Abstract
Modern technology enables contacts between people from various countries, nations, and continents, physically by travelling and virtually by using modern electronic communication and software products. Humans tend to ascribe human qualities to complex sophisticated computer interfaces. As a result, they expect these interfaces to blend into their individual culture and to be compatible with their own cultural preferences and norms. This means that the product must be adapted to the cultural environment: it needs localization. In this chapter we will discuss cultural differences between nations based on the five dimensions of cultural differences established by G. Hofstede. We identify seven hierarchical layers of localization and relate them to the cultural differences. We apply four countries (Austria, Germany, India, and the USA) with respect to the cultural differences.
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Chroust, G. (2015). Localization, Cultural Preferences and Global Commerce—Software Like a Cooperative Partner. In: Sushil, ., Chroust, G. (eds) Systemic Flexibility and Business Agility. Flexible Systems Management. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-2151-7_12
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