Does what it can with the time it has

This course as an exploration of ten cultural value dimensions:

1. Identity—Individualist versus Collectivist
2. Authority—Low versus High Power Distance
3. Risk—Low versus High Uncertainty Avoidance
4. Achievement—Cooperative versus Competitive
5. Time—Punctuality versus Relationships
6. Communication—Direct versus Indirect
7. Lifestyle—Being versus Doing
8. Rules—Particularist versus Universalist
9. Expressiveness—Neutral versus Affective
10. Social Norms—Tight versus Loose

Followed by applying them to ten global culture clusters:

1. Anglo Cultures
2. Nordic European Cultures
3. Germanic Cultures
4. Eastern European/Central Asian Cultures
5. Latin European Cultures
6. Latin American Cultures
7. Confucian Asian Cultures
8. South Asian Cultures
9. Sub-Saharan African Cultures
10. Arab Cultures

It's not a full guide of do's and don'ts, but it provides some key guidelines on each social clusters and how to learn more.

145 people found this helpful

Quite possibly my favorite of The Great Courses

What did you love best about Customs of the World: Using Cultural Intelligence to Adapt, Wherever You Are?

I absolutely love The Great Courses. I've listened to at least 30 of them, and I have to say that Customs of the World might be my favorite. It was so packed with observations that were both fascinating and practical, I think I'll find myself wanting to listen again in years to come.

I'm struggling in my mind to suggest a better name for this course, because it's about so much more than customs. It's about how culture profoundly affects how people and societies interact, along with practical advice on how to observe and interact with people from all cultures and subcultures both around the world and at home. This course is invaluable not only to world travelers, but to anybody who engages with people from other cultures, whether at work or socially.

Professor Livermore divides the course into three sections. The first explains the concept behind cultural intelligence. The second set of lectures is a comprehensive look at the ten established dimensions along which cultures consistently differ. The final set of lectures takes a deep dive into each of the major cultural regions of the world, pointing out the dominant norms of each, along with suggestions on how to observe and interact with people from within those regions.

What about Professor David Livermore’s performance did you like?

Professor Livermore is clearly a prominent academic leader in this field, but he is also a remarkably experienced traveler and a captivating storyteller. Throughout the course, he draws on his own experiences to enrich the discussion and make it personal. He is excellent.

104 people found this helpful

11 hours in a breeze.

What did you learn from Customs of the World: Using Cultural Intelligence to Adapt, Wherever You Are that you would use in your daily life?

It's packed with insightful moments. And the more you listen, the more your own culture becomes strange to yourself. This means your cultural intelligence is growing. It will help you become more effective in your dealings with cultures around you.

Any additional comments?

My best audiobook, in 9 years of customer loyalty to Audible.

39 people found this helpful

Wide breadth of material, yet lacking depth

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this book to most people as a primer to various cultures around the world and familiarise them to the various dimensions that are used to measure differences between cultures.While it serves as a useful index of cultural norms and practices, it does suffer from broad generalised claims. The writer did admit that not all members of a certain culture would behave as he described, he did not try to investigate too deeply upon the internal differences of cultures.There is also a missed opportunity to address the effects of variables such as economic, religious and other factors that might affects how a group of people manifest their practices as a culture.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I wish that the writer would address how socio-economic, religious and other factors affect cultures, and also the malleability of members of certain cultures to new practices. The audiobook resembles a travel guide more than a rigorous study of culture.I am sure that this book could've benefited from incorporating the latest literature on behavioral economics and anthropology.

What about Professor David Livermore’s performance did you like?

I think his reading is personable and I can't find discernible flaw throughout the audiobook.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

If I have the opportunity to, maybe I will listen to it in one sitting, but some parts made me cringe too much. It is usually the part where the culture I am familiar with is described to be an unrecognisable caricature.

38 people found this helpful

Unexpectedly brilliant!

I didn't have any interest in listening to a lecture from the Great Course series. After all, I spent umpteen years attending college. I figured that part of my life was over. But here was a topic that greatly interested me and at a great price, too. I couldn't let it pass.

From the moment I started listening, I felt a deep nostalgia for my university days. I also knew I was going to really enjoy this listen. This course is so wonderful that I want to highly recommend it to anyone who has even the slightest interest in the subject of cultural intelligence. The format is so pleasant--a series of related but separate lectures, each one leading into the next one.

Even if you aren't planning overseas travel, you will find so much relevant information here that will explain behaviors that have puzzled or even irritated you in the past. And if you are planning on overseas travel, you will have a bunch of new information that will be immensely helpful to you. If you aren't able to interact with the "natives", you will still be equipped to look for various things that will tell you much about the culture you are visiting. Additionally, Professor Livermore gives you some do's and don't's to further enhance your knowledge and your travel. He is a wonderful lecturer, too.

