Uncertainty Avoidance Defined

People vary in the extent that they feel anxiety about uncertain or unknown matters, as opposed to the more universal feeling of fear caused by known or understood threats. Cultures vary in their avoidance of uncertainty, creating different rituals and having different values regarding formality, punctuality, legal-religious-social requirements, and tolerance for ambiguity.

Hofstede notes that cultures with high uncertainty avoidance (such as Hungary and most continental people in different extents) tend to have high rates of suicide, alcoholism, and accidental deaths, and high numbers of prisoners per capita. Businesses may have more formal rules, require longer career commitments, and focus on tactical operations rather than strategy.

These cultures tend to be expressive; people talk with their hands, raise their voices, and show emotions. People seem active, emotional, even aggressive; shun ambiguous situations; and expect structure in organizations, institutions, and relationships to help make events clearly interpretable and predictable.

Teachers are expected to be experts who know the answers and may speak in cryptic language that excludes novices.

In high UA cultures, what is different may be viewed as a threat, and what is “dirty” (unconventional) is often equated with what is dangerous.

By contrast, low UA cultures (such as the USA and England) tend to have higher caffeine consumption, lower calorie intake, higher heart-disease death rates, and more chronic psychosis per capita. Businesses may be more informal and focus more on long-range strategic matters than day-to-day operations.

These cultures tend to be less expressive and less openly anxious; people behave quietly without showing aggression or strong emotions (though their caffeine consumption may be intended to combat depression from their inability to express their feelings.) People seem easy-going, even relaxed.

Teachers may not know all the answers (or there may be more than one correct answer), run more open-ended classes, and are expected to speak in plain language.

In these cultures, what is different may be viewed as simply curious, or perhaps ridiculous.

anxiety, emotions, formality, punctuality, strategy, suicide, tolerance of ambiguity, uncertainty avoidance, unknown, business culture, national cultures