Cross- cultural Communication This page intentionally left blank

Hofstede’s sixth dimension
Following research by Michael Minkov, who extended the number of coun-
tries scored for the fifth dimension (LTO/STO), Hofstede identified a sixth 
dimension (Hofstede, Hofstede and Minkov, 2010). This he calls Indulgence 
versus Restraint (IVR). This dimension contends that people in societies that 
possess a high rate of indulgence are able to freely satisfy their basic needs and 
China
118
Sweden
33
Hong Kong
96
Poland
32
Taiwan
87
Australia
31
Japan
80
Germany 31
South Korea
75
New Zealand
30
Brazil
65
USA
29
India
61
UK
25
Thailand
56
Zimbabwe
25
Singapore
48
Canada
23
Netherlands 44
Philippines
19
Bangladesh
43
Nigeria
16
Figure 2.10 LTO scores (Hofstede, Hofstede and Minkov, 2010: 240, Table 7.1)

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Key Thinkers in Cross- Cultural Communication (1) 41
aspirations. However, people in societies which display restraint are less happy; 
they follow strict norms of social behaviour whereby the gratification of their 
desires and ambitions are suppressed by regulations and the resulting curbs 
on their freedom of action. They also have the perception that the enjoyment 
of leisure time and the ability to spend their earnings on whatever they wish 
can often be seen as unsociable and incorrect. Indulgence scores are found to 
be the highest in Latin America, parts of Africa, the Anglophone world and in 
Nordic Europe, whereas restraint is mostly evident in Southeast Asia and the 
Muslim world. Figure 2.11 lists selected scores for this dimension.
Venezuela
100
Nigeria 84
Ghana 72
UK
69
USA
68
South Africa
63
Norway
54
France
48
Zambia
42
Germany
40
Indonesia
38
Zimbabwe 28
India
26
Hong Kong
17
Egypt
4
Figure 2.11 Selected sixth dimension scores (Hofstede, Hofstede and Minkov, 2010: 
282–4, Table 8.1)
This dimension is very much concerned with the degree of general well-
being and happiness experienced by the people of a nation. This is called 
‘subjective well-being’ (SWB). One of the perhaps surprising results is that 
countries with the highest percentage of happiness are in fact themselves 
not particularly wealthy. Examples include countries in West Africa and in 
some Latin American countries. It was also found that the extent of happi-
ness is correlated with a high degree of individualism and low masculinity. 
No direct correlation, however, was found with the other dimensions, 
including LTO.
Hofstede widens his research in this new dimension by examining the key 
differences between indulgent and restrained societies in the private life of 
their citizens, their common behaviour, their attitudes towards sex and the 
influence of politics.