Cross Cultural Management

Berry, John W.

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-03-2015-0031

Purpose – Psychology, both as science and practice, has been largely developed in one cultural area of the world: Europe and North America. As a result, the discipline is culture-bound, limited in its origins, concepts, and empirical findings to only this small portion of the world. The discipline is also culture-blind, largely ignoring the influence of the role of culture in shaping the development and display of human behaviour. These limitations have resulted in the dominant position of a Western Academic Scientific Psychology (WASP) in relation to other cultural perspectives on human behaviour. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws on concepts and strategies in psychology (particularly cross-cultural and intercultural psychology) to propose some remedies to problems arising from the dominant WASP position. For example, of what relevance is such a limited perspective to understanding human activity in other cultures; and how can such a limited understanding serve the purpose of effective intercultural interactions? Findings – The eventual goal is to achieve a global psychology that incorporates concepts and findings from societies and cultures from all parts of the world, one that will permit a valid understanding of people within their cultures, and permit effective intercultural across cultures. Originality/value – The paper presents some criticisms of the dominant western psychology (WASP), and proposes that the achievement of a more global psychology may be within reach if some concepts and methods now available in psychology from both the dominant western sources and from those working in the rest of the world are used.

Gilbert, G. Ronald ; Von Glinow, Mary Ann

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-01-2014-0010

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of diffusional pressures as they relate to organizational performance (OP) across public, private, and not-for-profit sectors in two different national contexts. Design/methodology/approach – A review is conducted of institutional forces in the environment of two nations; one highly developed and the other developing to identify isomorphic pressures in each of the countries. An organizational performance assessment (OPA) tool is used to analyze the differences in the performance of the three sectors in the two national contexts identified. The research relies on Pearson correlation, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and MANCOVA statistical applications to validate the assessment instrument and shed light on differences across nations and sectors that can be attributed to organizational diffusion as a result of institutional pressures that exist in the countries in which the organizations are embedded. Findings – The findings indicate there is greater need to adapt to local ways of doing things when working cross-nationally within developing countries than with those that are developed where management practices are more alike than dissimilar. The results of the study suggest that when managing organizations cross-nationally, in the more developed nations organizations will perform more effectively and more alike than when working with organizations in less developed countries where the conditions for the diffusion of organizational practices are weaker. Research limitations/implications – The research focussed on two countries for comparative purposes. Due to sampling limitations, the findings are more relevant to the sectors the authors studied within countries than between the countries per se . It is recommended further research be conducted using larger samples across many national cultures. While relying on broad societal institutional dynamics, the study design does not permit the analysis of the effects of specific contextual characteristics on OP. Such an undertaking is undoubtedly a “next step” that the authors recommend. Practical implications – The extant literature finds that managing systems cross-nationally requires adaptation to local national contexts. Where there is less economic and technological development, less opportunity for free market competition (capitalism), educational opportunities, and shared standards from which the performance of organizations are judged, the more unlikely organizations will employ commonly applied management practices. A new tool is introduced that can be used to further research on OP cross-nationally. Originality/value – The study provides empirical evidence to demonstrate that in nations where stronger diffusional pressures exist, fewer differences will be found among the performance of the three sectors. Additionally, the effectiveness of organizations in these national contexts will be greater. While research among the three sectors has identified performance differences, such differences are less likely to be discernible in developed nations due to isomorphic pressures. The study is especially relevant to those who manage global organizations cross-nationally. It introduces a new tool to measure OP across national boundaries.

Alcántara-Pilar, Juan Miguel ; Del Barrio-García, Salvador

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-04-2014-0044

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the moderating role of the cultural dimensions of long-term orientation (LTO) and individualism (IND) on the relationships between satisfaction online, message involvement (MI) and perceived usefulness (PU) of the web site on attitude toward the web site. Design/methodology/approach – The authors chose a between-subjects experimental design, using culture (Spanish vs British) as the independent variable. Two versions of a web site for a fictitious tourist destination were created – one written in Spanish and the other in English. The sample comprised 491 users. Findings – The findings indicate that the LTO dimension moderates the relationship between satisfaction online and PU on attitude toward the web site. The relationships between MI and attitude toward the web site could not be confirmed. Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of this study is the comparison of only two cultures, Spain vs the UK. Practical implications – The key implication is that if marketers and web site designers can better understand how national cultural differences moderate the attitude formation and change process among tourists, this will enable them to market their destinations and services more effectively. National cultural differences explain the differences found in the effect of satisfaction and PU on attitude toward the web site. Originality/value – This study is one of the few analyzing the moderating effect of LTO and IND on three antecedents of attitude toward the web site. The original cultural values established by Hofstede (2001) were tested among the present sample to establish the extent to which they remain true today. To create an authentic browsing scenario for the experiment, a web site was specially designed for a fictitious tourist destination, with its own domain name (buyada.org). Subjects were invited to browse the site freely while carrying out the task assigned to them. This approach contributed added value to the research by simulating the real behavior of tourists who are faced with a range of choices when putting together a tourism package for a given destination.

