Quantify the isolation of Japanese culture and map it

May 12, 2014 Masaharu Kitaoka

Samuel Huntington describes the world as Western Europe, Eastern Orthodox Church, Islam, Africa, Latin America, Chinese, Hindu, Buddhist, and Japanese. It is divided into 9 civilizations.

Certainly, Japanese culture is difficult to understand from the outside, and this Huntington theory is intuitively understandable. However, since there are various other countries in the world, there remains a question as to whether it is true or is there numerical support.

Therefore, I decided to make a map using Hofstede’s cultural value to illustrate this situation of Japanese culture’s isolation.

An index for measuring the cultural distance between countries is the Kogut-Shin index. In order to quantify the risk of a company’s overseas expansion, it is defined as follows using the Hofstede’s index.

here,

CDij is the cultural distance between i-country and j-country,
Ijk is the i-country k-th Hofstede index
Vk is the variance of the k-th Hofstede index

Kogout and Singh have shown that this index correlates with the percentage of joint venture choices that firms make when expanding abroad. However, if the sum of squares is defined as a distance as it is, it does not match the mathematical concept of distance, so it is better to take the square root.

The figure above shows a map of Spain and its neighboring countries using this distance. 31 countries are within the distance of 1 from Spain. In the figure, the Y-axis is an indicator of individualism vs. collectiveism, and the higher the level, the stronger individualism. The X-axis is the perspective related to other indicators, the countries with strong masculinity on the right (countries with gender roles), and the countries with strong femininity on the left.

The map below is drawn around Japan:

This time, Hungary is the only one country within the distance of 1 from Japan.

If you calculate how many countries (or areas) are included in this distance = 1 in the countries or areas where the Hofstede index is measured, it will be as follows:

Country name

Number of neighboring countries

Neighboring countries

Brazil

34

Turkey, Croatia, Spain, Pakistan, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Thailand, Morocco, Peru, Malta, Poland, Chile, Uruguay, Mexico, Czech Republic, El Salvador, Iran, Slovenia, Greece, France, India, Portugal, Indonesia, Colombia, Luxembourg, Venezuela, Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago, Arab countries, Bangladesh, East Africa, Argentina, West Africa

Spain

31

Turkey, Uruguay, Thailand, Malta, Brazil, France, Croatia, Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Poland, Bulgaria, Argentina, Greece, Chile, Portugal, Slovenia, Pakistan, Serbia, Romania, Peru, Morocco, Arab Countries, El Salvador, Iran, Finland , Italy, Belgium, East Africa, Israel, Estonia, Bangladesh

Turkey

31

Uruguay, Brazil, Croatia, Spain, Bulgaria, Serbia, Malta, Romania, Chile, Peru, Pakistan, Greece, Slovenia, Portugal, Thailand, El Salvador, Poland, Arab Countries, Argentina, Bangladesh, Czech Republic, France, East Africa, Morocco, Mexico, Iran, Luxembourg, Colombia, Russia, Indonesia, India

Pakistan

31

Thailand, Turkey, Peru, Spain, Trinidad And Tobago, Serbia, Taiwan, Slovenia, Vietnam, Romania, Uruguay, Portugal, Brazil, Bangladesh, East Africa, Croatia, Bulgaria, Indonesia, Chile, El Salvador, Colombia, Arab Countries, Iran, Hong Kong , Argentina, Mexico, Czech Republic, Greece, Luxembourg, West Africa, Morocco

Croatia

30

Turkey, Serbia, Romania, Spain, Slovenia, Pakistan, Thailand, Russia, Malta, Czech Republic, Indonesia, France, Peru, Uruguay, Portugal, Greece, El Salvador, Taiwan, Poland, South Korea, Luxembourg, India, Mexico, Morocco, Bulgaria, Brazil, Bangladesh, Chile, East Africa, Arab countries

Arab countries

29

Morocco, Mexico, Brazil, Iran, Bangladesh, Philippines, Turkey, Thailand, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, El Salvador, Argentina, Poland, Croatia, Romania, India, Serbia, Uruguay, Chile, Spain, Pakistan, Trinidad And Tobago, Malaysia, Portugal , Malta, Indonesia, West Africa, East Africa

Thailand

27

Turkey, Trinidad And Tobago, Uruguay, Vietnam, East Africa, Chile, Peru, Pakistan, Iran, Brazil, West Africa, El Salvador, Bangladesh, Arab Countries, Croatia, Slovenia, Morocco, Indonesia, Portugal, Spain, Colombia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania , Argentina, Mexico, India

Bangladesh

27

Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Croatia, Philippines, Thailand, India, Turkey, Serbia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Mexico, Romania, Vietnam, Bulgaria, Venezuela, Peru, Colombia, Morocco, Iran, Chile, El Salvador, Spain, Trinidad And Tobago, East Africa, Arab countries, West Africa

