Brazil & Netherlands Comparison

By Vanessa Berens
Taking a look at both countries cultural dimensions, and how they differ or perhaps have similar outlooks in terms of culture, economy and some other ways.

Netherlands & Brazil (600 words)

I would start with a brief history of both countries. A decade ago, to say that the two nation-states of Brazil and the Netherlands have a very different standing economically, socially and internationally, would have been right in every way, but present day markets and economical gains have put both countries on par, even though they both have their distinct cultural differences as would be shown/illustrated in Geert Hofstedes Brazil is currently the 5th largest country in the world in relation to national populations and it is also the 5th largest country by area with 8,514,877 square kilometers. On the other hand, with a population of 16,783,092 people, Netherlands is the 59th largest country in the world by population and it is the 134th largest country by area with 41,543 square kilometers. For Brazil, following more than three centuries under Portuguese rule, Brazil gained its independence in 1822, maintaining a monarchical system of government until the abolition of slavery in 1888 and the subsequent proclamation of a republic by the military in 1889; In a slight contrast, the Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579 and during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world wherein after a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830, Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. Although the Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, they suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. In terms of development of economy, Brazilian coffee exporters politically dominated the country until populist leader Getulio VARGAS rise to power in 1930. By far the largest and most populous country in South America, Brazil underwent more than half a century of populist and military government until 1985, when the military regime peacefully ceded power to civilian rulers. Brazil continues to pursue industrial and agricultural growth and development of its interior. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, it is today South America's leading economic power and a regional leader, one of the first in the area to begin an economic recovery. Although highly unequal income distribution and crime remain pressing problems, it is still booming, being one of the BRICK countries. In January 2010, Brazil assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2010-11 terms. The Netherlands is a much modern, industrialized nation, being seen also as a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU), and also participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999.

Geert Hofstede Culture Dimensions Illustration:

In the illustration above, one can see Brazils culture(blue bar) through the lens of the 5-D Model, placed in contrast to that of the Netherlands(red bar) in order to get a good overview of the deep drivers of Brazilian culture relative to that of the Dutch culture. Power distance it deals with the fact that all individuals in societies are not equal and goes further to express the attitude of the culture towards these inequalities amongst us, showing the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organizations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally. with 69 points, Brazil portrays a society that believes hierarchy is of high regards and that inequalities amongst people is not something that is foreign, hence, In Brazil it is relevant to show respect to the elderly (and in turn, children also take care for their elderly parents). In contrast to the Netherlands, with 38 points, one can say the Netherlands doesnt place much regard to power distance, hence, little respect to the elderly in a formal way, and not so much so that families take care of the elder ones, but rather it is that they would pay for them to be taken care in some circumstances. Individualism It fundamentally tells the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members, having to do with whether the peoples self-images are defined in terms of I or We. In Individualist societies like in the Netherlands (80 points), people tend to look after themselves and

their direct family only and nothing more. On the other hand, Brazil (38 points), a collectivist society, people belongs to in groups that takes care of them in exchange for loyalty, even in terms of job/hiring wherein, for instance, an older and powerful member of a family is expected to help a younger family member to be hired for a job in his own company. In business it is important to build up trustworthy and long lasting relationships, but that is not so much the case in the Netherlands.

Masculinity / Femininity The fundamental issue here is what motivates people, wanting to be the best (masculine) or liking what you do (feminine). Brazil has 49 on this dimension, finding itself somewhere in the middle. Theres emphasis on the softer aspects of culture such as leveling with others, consensus, and sympathy for the underdog. Conflicts are avoided in private and work life and consensus at the end is very important. Status is shown, but this comes more out of the high PDI, put that in comparison to the Netherlands (14), it even takes it further down, as in the Netherlands, its more about liking what you do, and also that women are seen more as equals than anything else or less, and rather than status, theres not much of that in terms of emphasis in its society. Uncertainty avoidance At 76 Brazil scores high on UAI and the Netherlands (53), but not as high as that of Brazil. The Brazilian society shows a strong need for rules and elaborate legal systems in order to structure life. The individuals need to obey these laws, however, even if weak. And if rules however cannot be kept, additional rules are dictated. In Brazil, as in all high Uncertainty Avoidance societies, bureaucracy, laws and rules are very important to make the world a safer place to live in. Brazilians need to have good and relaxing moments in their everyday life, chatting with colleagues, enjoying a long meal or dancing with guests and friends. Due to their high score in this dimension Brazilians are very passionate and demonstrative people: emotions are easily shown in their body language. In the Netherlands, it shows a bit, but not so much so as per being with that high passion or intensity. Still, it is very bureaucratic, and has tendency to stipulate laws or instructions for almost everything. Long term orientation

In terms of the long term orientation which basically depicts the extent to which a society shows a pragmatic future-oriented perspective rather than a conventional historical short-term point of view; with a score of 65, Brazil sees itself amongst the long term oriented societies as the only non-Asian society. The "jeitinho brasilero" is really to look for alternatives to do what in Western eyes could be regarded as impossible. Like Asians the Brazilians accept more than one truth. Brazilians easily accept change as a part of life. The Dutch culture is not quite the same, but doesnt fall too far away behind on this particular cultural dimension, with a score of 44, one can easily say that emphasis is at first placed on now before on later.

References:

Cyborlink Hofstede (2012) Cultural Research http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/hofstede.htm (Accessed 01/10/2013) TECSI (2011) Hofstede Study; Case study: Brazil http://www.tecsi.fea.usp.br/disciplinas/0522/textos/arquivos/Hofstede%20in%20Brazil.pdf (Accessed 01/10/2013) I-rep Education (2012) Research on Brazilian culture http://irep.emu.edu.tr:8080/jspui/bitstream/11129/338/1/Meshksar.pdf (Accessed 01/10/2013) Geert Hofstede (2013)Brazil Netherlands at: http://geert-hofstede.com/brazil.html (Accessed 01/10/2013) Nation master (2011) Economy stats: Brazil vs Netherlands http://www.nationmaster.com/compare/Brazil/Netherlands/Economy (Accessed 01/10/2013) CIA world fact book (2013) Brazil Economy http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/brazil/brazil_economy.html (Accessed 01/10/2013) Reuters (2013) Dutch Economy http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/16/us-dutch-economyidUSBRE97F07F20130816 (Accessed 01/10/2013) Business Insider (2012) These Economies Will Dominate The World In 2050 http://www.businessinsider.com/these-economies-will-dominate-the-world-in-2050-20121?op=1#ixzz2gbRpYQj4 http://www.businessinsider.com/these-economies-will-dominate-the-world-in2050-2012-1?op=1 (Accessed 02/10/2013) MNI news (2012) Market news Netherlands https://mninews.marketnews.com/index.php/imf-netherlands-diverging-other-aaa-eurozoneeconomies?q=content/imf-netherlands-diverging-other-aaa-eurozone-economies (Accessed 02/10/2013)