Indian Culture
Running head: KUWAIT: SMALL BUT MIGHTY 1
Kuwait: Small but Mighty
Keightley Dudgeon
COMM 263
Kuwait: Small but Mighty
Kuwait is a small Middle Eastern country located on the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Kuwait is an incredibly wealthy country. It is strategically located in the desert, which is rich with oilfields. It is also located on the coast of the Persian Gulf, making it easily accessible. Women in Kuwait enjoy more freedom than women living in most other Middle Eastern countries. They have the right to vote, they are allowed to drive, and they are not required a male escort outside of the home. Finally, Kuwait is densely populated, with several major cities, including the capital, Kuwait City, among others such as Al Ahmadi, Al Farwaniyah, and Hawali. An overwhelming majority of the population is concentrated in these cities, with only 2 percent living in rural areas (Bailey, 2016). Kuwait stands out as an economically prosperous and culturally progressive country in the Middle East.
Kuwait is one of the wealthiest nations in the world. The nation’s economic success stems from the development of desert oilfields in the twentieth century. According to the CIA World Fact Book, “petroleum accounts for over half of the gross domestic product in Kuwait, 94 percent of export revenues, and 89 percent of government income” (CIA World Fact Book, 2016, p. 415). It is obvious from this data that Kuwait’s economy is largely dependent on the oil industry, and with the high oil prices in the last decade, Kuwait has accumulated budget surplus. This budget surplus persisted, even after Kuwait used a portion of the excess money to build roads, institute free health care, and “support an educational system that has resulted in one of the highest literacy rates in the Middle East” (Bailey, 2016, p. 1). Despite this economic success, there has been a recent fall in oil prices and a consequent push for more economic diversity in Kuwait, which would allow for sustainability and success in later generations.
Diversifying the economy in Kuwait would require the increase of domestic production inside the country borders. Currently, there is a large imbalance between imports and non-oil exports (Ellis & MacDonald, 1982). A large portion of the oil revenue generated is spent on foreign imports due to the lack of domestic production in Kuwait. Kuwait has developed foreign dependency that is not sustainable, due to the finite nature of oil production.
Interestingly enough, Kuwait is dependent on foreign countries past the import of goods. Kuwait is also dependent on foreign labor. The expatriate population is greater than the native population in Kuwait (Mahmoud & Alajmi, 2010). An expatriate is a person working outside of their home country. Many of the expatriates in Kuwait are there to work in the oil industry; the economic boom that Kuwait experienced in the mid to late twentieth century made it a very popular country to come and work. According to the 2011 census, “expatriates form 67 percent of the population in Kuwait, with an average population growth of 6.7 percent annually” (Tariq, Goddard, & Elkum, 2013). Kuwait is a great place for expatriates to live and work because the standard of living is so high (Ellis & MacDonald, 1982). However, this dependency on foreign labor presents another obstacle in the path to Kuwait becoming more economically diverse.
Kuwait is also more progressive than most other countries in the Middle East. Kuwaiti women have rights that women in other Middle Eastern countries, such as Saudi Arabia, do not. They have the right to vote, they are allowed to drive, and they are not required a male escort outside of the home. However, they have not had these rights forever. In fact, most developments in Kuwaiti society regarding women’s rights are extremely recent. Until the end of the twentieth century, women very rarely acquired higher education or worked outside of the home. Now, “women outnumber men in the university, and women constitute one-third of the labor force” (Bailey, p. 1).
I am involved in an international chat group that meets once a week for two hours. This chat is facilitated through a program called Soliya. Three of the participants in my international chat group are from Kuwait, and have spoken openly about the political freedoms that are allowed in the Kuwait, yet forbidden in other parts of the Middle East. Basil Mattar, a Kuwaiti student attending the American University of Kuwait, said that Kuwaiti women have almost full civil and political rights (personal communication, April 22, 2017). They hold Chief Executive Officer (C.E.O.) positions; they work as ministers and politicians. Yet, according to Basil, the burden of securing a family’s finances still falls to the men, and being a housewife is still the predominant role of women in society; therefore, current day Kuwait society is mainly patriarchal. A Kuwaiti woman in my group named Seyma Genc, testified that the reason for this is that “for most men, having compassion and behaving in accordance with it is weakness.” This ideal is certainly applicable across cultures.
Another component of Kuwait culture that points to progressiveness is the religion. According to Basil, Kuwait is a majority Muslim country. Basil, a former Muslim, has since denounced the religion and classifies himself as unreligious. He said that in some Middle Eastern countries, this would be looked down upon and greatly discouraged. However, in Kuwait, “there are no legal repercussions to changing religion.” He said that Kuwait is surprisingly open. There are a lot of secular opinions in the parliament, which is Kuwait’s form of government. Also, there are many secularists and anti-Islamists, mainly Kuwaiti, who voice their opinion on national TV. This would be absolutely forbidden in other Middle Eastern countries. However, he also said that “Saudi Arabia has quite the influence on Kuwaiti public policy formulation and as we know, Saudi Arabia has classified atheists as ‘terrorists.’” So Kuwait is politically progressive, yet still influenced by the neighboring countries, which hold much more conservative standards.
