wtfeWays They Frame Engineering
日本語

BrazilvsSouth Korea

ブラジルと韓国BRKR

Seen from Brazil: each line below describes South Korea relative to Brazil.

Swap: see Brazil from South Korea

Culture Map: eight scales

Erin Meyer's eight scales, sorted by how far apart Brazil and South Korea sit, largest gap first.

Filled dot: Brazil, where you are looking fromHollow ring: South Korea

Where you will notice the difference4 scales

  1. Communicating

    South Korea leaves more to be read between the lines than Brazil (2 steps)

    Brazil 0, South Korea +2, on a line from −3 (Low-context) to +3 (High-context).

  2. Evaluating

    South Korea gives negative feedback more indirectly than Brazil (1 step)

    Brazil +1, South Korea +2, on a line from −3 (Direct negative feedback) to +3 (Indirect negative feedback).

  3. Leading

    South Korea keeps more distance between boss and team than Brazil (1 step)

    Brazil +1, South Korea +2, on a line from −3 (Egalitarian) to +3 (Hierarchical).

  4. Disagreeing

    South Korea avoids open disagreement more than Brazil (1 step)

    Brazil +1, South Korea +2, on a line from −3 (Confrontational) to +3 (Avoids confrontation).

Where you are close1 scale

  1. Trusting

    Brazil and South Korea sit on the same step

    Brazil +2, South Korea +2, on a line from −3 (Task-based) to +3 (Relationship-based).

Not placed3 scales

These scales are left unmarked: either Meyer leaves a country off the scale or no source places it, and drawing it anyway would be guessing.

  • PersuadingMeyer leaves South Korea off this scale and describes its reasoning as holistic
  • Deciding, SchedulingNo source places South Korea on these scales
† position taken from a review or summary, not from Meyer's own chart.Positions are read by eye from Erin Meyer's published charts and rounded to seven steps. A step means “further towards that pole”, not a measured distance. How the positions were read

Hofstede: six dimensions

Scores from 0 to 100, sorted by the gap between Brazil and South Korea. They describe national averages, not either country's character.

  1. Long-term orientation

    South Korea scores 58 points higher than Brazil (86 against 28)

    Brazil 28, South Korea 86, on a line from 0 (Short-term) to 100 (Long-term).

  2. Indulgence

    South Korea scores 30 points lower than Brazil (29 against 59)

    Brazil 59, South Korea 29, on a line from 0 (Restrained) to 100 (Indulgent).

  3. Individualism

    South Korea scores 22 points higher than Brazil (58 against 36)

    Brazil 36, South Korea 58, on a line from 0 (Collectivist) to 100 (Individualist).

  4. Motivation towards achievement and success

    South Korea scores 10 points lower than Brazil (39 against 49)

    Brazil 49, South Korea 39, on a line from 0 (Consensus-oriented) to 100 (Decisive).

  5. Power distance

    South Korea scores 9 points lower than Brazil (60 against 69)

    Brazil 69, South Korea 60, on a line from 0 (Low power distance) to 100 (High power distance).

  6. Uncertainty avoidance

    South Korea scores 9 points higher than Brazil (85 against 76)

    Brazil 76, South Korea 85, on a line from 0 (Tolerant of ambiguity) to 100 (Avoids ambiguity).

Country averages. About 80% of variation in values is between people inside a country (Taras et al. 2016).Source: The Culture Factor — Country comparison tool (2026).About the Hofstede dimensions

What the sources say, theme by theme

Entries for Brazil and South Korea, side by side on wide screens. Each keeps its own confidence label and citations.

Design & quality

Brazil2 claims

South Korea3 claims

Failure & risk

Brazil1 claim

South Korea3 claims

Feedback & code review

Brazil3 claims

  • The training company Talaera, citing Meyer, writes that negative feedback tends to be wrapped in warmth and delivered in private, and that public criticism easily damages relationships. The behavioral descriptions rest mainly on the authors' own observations.

    Thin1 source2026br-feedback-1

  • In an HR magazine interview, Erin Meyer names Latin America as one of the "really indirect" parts of the world for negative feedback.

    Attested1 source2014Datedbr-feedback-2

  • Talaera says that instead of a plain "no," phrases such as "we can try" or "I'll do my best" can signal concern or refusal.

    Thin1 source2026br-feedback-3

South Korea2 claims

Hierarchy & decisions

Brazil2 claims

South Korea4 claims

Communication & docs

Brazil2 claims

  • A summary of Meyer's Culture Map places Brazil on the side where trust is built through personal relationships, close to China and Saudi Arabia. Small talk at the start of a meeting is described as part of the work.

    Thin1 sourcebr-communication-1

  • Talaera says written English tends to be on the formal side and asynchronous replies tend to be long and warm, and it recommends video calls over audio-only calls.

    Thin1 source2026br-communication-2

South Korea2 claims

Work & careers

Brazil4 claims

South Korea7 claims

Open source & community

Brazil3 claims

South Korea4 claims