Self-Developmental Plan in the Contextin Chinese Ethnic Background - Assignment Example

Self-Developmental Plan Table of Contents I. Introduction II. Self-Assessment III. Analysis of Aspects of Cultural Competence, Strengths and Weaknesses IV. Action Plan References I. Introduction This paper presents a self-developmental plan in the context of self-awareness, cross-cultural competence and cultural intelligence, and in particular in the context of my Chinese ethnic background and my plans to be culturally and socially competent to live and work in Canada in the future. This self-developmental plan takes off from an honest self-assessment of where I am at the moment relative to where I need to be relative to my plans, and makes use of such models and tools for assessing cultural intelligence and cross-cultural competence as Hofstede’s dimensions, and other relevant models in the texts. From there this paper details a gaps assessment, chiefly in the form of an assessment of my current strengths and weaknesses relative to where I want to be and where I am at the moment, as well as an action plan for the achievement of my goals, detailing short, medium and long-term aspects of that plan (Thomas and Inkson, 2009). Being a person from China, the plan of course takes into account my Chinese cultural vantage point, and this is the point of departure for the whole exercise. On the other hand, my goal is to work and live in Canada, and therefore this exercise holds immense importance and relevance for me. This being the case, the plan revolves around performing a self-assessment of where I am in terms of my competence in western, Canadian, and North American culture, what my strengths and weaknesses are, where I need to improve, and how I can get to where I need to be in order to be successful in my planned future life in Canada, as a Chinese and Eastern person aspiring for a life in a place that in many cultural respects is the opposite of my cultural upbringing and sensibilities, being situated in North America and being culturally and socially western (Thomas and Inkson, 2009; Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2009; Vancouver Island University, 2014; Li, 2000; Columbia Encyclopedia, 2014). II. Self-Assessment I take to heart the feedback from the document called Hofstede Culture Compass Result, which I got from the Hofstede Centre, and which I ground on my own subjective observations and experiences as a Chinese person in my own society, together with my readings on Canadian culture and the dynamics of the interactions between Chinese and Canadian culture. First, it is noteworthy that even from where I am, there are significant variations between my scores and the average scores in China on the different Hofstede dimensions. Whereas, for instance, the average Hofstede Individualism score for China is 20, my personal score is 68. China’s Indulgence score is 24, while mine is 43. China’s Pragmatism score is 87, and mine is 68. In Uncertainty Avoidance, my score is 75, whereas the China average score is just 30, indicating a large gap. In Power Distance, my score is 68, whereas the score in China is 80. China’s Masculinity score is 66, whereas my own score is just 29, again indicating a large gap. Meanwhile, looking at the Canada averages on these dimensions, I can see that whereas my Individualism score is closer to the Canadian average, in other dimensions my own scores diverge significantly from the Canada average scores, and in the feedback that accompanied the scores in the Hofstede Culture Compass Result, the deviations translate to several observations about how my own attitudes, behaviors, and perspectives may differ markedly from the attitudes and behaviors of members of Canadian society, and how the deviations may present problems in terms of being able to do well at work and to be effective and successful in the Canadian workplace and in Canadian society in general (itim International and The Hofstede Centre, 2014). The Hofstede Culture Compass Result is important to me because it offers me not just a perspective of where I stand in the context of Canadian cultural values, but also where I stand in the context of relevant Chinese cultural values. While it is true that I am Chinese, in present-day China there are arguably many different Chinas, in terms of cultural orientations and in terms of aspects of the Hofstede dimensions such as Individualism and Uncertainty Avoidance. In Chinese cities, for instance, and in university settings, where Chinese have come to imbibe western materialistic and individualistic values, the Hofstede dimension scores are expectedly more in line with average values for the west, as compared to more traditional rural settings, where a large number of Chinese still reside. Being a national average, one can expect that the differences among cultural values between Chinese cities and Chinese rural areas are hidden from the Hofstede report. Meanwhile, I can see that from the perspective of an assessment of where I stand in Chinese culture, and how my fellow Chinese see me, the large gaps between some of my scores and the scores for China on average indicate that in a way I am different from the mainstream Chinese. For instance, while my Chinese colleagues have lower scores when it comes to Uncertainty Avoidance, I would be probably seen by my fellow Chinese as more risk-averse than the Chinese norm. Moreover, it is very