofstede.com/hofstede_mexico.shtml http://www.gwu.edu/~clai/working_papers/Teegen_Hildy_03-02.pdf –comparative analysis of Latin America and Asia – for possible use in Debate activity. http://www.gwu.edu/~clai/working_papers/Teegen_Hildy_04-02.pdf – US/Mexican Business Alliance Negotiations: Impact of Culture on Authority, Trust and Performance. www.time.com – search for Latin America to see most recent articles www.economist.com – search for Latin America, culture, cross-cultural to see most recent articles (All of the major news sites access articles and editorials on Latin America.)