Kuwait may be examined and further understood through Geert Hofstede’s value dimensions, which are “individualism/collectivism, high uncertainty avoidance/low uncertainty avoidance, high power distance/low power distance, masculinity/femininity, long-term oriented/short-term oriented, and indulgent/restrained” (Samovar, Porter, McDaniel, & Roy, 2013). First, Kuwait is a collectivist society. Collectivism is a common theme in Middle Eastern culture. For example, my friend and Kuwaiti currently studying at Western Kentucky University, Khaled Aljaber, already knows where he will live in Kuwait after graduating from the engineering program at Western Kentucky University. He will live in a large house with his extended family. Kuwait is a very family-oriented society; the larger group is much more emphasized than the individual. In Middle Eastern culture, the tribe is often emphasized. A tribe is basically the family tree; it consists of the complete extended family and is concerned with family ancestry. According to Khaled, there is a competitive nature in determining which tribe is strongest or most capable in Arab society. Therefore, the achievements and accomplishments of Kuwaitis are often measured in collective terms; the tribe is much more important than the individual.
I would argue that Kuwait is neither a high uncertainty avoidance or low uncertainty avoidance culture. Rather, Kuwait society represents a middle ground between the two. For one, a large portion of the Kuwait population is made up by foreigners; expatriates outnumber actual Kuwaitis. This lends one to think that Kuwait is a low uncertainty avoidance culture, since they are so willing to let people unlike them work and live in the country. Yet, there are still societal standards that remain resistant to change, such as the patriarchal nature of the family. This lends one to think that Kuwait is a high uncertainty avoidance culture, since the society is resistant to drastic change. Therefore, I would say that Kuwait stands on a middle ground between high uncertainty avoidance and low uncertainty avoidance.
Kuwait has a semi-democratic government system. It is formally classified as a constitutional emirate, with a cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by the amir. The amir, which is the Arabic word for prince, is chosen from the ruling family and confirmed by the National Assembly. The prime minister is then appointed by the amir (CIA World Fact Book, 2016, p. 414). The structure of Kuwait government confirms Kuwait as a high power distance society. In other words, power is largely accepted as part of society. The government system may be partially democratic, but a majority of the power rests in the ruling family. Equal opportunity is not as prevalent in Kuwait society as it is in the United States. Therefore, I would say that Kuwait is a high power distance society.
Kuwait is a fairly feminine culture. Kuwait is not a society driven entirely by economic competition and success. Rather, there is a large focus on family and companionship. Work is not nearly as emphasized as free time, leisure, and enjoyment. Within the work place, support and cooperation are more valued than maximum success and profit.
Kuwait has recently shifted from a short-term oriented society to a long-term oriented society. The majority of Kuwait’s economic success is due to mass oil production, and the economy was almost completely dependent on oil towards the end of the twentieth century. While the economy is still largely dependent on the production of oil, expatriate labor, and imported goods, Kuwait is slowly beginning to acknowledging and starting to address the problem of economic dependency; it is shifting from a completely short-term oriented society to a more long-term oriented society.
Kuwait is an indulgent culture. Kuwait is one of the wealthiest societies in the world because of their mass oil production and strategic location on the Arabian Peninsula. With this abundance of wealth, Kuwaitis are able to indulge and enjoy a high standard of living. According to my friend, Khaled, name brands are emphasized in Kuwait culture, similar to how they are in the United States. He frequently shops and wears famous brands, such as Gucci, Chanel, and Rolex. This is not frowned upon; rather, it is seen as a symbol of status in Kuwait culture.
It is clearly demonstrated through Hofstede’s dimensions that Kuwait is a multi-dimensional society. Certain components in Kuwait society are extremely modern and progressive, while other components are resistant to major change. Nevertheless, Kuwait remains a very powerful and impactful country on the global scale, no matter their geographic size. Kuwait stands out as an economically prosperous and culturally progressive country in the Middle East.
References Page
Bailey, E. (2016). Kuwait. 1.
CIA World Fact Book (2016). Kuwait. 413-416.
Ellis, M., & MacDonald, H. M. (1982). The oil economy of Kuwait. Social science quarterly. University of Texas Press, 63(1), 180.
Kuwait: The Race for Economic Diversification. (2016). Foreign Affairs, 95(6), 120a.
Mahmoud, M. A., & Alajmi, A. F. (2010). Quantitative assessment of energy conservation due to public awareness campaigns using neural networks. Applied Energy, 87(1), 220-228.
Samovar, L.A., Porter, R.E., McDaniel, E.R., & Roy, C.S. (2013). Communication between cultures. Boston, MA: Wadsworth.
Tariq, S., Goddard, C. A., & Elkum, N. (2013). Barriers in participant recruitment of diverse ethnicities in the state of Kuwait. International Journal for Equity in Health, 12(1), 93 99.
