The globalization of the marketplace and how this process is shaping the cultural characteristics of people around the world is arguably the most critical issue facing international marketing managers today, and is the subject of intense discourse in the social sciences. Are global forces making everyone (and every place) more and more alike, or are they causing local resistances which serve to more solidly entrench cultural differences? Or is globalization simultaneously making individuals increasingly dissimilar within countries, while making individuals progressively similar across national frontiers? This work articulates a theoretical framework for assessing the selective, contextual nature of both global and local cultural influences on consumer values and behaviors. The theoretical framework and associated hypotheses were tested empirically, with data gathered in eight countries on four continents. This book is addressed to international marketing managers and researchers alike. It is also directed towards researchers in social psychology, cultural anthropology, and political science.