I enjoyed this book so much that I know it will be a repeat listen for me. It has also inspired me to look for further Great Courses subjects that sound interesting. This experience has been as enjoyable as any of my favorite audiobooks.

28 people found this helpful

Starts strong but fades...

The first half of this course is interesting and really pretty good. Professor Livermore has participated in some interesting research and developed a system/language for talking about cultural awareness/intelligence ("CQ" in the course). And there is definitely some good information and concepts that will help you gain perspective and be better equipped to understand and interact with people from other cultures.

The 3-star ranking is because of the tendency the author has to talk about his own personal experiences, many of them banal, and present them as evidence of some general cultural dimension. This ranged from annoying (and frequently so) to contradictory in few cases. Another problem with the course is the author's multiple exhortations to "slow down" and "relax" and "enjoy" cultural differences. The repetition kept reminding me that I wasn't learning anything new after about lecture 10 or 11.

My impression is that the first half of the course is well researched, and thus fairly coherent and well presented, but that the second half of the course is thrown together.

26 people found this helpful

First half kind of interesting, second half great!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Customs of the World: Using Cultural Intelligence to Adapt, Wherever You Are?

The most memorable moment was without a doubt when he spoke about my own culture, the Nordic cluster. Dead on! Made me realize that what I take for 'normal behavour' is normal mainly if you are Swedish. I have lived in several different cultures, mainly Latin and south Asian, and now I'm making my Latin boyfriend listen to the course, mainly to prove that I'm not weird, just Nordic.

What about Professor David Livermore’s performance did you like?

I loved how he didn't over compare to US culture, and didn't say US ways were superior.

What’s an idea from the book that you will remember?

Many, it mainly confirmed, and gave a reason for things I already kind of knew.

Any additional comments?

I could have skipped the first half of the course, or shorten it quite a bit, too much fluff for my liking. The second half is extremely interesting and useful. Well worth waiting for.

23 people found this helpful

One of the best of "Great Courses" books

This has to be one of the best "Great Courses" books I have listened to. Professor Livermore has a great delivery and is incredibly knowledgeable of the topic. Anyone that travels or works with different cultures needs to listen to this course.

21 people found this helpful

Targeted to businessMEN

This series does raise my awareness slightly for areas I have not yet visited, but I was more frustrated than informed.

Despite repeatedly saying that just being polite and tolerant is not enough, Professor Livermore repeated falls back on that stance because people can not be pigeonholed, no matter where they are from. His examples are of the Ugly American faces the puzzled local variety, rather stereo-typed and superficial. If you are going to do business in a foreign culture, you need a lot more information than is provided here. If you are touring, you will probably never face most of the situations he reviews (you are unlikely to be invited into the home of a Saudi family unless there is expectation of an ongoing relationship).

But my single biggest complaint is that the entire presentation is from the standpoint of men. As a woman who has traveled extensively in Asia, Europe and Latin America for professional reasons, I can guarantee you that I would never be invited to a night drinking with my Chinese counterparts. There is absolutely no discussion of the issues a woman faces in traditional cultures, with the exceptions that Italian women have learned to ignore men who throw catcalls their way on the street and Arab women find the hijab comforting..

Anyone who travels for work or pleasure will gain much more from the trip if they are informed before they travel - not just the social customs, but the history, current events and cusine of a new place. If you are traveling and do not do that already, you have missed a great opportunity. If you do your research, there is not a lot new to learn here.

Livermore is perfectly acceptable as a presenter and his 10 cultural dimensions can be helpful to remember that others' cultures can be quite different than mine. If this helps me be more understanding and tolerant, that can only be a good thing.

18 people found this helpful

Starts at chapter 11

Would you consider the audio edition of Customs of the World: Using Cultural Intelligence to Adapt, Wherever You Are to be better than the print version?

I find lectures grab me if the immersion stars early. I didn't read the print but i can say that If i had read it i would not have made it to the point to which it was rewarding.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Customs of the World: Using Cultural Intelligence to Adapt, Wherever You Are?

The personal journey.

What three words best describe Professor David Livermore’s voice?

His approach to reach out to every one came at a price to me. Voice wise he was fine but his drawn out efforts to support all of his information after chapter 11 wore on me. In saying that; It was very worth my time after that.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

It would have to be a collection of skits of how we all see things differently. Some what like the award winning " Traffic " the movie, but on a wider and different spectrum.

Any additional comments?

Stick it out until chapter 11.The tone and enjoyment take off from there and makes the journey worth it. Had it started at 11 I would have given it a greater rating.

9 people found this helpful