Ma`rifat Modiriyati

It is necessary to know the aspects shared by different societies in order to understand the cultural differences between them. Sociologists have tried to identify the aspects shared by the different societies through theoretical reasoning, field work studies, and statistical studies. The findings of these studies culminated in establishing some theories on issues concerned with the cultural aspects. One of the most important studies in this field is Hofstede's dimensional pattern which seeks to understand the various aspects of national culture. Hofsted identifies five common dimensions shared by societies, which are as follows: power distance, individualism-collectivism, masculinity-femininity, avoiding ambiguity, and long term-short term orientation. The way these categories are viewed contributes to identifying the cultural differences. Due to the importance of this issue in cultural planning and because it has not been dealt with in Islamic studies, the researcher tries, through a descriptive analysis, to introduce each of these dimensions to the international society governed by Imam Mahdi which will witness the realization of all Islamic values. These findings can be a basis for cultural studies and planning. The present paper investigates "power distance" as one of Hosfstede's five-fold dimensions.