Dissecting The Cultural Code Of United States with Andy Molinsky

Back at it again with cultural codes! We are continuing our series with cross cultural expert Andy Molinsky. This time we are doing the Americas. Andy’s series is highlighting the cultural codes of 10 countries. The country of choice today is United States.

The United States of America (USA), commonly referred to as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. The 48 contiguous states and federal district are in central North America between Canada and Mexico, with the state of Alaska in the northwestern part of North America and the state of Hawaii comprising an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the world’s third-largest country by total area (and fourth-largest by land area) and the third-most populous. It is one of the world’s most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. The country’s capital is Washington, D.C. and its largest city is New York City; other major metropolitan areas include Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, Houston, Atlanta, and Miami. The geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse.

Andy uses the following six-dimensional framework to capture the differences across cultures.

Directness: How straightforwardly do people typically communicate in this culture?
Enthusiasm: How much positive emotion and energy do they typically show?
Formality: How much deference and respect do people typically demonstrate?
Assertiveness: How strongly do people typically express voice their opinions?
Self-Promotion: How acceptable is it for people to speak about their accomplishments?
Personal Disclosure: How much do people typically reveal about themselves?

Be sure to grab Andy’s free E-book for mastering 10 cultural codes from around the world: http://www.andymolinsky.com/download-cheat-sheet-to-10-cultural-codes-from-around-the-world/

If you missed last week’s episode on Germany, check it out here.

Without further ado, check it out below:

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About

Tayo Rockson

Tayo Rockson is the CEO and President of UYD Media, a media company that encourages people all over the world to use their difference to make a difference while celebrating diversity and educating others. He is an avid writer whose work can be seen on the Huffington Post, Among Worlds Magazine as well as Global Living Magazine. He is an authority on Third Culture Kids and assimilation into new cultures. He is the author of The Ultimate Guide To TCK Living and through his podcast and blog, he is heard and read by thousands of people in over 100 countries. He grew up in four different continents so he considers himself a citizen of the world. He has lived in Sweden, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Vietnam and the United States and his goal is to ultimately leave the world a better place than it was before he came into it. Once he discovered that he was a Third Culture Kid (TCK) or someone who spent the formative part of his childhood years (0-18) outside of his parents' culture, he vowed to use his global identity to make an impact in the world. Feel free to connect with him on Twitter @TayoRockson where he is actively making new friends every day.