Peru

27

Portugal, Uruguay, Thailand, Turkey, Serbia, Slovenia, Romania, Spain, Venezuela, Trinidad And Tobago, El Salvador, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Pakistan, Arab Countries, East Africa, Argentina, Croatia, Mexico, Morocco, Iran, West Africa, Greece , Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Malta

East Africa

27

Thailand, Iran, West Africa, Bangladesh, Arab Countries, Brazil, Pakistan, Morocco, Vietnam, Trinidad And Tobago, Indonesia, Peru, Chile, India, Turkey, Croatia, Hong Kong, Philippines, El Salvador, Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Slovenia, Malaysia, Mexico, Uruguay, Bulgaria

El Salvador

26

Peru, Portugal, Uruguay, Turkey, Thailand, Serbia, Slovenia, Greece, Morocco, Mexico, Pakistan, Romania, Iran, Spain, Venezuela, Malta, Trinidad And Tobago, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Arab countries, Croatia, West Africa, East Africa, Bangladesh

Bulgaria

25

Croatia, Turkey, Serbia, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Taiwan, South Korea, Pakistan, Czech Republic, France, Malta, Chile, Indonesia, Greece, Thailand, Peru, Uruguay, Portugal, Luxembourg, Brazil, Bangladesh, Belgium, East Africa

Luxembourg

25

Switzerland, Spain, Malta, Turkey, New Zealand, Poland, Netherlands, Pakistan, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Estonia, France, Finland, Lithuania, Canada, Israel, Belgium, Brazil, Austria, Croatia, Bulgaria, Latvia, Argentina, Hungary

Uruguay

24

Portugal, El Salvador, Chile, Peru, Turkey, Spain, Argentina, Greece, Malta, Brazil, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Thailand, Morocco, Poland, Arab countries, Romania, Iran, Colombia, Mexico, Bulgaria, Pakistan, East Africa

Chile

24

Peru, Portugal, El Salvador, Slovenia, Uruguay, Thailand, Turkey, Croatia, Spain, Serbia, Pakistan, Romania, Iran, Morocco, Malta, Greece, Colombia, Brazil, East Africa, Bulgaria, Arab Countries, Argentina, West Africa, Bangladesh

Malta

24

Spain, Poland, Turkey, Uruguay, Portugal, Serbia, Romania, Morocco, Slovenia, Peru, France, Greece, Brazil, Argentina, Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Croatia, Belgium, Italy, Bulgaria, Chile, El Salvador, Israel, Arab countries

Morocco

24

Turkey, Thailand, Peru, Poland, Uruguay, Trinidad And Tobago, Philippines, Spain, Venezuela, Pakistan, Arab Countries, Iran, Argentina, West Africa, Mexico, Brazil, East Africa, Colombia, El Salvador, Bangladesh, Chile, India, Malta, Croatia

Serbia

23

Turkey, Slovenia, Uruguay, Spain, Thailand, Romania, Croatia, Bulgaria, Brazil, Russia, Bangladesh, Peru, Chile, El Salvador, Portugal, Greece, Arab countries, Pakistan, Mexico, Malta, Indonesia, Poland, France

Mexico

23

Venezuela, Morocco, Poland, Peru, Turkey, Philippines, Serbia, Romania, Uruguay, Pakistan, Thailand, Trinidad And Tobago, Arab countries, Colombia, Brazil, Bangladesh, El Salvador, Argentina, West Africa, Greece, Iran, Croatia, East Africa

Romania

23

Serbia, Turkey, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Uruguay, Thailand, Croatia, Bulgaria, Brazil, Bangladesh, Chile, Arab countries, Peru, Portugal, El Salvador, Mexico, Greece, Pakistan, Malta, Poland, France, Indonesia

Argentina

22

Morocco, Uruguay, Poland, Iran, Spain, Malta, Turkey, Brazil, Peru, El Salvador, Greece, Colombia, Mexico, Portugal, Trinidad And Tobago, Chile, Israel, Thailand, Pakistan, Luxembourg, Arab States, East Africa

Iran

20

Morocco, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Peru, Turkey, Uruguay, Spain, Pakistan, Mexico, East Africa, Arab countries, West Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, El Salvador, Colombia, Finland, Bangladesh, India

Indonesia

19

Vietnam, Pakistan, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Philippines, Serbia, Turkey, Romania, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, East Africa, India, Croatia, China, Brazil, Bulgaria, Arab countries

Columbia

19

Venezuela, Mexico, Peru, El Salvador, Trinidad And Tobago, Morocco, Pakistan, Thailand, Iran, Uruguay, Turkey, Portugal, Arab Countries, West Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Bangladesh, East Africa, Chile

