The cultural continua allow us to represent the dimensions of cultural variability as continu- ous and varying in magnitude by degree. In other words, no culture is purely and absolutely individualistic or collectivistic. Instead, a culture may be more individualistic or more collectiv- istic than some other culture. Another important point to make is that these cultural dimensions of variability are not opposites; that is, a culture where a large power distance is practiced should not be thought of as the opposite of a culture where small power distance is practiced. In some cases, dimensions of cultural variability may coexist in cultures. In addition, as mentioned above, cultures are not static or fixed in time; many cultures are in a state of great transition. Thus, a culture that was once considered collectivistic may now be considered individualistic. For example, Japan is considered a collectivistic, group-oriented society. However, since the 1950s, Japan has been strongly influenced by Western culture. Many Japanese scholars have observed that the younger generation of Japanese, while still considered collectivistic, is more individualistic than their parents and especially their grandparents. Likewise, although the United States is considered very individualistic, many U.S. businesses and corporations employ collectivistic management models in the workplace, focusing on teamwork and cooperation. Finally, and this is an important point, when we label a culture as individualistic—or large power distance and so forth—that does not mean that every person in that culture is an indi- vidualist