Cultural differences in a globalizing world /

This can be a frustrating book for readers who have not closely followed three decades of widely scattered research by a small cadre of innovative social scientists. In a succinct (if not altogether clear) statement, social anthropologist Minkov (International Univ. College, Bulgaria) asserts early that "together the four dimensions are associated with, and explain, most important cross-cultural differences between modern nations that are a cause of serious concern in this particular period of human history," but there is no entry for "dimensions" in the index and little explanation of these "dimensions" until much later in the book. Minkov is a little too boastful of his supposedly rigorous "scientific" method, relying heavily on various sociological surveys among small samples at various times and on uncompiled statistics, none of which should be considered representative or reliable in the various nation-states discussed. Nevertheless, the book is an interesting effort at cultural analysis, regional comparisons, differences in development among populations, and many other aspects of life that are not melding nearly so fast as was predicted with globalization. Despite its problems, this is a treasure trove of fascinating nuggets about such diverse topics as happiness, homicide rates, traffic fatalities, gender equality, and the rule of law. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. D. B. Heath Brown University