Educating the Expatriate in Papua

Educating the Expatriate in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea:

An overview of the life and culture of the nation for an expatriate desiring to do business in PNG

Papua New Guinea:

An overview of the life and culture of the nation for an expatriate desiring to do business in PNG

This paper will provide a brief overview of the history and culture of Papua New Guinea (PNG) to facilitate the cultural transition of an expatriate from a more developed nation to living in PNG. This document is primarily intended for someone who has come to PNG with the aim of doing business in the area.

The island nation of Papua New Guinea (PNG) formally became independent of Australia in 1975 (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 11). The process by which it became independent was peaceful, and today PNG functions as an elected unicameral parliamentary democracy. However, despite such promising beginnings after its establishment of independence and the fact that PNG has a "slowly developing IT industry" it still faces considerable challenges and there are profound differences between PNG and neighboring Western powers such as Australia (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 11). Because of its tremendous tribal diversity, national unity has proven difficult for the nation. "PNG has more languages (over 800) than any other country in the world, with the possible exception of India. The official language is English with Pidgin and Hiri Motu being used widely as lingua franca to facilitate communication among people of diverse linguistic backgrounds" (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 11). PNG still remains classified as a least developed country (LDC) primarily because of its "unstable political environment…one of the major hindrances to economic growth" (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 11).

Psychographic of culture and business culture

Papua New Guinea has been described as more of a conglomeration of fiefdoms or tribes in terms of citizen allegiances, as opposed to a modern industrial nation. "97% of PNG land is customary title. Each tribal group pushes its own interests instead of working for the interests of the country as a whole" (Cultural differences between Australia and Papua New Guinea, 2010, Convict Creations). Dealing with PNG can be challenging, as a businessperson -- especially as foreigner to the culture and customs of the land. An expatriate entrepreneur should be careful about making assumptions about the nation as a whole, based upon experiences with one tribe.

"Reflecting the dominance of tribal identities over national identities, winners of elections often receive less than 15% of the vote. Corruption is endemic because tribal relationships rein over the rule of law" which can make it difficult to negotiate with either private or government authorities in an ethical fashion (Cultural differences between Australia and Papua New Guinea, 2010, Convict Creations). Bribery is rife, and it can be nearly impossible in some rural areas to determine who is actually in charge. The nation is also largely rural rather than urban: "of its 4.5 million people, 85% live in rural areas" (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 11).

The cultural theorist Geert Hofstede has classified all nations and national cultures under four rubrics: Individualism/Collectivism, Large/Small Power Distance, Strong/Weak Uncertainty Avoidance, and Masculinity/Femininity. PNG is particularly remarkable for its strongly collectivist orientation. Unlike the U.S., an individualistic society characterized by "loosely knit social structure where individualist approaches are encouraged" collectivist societies such as PNG feature a preferred, "tightly knit social framework where in-group, clan or organization ideals take precedent. Individuals can expect clan in-groups or relatives to consider their needs, loyalty being a virtue emphasized (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 13). The ideal of interdependence rather than independence is stressed, even at the expense of progress and moving forward economically

Regarding Hofstede's other dichotomies, in much of the developing world there is also a large power difference based upon tradition, rather than upon merit, in contrast to developed, western nations. And PNG is especially noteworthy for its high uncertainty avoidance. "Strong UA [uncertainty avoidant] societies are less tolerant to deviant ideas and maintain rigid code of belief and ethics. Weak UA societies are more tolerant to deviance and are open to new ideas…. For example, when the banks in PNG recently introduced ATM banking facilities, many customers refused to change from their passbook accounts to ATM cards…Although the banks imposed fines, the change over was slow and in some cases there is little progress" (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 13-14). This can cause frustration for a westerner, as even when it is logically in the interest of the individual to change, cultural customs may predominate in a traditional society like PNG.

Like many traditional societies in Hofstede's typology, PNG is also called a 'feminine' society, in the emphasis it places upon relationships. The nation would be characterized very much as a 'high context' culture, one in which relational status is very important when conveying meaning. How information is conveyed is more important than the actual wording of the message. Nonverbal language is very important in high context cultures, and it can be very difficult for cultural outsiders to translate the dominant cultural script into their own terms. The culture is very change resistant in PNG, and this is exacerbated by logistical difficulties, such as the lack of highly qualified IT and business professionals to teach current undergraduates to pass on information about new ways of doing business.

Behaviors, ethnocentrism, self-reference criteria

However, while it has been called 'feminine' in terms of its valuation of relationships, an observer should know that for most of existence PNG has been plagued by warfare: "to ensure that war could continue in a sustainable fashion, tribes needed to create customs that allowed them to maintain relationships with neighboring tribes even while they were fighting each other…Both tribes thoroughly enjoyed their constant state of war. It helped maintain group identity and perhaps controlled population" during times of famine (Cultural differences between Australia and Papua New Guinea, 2010, Convict Creations). War between tribes is thus accepted in PNG under controlled circumstances, and showing strong allegiance to one's allies is expected in the nation.

Ethnic or social personality

Collectivist societies are face-conscious and losing face is considered "humiliating and painful" (Kelegai & Middleton 2002: 13-14). "Most people will be offended if you walk by and greet without stopping for a chat. This communicates that you do not have time for them, do not care, etc. It is considered better to express a criticism through a colleague or friend, rather than face-to-face" (Papua New Guinea: Communication style, 2010, Culture crossing). When dealing with employees, direct criticism should be avoided, if at all possible, given that what might be acceptable in a westernized context would be considered a sign of profound disrespect in PNG. Additionally, businessperson must be mindful of the need to respect kin groups, and to show respect and deference to informal as well as formal authorities: showing disrespect to a member of an individual's kin group is often seen as tantamount to showing disrespect to the other individuals associated with him or her. Barriers between individuals are not as clearly-defined in the U.S., and the definition of one's 'self' is heavily interdependent.