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GICE220-D10_CQ Project Journal: Cultural Dimensions Assignment (incomplete)

Aug 14
5 min read

Updated: Aug 24

Course Materials Reflection


  • (Instructions) In this week’s video, Dr. Harper gave some practical examples of how the cultural dimensions could impact life and work in several different fields. What’s one way you have seen cultural dimensions play out in your work, ministry, or community? (Write at least 200 words).


  • An obvious observation can be made for the reason behind the conventional lifestyle (of say) the typical American work life. It is the one where someone works their typical 9-5 job and may be able to have some time for other personal goals and activities in the evening such as sports, hobbies, or church. Others that provide a more job-based profession for doing the Lord’s work can be examined as having a more obtuse schedule for their work in the ministry. Much of this ministry work provided by pastors, evangelists, and missionaries, etc. Often travel and must set special times for conducting their work. This I notice in my own community among the church and in that of my own home church.


  • Also, as I was watching Dr. Harper’s video, she mentions that the immediate family might be directly involved in the educational life of the child. It made me think about how many families tend to miss out on their child’s life in their education or in some other aspect. The mother or father may work a very time-consuming job that they find themselves having the difficulty of becoming involved in their child’s schooling. This can create possibilities for conflict, issues, and distance within the family. I remember researching a study done about socioeconomics and education-based statics among the most “peaceful” countries in the world to live in. Of course, one’s personal experience can have a different opinion. Either way one of the countries I was interested in about learning was the country of Finland. Their workdays are not as extensive as here in America (Work in Finland, (n.d), and they provide some tuition free benefits for students to go to college (European Commission, 2025).


  • (Instructions) What are some common mistakes people may make when communicating with someone from another culture (Consider cultural dimensions in your answer. Write at least 200 words and cite at least 1 source).


  • I would be led to believe that many mistakes can be made or ones we can more noticeably observe would be where one’s profession might see itself involved with someone from another culture. To put it in simpler terms a profession that is more universal or can be utilized among many or all cultures. These could be errors made with communication and the language barrier itself. It could be a mistake made where someone may be conducting their work among another culture and is not aware of certain traditions and practices that they may cross a cultural threshold that may be tied to specific legalities. With Dr. Harper’s video lecture, she speaks of the is communication between someone who may have a different meal schedule as compared to your typical three-day meal common to most folks of society when considering an individual’s prescription (“Cultural Dimensions in Communication,” 01:05). She emphasizes the importance of cultural dimensions for the possibility of making mistakes due to our lack of this cultural mindfulness.


CQ Research


(Instructions) Take time to research the cultural dimensions of the country you have chosen. You should focus your research on the cultural dimensions as defined by Livermore in Leading with Cultural Intelligence. For each cultural dimension listed below, you should answer the following questions at least 200 words. You should also include at least 1 citation from the course materials and 1 citation from an outside source. It is highly recommended that you consult this website: https://www.theculturefactor.com/country-comparison-tool.

  • Which cultural dimension is prevalent in the culture you are researching? How do you know?

  • What might this cultural dimension look like in everyday life in this culture?

  • How might the cultural dimension affect a person’s worldview or understanding of the Grand Narrative story?


  • Individualism or Collectivism:

    • The Philippines can reflect many similarities to that of the United States as both hold comparable political governing. However, it was to my surprise that the people are more of a collectivist nation rather than the commonly perceived individualistic impression many foreigners tend to assume. The collectivism of the Philippines displays itself in a great deal among deep-rooted communal values. Like many Asian territories, both family and community play a big role for the working consensus.


    • I was very much led to believe the record stood that the Philippines were more individualistic due to their natural, almost “free-spirited” and “no worries” type of demeanor and that they carried out community based around certain freedoms and a sense of independence. But the collectivism that displays itself in this culture comes mainly from the prioritization of family, community and group harmony (Complete Era). It is beneficial to think of this cultural knowledge as community effort is valued more than self-reliance including things like where work, ethics, values, etc. (Complete Era). When one can be found searching for a life partner, it can be observed that their pursuits are not mostly self-driven or based on a deep desire regarding self. They are more focused on family driven goals.


  • As opposed to here in the States we see many nowadays leading separate lives without a partner and the statistic for remaining single is higher than ever before. According to Bowling Green State University, 76% off men and 69% of women among young adults (18-29) were single (unmarried or cohabitating) in 2025 (National Center for Family & Marriage Research).

    This can be compared to the drastic change in single people since the 1960s were never-married adults rose from 15% in 1960 to 32% in 2024 (National Center for Family & Marriage Research). I believe this is due to the overwhelming phenomenon of social media and heavy access to a socially driven network from digital technology and the infiltration of the extreme

    impression for marketing self-promoted behavior.


  • Low Power Distance or High Power Distance:

    • The Philippines rank very high on a global scale for high power distance. According to cyberlink.com, the Philippines rank among the highest in the world with a Power Distance score of 94 (“Philippines – Culture, Etiquette, and Business Practices,” n.d.). Due to this high-power distance rating, this would mean that hierarchy, rank, and authority are highly respected (Acuña and Rodriguez). Many contributing factors that lead to the results for the Philippines having such a high power distance would be to include strong family hierarchy; their Spanish and American influence; high-regards for cultural values; centralized authority structures in government, schools, and business; and the influential catholic structure that emphasizes leadership and obedience (Malisce).


  • Low Uncertainty Avoidance or High Uncertainty Avoidance:

  • Short-Term or Long-Term:


Grand Narrative Summary


(Instructions) Throughout the course, we will use the grand narrative of scripture as the content we communicate across cultures. Please write a summary of Act 5 and Act 6 of the Grand Narrative. Use your textbook and the course videos to summarize the story. Write at least 100 words for each act. Please include at least 2 scripture references and an in-text citation referencing either the course textbook entitled The True Story of The Whole World or the course videos entitled Communicating the Grand Narrative. (Note: This should be your own summary in your own words and NOT AI-generated).


Act 5 | Spreading the News of the King:

Act 6 | The Return of the King:


Works Cited

Work in Finland. (n.d.). Work-life balance in Finland. https://www.workinfinland.com/en/why-

European Commission. (2025).


Study in Finland: Tuition, visas, scholarships, and student life. European Education Area. https://education.ec.europa.eu/study-in-europe/country-profiles/finland.


Harper, Melody. “Cultural Dimensions in Communication.” Liberty University Online, Liberty


CompleteEra. “Is Filipino Culture Individualistic? Understanding the Basics.” CompleteEra,

basics/. Accessed 13 Aug 2026.


National Center for Family & Marriage Research. “Singlehood in the United States, 2025.”

Bowling Green State University, 2025, https://www.bgsu.edu/ncfmr.html.


Cyborlink. “Philippines – Culture, Etiquette, and Business Practices.” Cyborlink, (n.d.),


Acuña, Jasmin Espiritu, and Rafael A. Rodriguez. “Value Orientations of Filipinos.” Philippine

Management Review, vol. 1, 1996,


Malicse, Angelito. “The Shaping of Filipino Culture: The Influence of Spanish Colonization, the Catholic Church, and American Rule.” PhilArchive, 2021,

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