evident that my Individualism score is way above the Chinese average, and it is true in a way that even my friends and those I come into contact with see me as very independent and very individualistic and assertive in comparison to the norm. This is not to say of course that I am unable to blend in and to cooperate. The reverse is true I think. I get feedback in fact that in spite of my individualism, I am fairly liked and am able to accomplish a lot even in cooperative group settings (itim and The Hofstede Centre, 2014; Thompson and Inkson, 2009, pp. 35-42). Meanwhile, looking at where I stand in the Hofstede dimensions relative to Canadian values and the values for other countries in the west, while my scores deviate in varying degrees to Canada’s values, they are not that far off from Hofstede dimension scores for other European countries. In fact, my scores are very similar to the country Hofstede scores for France and for Spain, as well as the Czech Republic. This is important, because this indicates that aside from the barriers presented by some stark contrasts between Chinese cultural values and western cultural values, I may be able to hurdle the difficulties of adjusting to life and work in Canada. This is because my Hofstede values are more in line with the Hofstede values for some important and mainstream European countries. In other words on the surface I may have problems, in terms of important Hofstede dimensions I have a lot in common with the French and the Spanish and therefore with a large section of the western population. Moreover, my grasp of the English language makes any difficulty at adjusting in Canada easier to overcome (itim and The Hofstede Centre, 2014). That said, looking at the differences between my Hofstede scores and the Canada scores, the largest gaps are in Power Distance, where it is low in Canada and high for me, Uncertainty Avoidance, Pragmatism, Masculinity, and Indulgence. These are differences that translate to substantial inputs in the feedback section of the Compass Report from the Hofstede Centre. For instance, the Hofstede Compass Report notes that in Canada, where the Pragmatism score is low, while mine is high, it is highly likely that I will end up puzzled about the high level of success that fellow workers may have, even though they do not share my pragmatic emphasis on life and work. Moreover, the short-term orientation of the Canadians may confuse me, especially in terms of an emphasis on achieving short-term goals to the detriment, and to the disregard for, any long-term consequences or outcomes. Moreover, the Compass Report notes that I may find it difficult that the work environment is not more structured, and that my superiors may not be too authoritative or assertive about their authority and power in the workplace. Meanwhile, the report notes too that it is very likely that I will initially be shocked that I am expected to air my personal opinions on things, something that I may get used to and like after a time, and which will make me stand out from Chinese society when and if I do return there after working in Canada. Elsewhere, the report notes of the fair chances that Canada’s workers are not too hung up about job security and stability, in the same degree as I do; that my superiors may not warm up to my deferential style of relating to them, meaning that they need me to be direct and to speak my mind; and that there are fair chances that the more open-ended atmosphere in Canadian workplaces may leave me confused and lacking in motivation, due to my own high aversion towards uncertainty as reflected in my Hofstede scores in the Compass Report (itim and The Hofstede Centre, 2014). On the other hand, while there are clearly some hurdles in terms of my being culturally competent in Canada, there are equally some problems that the Hofstede Compass Report pointed out as being likely in terms of my being able to work and be successful in my own country, given the disparities between my own scores and the average Hofstede scores for China. The Compass Report notes that it is most likely that there are disparities between how I view religion and its impact on my life and how the rest of Chinese society views such. There is also a large likelihood that may chafe at micro-management and excessive control on the part of my superiors; that I may have problems accepting new inputs on face value, whereas my colleagues in China may take information and believe it without checking its veracity. There is also a chance that I may find living in China induces some claustrophobia and a lack of privacy, due to the closely-knit nature of social dealings; and that I may find it odd that my colleagues easily allow themselves to lose arguments, without pursuing their point; and that there may be disparities between my own display of emotions and the relative lack of display in my colleagues, and how that may adversely affect perceptions of my competence at work. Taking a step back and looking at all the feedback, it is clear to me that there are some large disparities between my Hofstede dimension scores and the scores of both China, and my intended future home Canada. To stay in China would entail as much if not more work than going to Canada and pursuing my dream of working and living there, judging from this self-assessment (itim and The Hofstede Centre, 2014). III. Analysis of Aspects of Cultural Competence, Strengths