Czech

19

Luxembourg, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Malta, Switzerland, Turkey, Poland, Estonia, India, Hungary, Pakistan, Taiwan, Lithuania, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Croatia

Poland

19

Spain, Turkey, Uruguay, Romania, Serbia, Malta, Argentina, Brazil, Greece, France, Mexico, Italy, Morocco, Czech Republic, Arab countries, Croatia, Hungary, Belgium, Luxembourg

Portugal

19

Uruguay, Slovenia, Turkey, Spain, Serbia, Thailand, Romania, El Salvador, Chile, Peru, Greece, Brazil, Croatia, Malta, Argentina, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Arab countries, Colombia

India

17

Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco, Singapore, Iran, Turkey, Thailand, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, East Africa, Brazil, Arab Countries, Czech Republic, Croatia, China

Greece

17

Malta, Turkey, Uruguay, Poland, Spain, Portugal, Serbia, Peru, Romania, Mexico, Pakistan, Brazil, Argentina, El Salvador, Croatia, Bulgaria, Chile

Slovenia

17

Turkey, Thailand, Uruguay, Spain, Chile, Croatia, Portugal, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Peru, Brazil, El Salvador, Pakistan, Russia, East Africa, Malta

West Africa

17

Arab countries, Iran, Morocco, Thailand, Trinidad And Tobago, Colombia, Philippines, Bangladesh, Peru, Venezuela, Mexico, El Salvador, Brazil, Chile, Malaysia, Pakistan, East Africa

France

16

Malta, Spain, Luxembourg, Poland, Turkey, Italy, Russia, Romania, Lithuania, Serbia, Belgium, Czech Republic, Croatia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Estonia

Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

15

Venezuela, Iran, Colombia, East Africa, West Africa, Thailand, Morocco, Pakistan, Peru, Argentina, Arab Countries, Bangladesh, El Salvador, Brazil, Mexico

Italy

14

Switzerland, Luxembourg, Poland, Malta, Spain, United States, Hungary, Czech Republic, Germany, Belgium, France, Canada, United Kingdom, Austria

Finland

13

Norway, Netherlands, Latvia, Luxembourg, Israel, Sweden, New Zealand, Spain, Lithuania, Iran, Canada, Denmark, Estonia

Philippines

12

Venezuela, Malaysia, Arab Countries, Bangladesh, India, West Africa, Mexico, Morocco, East Africa, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Brazil

Venezuela

11

Colombia, Mexico, Arab countries, West Africa, Bangladesh, Peru, Philippines, Morocco, El Salvador, Trinidad And Tobago, Brazil

Estonia

10

Lithuania, Latvia, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Germany, Finland, France, Switzerland, Spain, Czech Republic

Switzerland

10

Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Czech Republic, Austria, United Kingdom, Hungary, Canada, New Zealand, Estonia

new Zealand

10

United States, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Ireland, United Kingdom, Finland, Israel, Luxembourg, Austria

Vietnam

10

Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, East Africa, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Pakistan

Hong Kong

10

Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, China, Bangladesh, East Africa

Canada

9

United States, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, Italy, Switzerland, Australia

Germany

9

Switzerland, Luxembourg, Italy, Hungary, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Austria, Estonia, Belgium

Belgium

9

France, Czech Republic, Italy, Malta, Luxembourg, Spain, Germany, Poland, Bulgaria

Malaysia

9

Philippines, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Arab countries, West Africa, East Africa

England

8

USA, New Zealand, Ireland, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, Australia, Germany

Netherlands

8

Sweden, Norway, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Denmark, Luxembourg

Hungary

8

Italy, Switzerland, Japan, Poland, Luxembourg, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria

Russia

8

Serbia, Slovenia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, South Korea, France

Israel

7

Luxembourg, New Zealand, Spain, Malta, Finland, Austria, Argentina

Austria

7

Switzerland, Germany, Israel, Luxembourg, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand

Latvia

7

Netherlands, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg, Estonia, Finland

Lithuania

7

Netherlands, Luxembourg, Estonia, Latvia, Finland, Czech Republic, France

America

6

Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom, Italy

Taiwan

6

South Korea, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Croatia, Indonesia, Czech Republic

Ireland

5

New Zealand, USA, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom

Australia

5

United States, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom

Singapore

5

Vietnam, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, India

Sweden

5

Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Latvia, Finland

Norway

5

Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Netherlands, Latvia

China

5

Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, India

Denmark

4

Sweden, Norway, Finland, Netherlands

Korea

4

Taiwan, Russia, Bulgaria, Croatia

Japan

1

Hungary

Slovakia

0

Japan is one of the countries with the fewest neighbors along with Slovakia.