Comparison Between the United States and the United Kingdom

Power Distance
Power distance is defined as the extent to which the less powerful members of
institutions and organisations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed
unequally. The US scores a 40 while the UK scores a 35; this shows that the US embraces the
power inequalities more than the people of the UK.
I am unsure how to feel about this comparison. The 99% protests that occurred around
2008 indicates to me part of Americas anger towards the inequalities in America; however, the
2016 presidential elections also showed a distinct group of Americans who want a large power
distance between groups.
Individualism
Individualism is defined as the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its
members. The US scores a 91 while the UK scores 89; both counties score very high compared
to the rest of the world.
I am not surprised by the relatively close scores. Both the US and the UK are large
powers in the world that encourage people to build lives for themselves and be who they want to
be.
Masculinity
Masculinity is defined as what motivates people, wanting to be the best (masculine) or
liking what you do (feminine). The US scores a 61 while the UK scores a 66.
Before I share my opinion about the scores, I would like to speak about how this category
labels countries. I find it ridiculous that masculine is associated with success and feminine is
associated with caring for others; the labels implies someone must be masculine to be successful
or feminine to care for others. Both enforce inaccurate gender roles.
As predicted, both countries are categorized as masculine. Children are raised in both
places to strive to do their best and succeed.
Uncertainty Avoidance
Uncertainty avoidance is defined as the extent to which the members of a culture feel
threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try
to avoid these. The US scores a 46 while the UK scores a 35.
It makes sense the both the UK and US have relatively low scores. Both are individualist
societies that celebrate differences. I do agree with the article that the US probably has a higher
score due to 9/11.
Long Term Orientation
 Long term orientation is defined as how every society has to maintain some links with
its own past while dealing with the challenges of the present and future. The US scores a 26
while the UK scores a 51.
I find the US avoidance of change unsurprising. Just based on the 2016 election and the
successful slogan Make America Great Again, most American show a desire to keep traditions
and stay away from change.

Indulgence
Indulgence is defined as the extent to which people try to control their desires and
impulses. The US scores a 68 while the UK scores a 69.
Both countries are wealthy and developed; this shows that their citizens would be able to
indulge without majorly impacting their lives.

I find it very interesting how similar the scores are between the US and the UK. I believe
we perceive each other as very different culturally; however, we score within points of each other
in all categories except for our ability to accept change. With the US being a much younger
country, it is not surprising that the UK has a greater ability to deal with change.