Cultural convergence among educated elites in Sub-Saharan Africa: a reassessment of Hofstede's cultural dimension
İbrahim Hakan Karataş, Anthony Muwaga Mugaga, Onoyona-Ekeocha, Isoken Erhowo, Daniel Kumah, Hatice Uslu Kocabaş
Abstract
This study examines the cultural orientations of highly educated individuals in four Sub-Saharan African countries—Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda—using Hofstede’s cultural dimensions framework. While Hofstede’s national cultural profiles have long served as reference points in cross-cultural research, empirical data for many African countries remain limited and outdated. This study addresses this gap by applying the Values Survey Module 2013 (VSM 2013) to a sample of 226 university-educated respondents, grouped by nationality (55 Ghanaians, 60 Nigerians, 42 Tanzanians, and 69 Ugandans). Cultural dimension indices were calculated and compared both across countries, against Hofstede’s reference database, and in relation to developed economies and Türkiye as an emerging country benchmark. Descriptive results revealed relatively similar cultural patterns among respondents in the four countries. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) further indicated that nationality had no statistically significant effect on the cultural dimensions. These findings suggest that highly educated populations in the sampled countries exhibit broadly similar cultural orientations despite belonging to different national contexts. The results underscore the importance of considering socio-structural factors, such as education and globalization, when interpreting cultural values. The study contributes updated empirical evidence to debates on cultural change and raises questions about the extent to which national cultural models capture emerging cultural patterns among educated populations in Sub-Saharan Africa.