Power Distance in Saudi Arabia

The power distance level in Saudi Arabia is one of the highest in the world,
being ranked at 95. There are many different reasons for this power distance,
the main one being religion. Saudi Arabia is a monarchy. If you are not Muslim,
you are not allowed to enter Saudi Arabia without an invitation. You also may
not leave Saudi without an exit permit. Those who visit Saudi Arabia are
expected to follow the same thorough Islamic laws as Saudis. The Islamic faith
allows this power distance, and it could be said that it even promotes that people
be in superior positions without question. Many Muslims believe in this idea of
power and unquestioned superiority based off of verses in the Koran.

Besides the religious influence, some sociological and psychological reasons

also promote the higher power distance. By a certain age children have obtained
a specific mindset based on their cultural practices and norms, and they have
ingrained beliefs of what their place and role in society is. For example, Saudi
Arabians believe that obeying your superiors and supporting your government is
of the upmost importance. Saudi Arabians accept this high power distance as
part of their cultural heritage.

Because of this high power distance, Saudi Arabia has many inequalities with
the most prominent one being unequal wealth distribution. While the estimated
GDP (Gross domestic product) for 2008 was $576.5 billion and Saudi
Arabia was ranked 23rd on Purchasing Power Parity, “roughly 5,000 people are
considered “rich” while the rest of the population does not benefit from the
growth of the economy.” Some of the effects of the unequal distribution are
things including a “caste system that also inhibits upward mobility, stifling
innovations and free thinking, and less job opportunities.”
The Power Distance Index also affects the laws and regulations due to the
unlimited power and authority the government has in Saudi Arabia. Saudis have
an expectation and acceptance that the leaders will “separate themselves from
the group and this condition is not necessarily subverted upon the population,
but rather accepted by the society.” Laws are so strictly enforced that thieves
can have their hands amputated and public beheadings are still held for capital
punishments.

The power distance index not only affects the relationships between the
government and citizens, but also has an impact on employer-employee
relationships. An article discussing power distance in the workplace in Egypt, a
country with the same PDI as Saudi, compared to that in the U.S. states
that, "In a comparative survey of 191 Egyptian and 92 U.S. executives, we
explore the relationship between national culture and ethical decision-making
within the context of business. Using Reidenbach and Robin's (1988) multi-
criteria ethics instrument, we examine how differences on two of Hofstede's
national culture dimensions, individualism/collectivism, and power distance, are
related to the manner in which business practitioners make ethical decisions.
Egypt and the U.S. provide an interesting comparison because of the extreme
differences in their economies and related business development. Our results
indicate that respondents from the U.S, individualistic and low in power
distance, were likely to view the decision making outcome in ethics scenarios as
more unethical than the more collectivistic and high power distance Egyptians,
when applying ethical criteria based on justice, utilitarianism, relativism, and
(contrary to our predictions) egoism. However, we also found that both
Egyptians and Americans rely on justice, utilitarianism, and relativism in
predicting their intentions to behave ethically, and that Americans substitute
egoism for justice, when the behavioral intentions of peers are examined."