and Weaknesses The preceding self-assessment/self-analysis presents aspects of cultural competence that are important moving forward, relating to my goal of working and living in Canada successfully, and being able to navigate Canadian culture and adapt to that culture. The Hofstede dimensions analysis reveals that on the whole, my Hofstede scores reflect a large degree of independence and individuality, which are traits that are valued in Canadian culture and in western culture in general, but also that I deviate from Canadian culture in many other aspects of the Hofstede dimensions, including Uncertainty Avoidance, Power Distance, Pragmatism, Indulgence and Masculinity. These are aspects of Canadian culture that I need to know more, in order that I may be able to recalibrate my own attitudes, preferences, and behaviors in those areas, where feasible. Indeed in these areas detailed research exists on the many aspects of Canadian culture as they relate to the workplace in particular, and in lieu of actually living to Canada, I can read up and compare my own understanding with what the academic literature and the publications in Canada say about those aspects of Canadian culture. I can study and acquaint myself intimately with those aspects of Canadian culture that the Hofstede Report says I may have problems dealing with (Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2009; Li, 2000; itim and Hofstede Centre, 2014). Relative to my goal of living and working in Canada and being adaptable to western culture and cultural values, I find that my Hofstede dimensions profile constitute a set of strengths that I can leverage to succeed in my goal. As I mentioned earlier, the Compass Report notes that I have a strong affinity to France and Spain in terms of the close affinity of my Hofstede dimension scores to those same scores for the two European countries. This means that in areas such as Individualism and Indulgence, I have many things in common with the west already. On the other hand, the low Power Distance in Canada is something distinctly North American rather than European and western, and in those other areas where my scores in the Hofstede dimensions deviate from the Canada scores, I need to improve. Those five areas apart from Individualism where there are disparities between my scores and the Canada scores can be construed as weaknesses. On the other hand, as I have also already discussed, my scores deviate too, some in larger amounts, from the China scores. Those deviations indicate that moving forward, I may need as much work fitting into China in comparison to the work that I need to do in order to be culturally competent in Canada (Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2009; itim and Hofstede Centre, 2014). IV. Action Plan The preceding discussion already touched on parts of an action plan to address my current weaknesses and further bolster my strengths to become more culturally competent and adept in Canadian culture in preparation to pursuing a life plan to live and work in that country. The short and medium aspects of this action plan involve continuously studying and imbibing Canadian culture, through the academic literature, current events, books, movies and other forms of contemporary culture coming from the country. The idea is to be able to understand those aspects of Canadian culture that especially impact my future prospects in the Canadian workplace, and in society in general. Here I take my cue from those Hofstede dimensions where I am most different from the Canada scores. I also take my cue from the detailed feedback that got from the Hofstede Compass Report, which I discussed in some detail earlier in this paper. Especially relevant are those pointers relating to potential problems in Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, and Pragmatism, which all have very large implications on my performance in the workplace (Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2009; itim and Hofstede Centre, 2014). The long-term aspect of this plan is to be able to immerse myself in Canadian social and work environments, via visits to Canada, and via exposure to work assignments in western and Canadian firms in China and other parts of the world. This is to facilitate my integration and my learning of the Canadian culture as they are lived in those Canadian companies and social settings (Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, 2009; itim and Hofstede Centre, 2014). 1 References Columbia Encyclopedia (2014). Canada. Answers.com. Retrieved from http://www.answers.com/topic/canada Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (2009). Cultural Information- Canada. Centre for Intercultural Learning. Retrieved from http://www.intercultures.ca/cil-cai/ci-ic-eng.asp?iso=ca itim International and The Hofstede Centre (2014). Culture Compass Report. FeedbackDialog Oy. Li, P. (2000). Cultural Diversity in Canada: The Social Construction of Racial Differences. Department of Justice Canada Strategic Issues Series. Retrieved from http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/csj-sjc/jsp-sjp/rp02_8-dr02_8/rp02_8.pdf Thomas, D. and Inkson, K. (2009). Cultural Intelligence- Living and Working Globally 2nd Edition. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers Vancouver Island University (2014). Culture of Canada. VIU. ca. Retrieved from http://www2.viu.ca/homestay/CanadianCulture.asp Read More