Scientific Definition
How much hierarchical inequality a culture accepts as normal.
Plain-English Definition
How much hierarchical inequality a culture accepts as normal.
Feynman Explanation
Some places, the CEO grabs coffee with the intern. Some places, both would refuse.
Core Principle
How much hierarchical inequality a culture accepts as normal.
Mechanisms
Pending editorial review.
How much hierarchical inequality a culture accepts as normal.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Leadership behavior that 'works' in low-power-distance cultures backfires in high-power-distance ones.
Inputs (Triggers)
Pending editorial review.
Outputs (Behaviors)
Pending editorial review.
Behavioral Signature
Some places, the CEO grabs coffee with the intern. Some places, both would refuse.
Examples
- Hofstede dimension predicting management style and feedback patterns.
- Leadership behavior that 'works' in low-power-distance cultures backfires in high-power-distance ones.
Pending editorial review.
Famous Experiments
Pending editorial review.
Design Principles
- Calibrate directness, feedback, and decision-making to the local power distance norm.
Measurement Approaches
Pending editorial review.
Evidence
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
The Perverse Incentive Lens™
How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.
- Calibrate directness, feedback, and decision-making to the local power distance norm.
Pending editorial review.
Pending editorial review.
Interactive Mini Network
Click any neighbor to re-center the graph and follow the threads of connection.
Knowledge Graph Neighbors
Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.
Cultures vary in how strictly norms are enforced and deviance punished.
Each value system (Beige through Green) believes itself to be the only valid one and dismisses the others.
The relative weight a culture gives to individual goals vs. group cohesion.
The combination of historical, social, and existential pressures that activates the next vMeme.
Yellow and Turquoise vMemes — first systems that recognize the legitimacy of all earlier value systems.
A developmental model of human value systems (vMemes) emerging in response to life conditions.
Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic — a tiny, atypical psychological sample.
A relationship where a small number of inputs account for most outputs.
A small number of items account for most of the value.
Distance in time, space, social relation, or hypotheticality changes judgment.
How will I feel about this in 10 minutes / 10 months / 10 years?
Basics first (health/finances), then depth (mastery/impact), then altruism (widening circle).