Disparity In America

1004 Words3 Pages

It is not a surprise that Americans aren’t the happiest people on the planet. We seem to have a lot of material items, and for the most part make a better living for ourselves then other countries, but we never seem to be happy. We are always complaining about our lives. It is quiet the cultural shock when you find out Denmark is the happiest place and why they are happy. Referring to Hoftstede’s model of national culture which has six dimensions, “the cultural dimensions represent independent preferences for one state of affairs over another that distinguish countries (rather than individuals) from each other."(Geert). One of the dimensions is the power distance index which describes how in a low power distance index, people expect to be treated unequally due to hierarchical power. The Danes have a high power distance. They respect and understand that everyone has a different job, or place, to do and this doesn’t have to be explained. They respect that each person has a different place and they do not judge one another by their occupations. The perfect example is shown in the 20/20 video, when the man is a garbage disposal man, so he can spend time during the day doing activities he enjoys. However, in America this is not looked at in the same way. People with “better jobs” than a garbage disposal man, …show more content…

We need to limit ourselves to how much we use it. Technology can be very helpful, but we must limit our time on social networks. We begin to envy others too much and we would rather talk to friends and family through social networks, rather than spending quality time with them in person. If we could only take one thing from the Danes, I believe the best thing would be the use of hygee. We need to focus on that “state of mind” and do things we enjoy, rather than being guled to technology all the time. We need to be in a social, but cozy atmosphere, enjoying

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