Rosenbusch, Katherine ; Cerny II, Leonard J. ; Earnest, David R.

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-09-2013-0134

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine relationships between cross-cultural adjustment and stress of expatriate employees with families in a multinational corporation and identify common stressors reported during international transitions. Design/methodology/approach – This study utilized both quantitative and qualitative methods through an online survey based tool. The CernySmith Assessment captured the statistical measures of objective adjustment scales along with written in, subjective stressor responses from a sample of expatriates. Findings – Overall subjective stress level was negatively correlated with all five objective adjustment domains (organizational, cultural, relational, behavioral, and personal). Seven stressor categories (cultural, occupational, relational, historical, crisis, spiritual, physical) demonstrated statistically significant negative relationships with overall adjustment. Regression analysis indicated expatriate adjustment was predicted by spiritual, occupational, and support stressors. Write-in stressor responses provided specific expressions of individual stress challenges, strains, and hassles that support predicted relations according to the Family Adaptation and Adjustment Response model. Research limitations/implications – This study provides a snapshot of objective adjustment interacting with subjective stress for expatriate employees from a single international organization during a specific time period. Originality/value – These findings provide insights to organizations and human resource development professionals as well as to expatriates and their families on how stress impacts expatriate adjustment. It also highlights the need for support mechanisms to ease transitions and reduce stressors.

Houkamau, Carla ; Boxall, Peter

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-10-2013-0155

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the “other-group orientation” (OGO) of New Zealand (NZ) workers as a way of measuring their attitudes to the growing ethnic diversity in the contemporary workplace. Design/methodology/approach – In all, 500 randomly selected NZ employees were surveyed through computer-assisted telephone interviews. Males, females and ethnic groups were included according to their current proportions in the NZ workforce. Analysis is based on 485 useable cases. Findings – While New Zealanders generally have a high level of OGO, minority ethnic groups and graduates score higher on OGO. Among people under 38 years, males tend to have a higher OGO, while among those over 38, females tend to be higher. Research limitations/implications – The study shows the value of studying the attitudes of workers in relation to diversity and OGO. Workers bring their own orientations into the workplace, affecting the way they relate to their co-workers. Social implications – The pathway to more inclusive workplaces in NZ lies largely in influencing the attitudes and behaviour of NZ Europeans. The study suggests that inclusive educational experiences may be a key part of that process. Originality/value – While the research shows that NZ workers are generally very positive about ethnic diversity, it reveals variations among ethnic and educational groups in terms of their openness to others.

Chambel, Maria José ; Farina, Anete

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-07-2013-0105

Purpose – Temporary agency workers (TAWs) are regarded as experiencing employment conditions that tend to facilitate high strain. In this study, the authors view this situation as not being inevitable and dependent on the opportunity of having positive experiences in the professional context. The purpose of this paper is to propose that perceptions of the human resource management (HRM) practices system are positively related to work engagement, which in turn, is positively related to context free well-being. Design/methodology/approach – These hypotheses were tested with two samples of TAWs, from Portugal ( n =241) and Brazil ( n =228), contracted by the same international agency. Data were analyzed with multiple group analyses. Findings – Results confirmed that in both the Portuguese and Brazilian samples the HRM practices system is positively related to TAWs’ context free well-being and their work engagement mediates this relationship. However, the authors also verified that the relationship between work engagement and satisfaction with life was stronger for the Portuguese TAWs than for their Brazilian counterparts. Research limitations/implications – The study is limited, due to the nature of the data (self-reported) and the lack of a longitudinal design. Practical implications – An important implication of this research study is that agencies should acknowledge the fact that HRM practices are an investment with a return from TAWs, since they are positively related to their well-being. Originality/value – The findings highlight the importance of the HRM practices system in developing positive psychological states with TAWs, not only at work, but also outside this context. This observation was confirmed in two different countries.

Mach, Merce ; Baruch, Yehuda

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-10-2014-0114

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test the conditional effect of team composition on team performance; specifically, how collective team orientation, group consensus, faultline configurations and trust among team members explain the objective performance of project teams in cross-cultural contexts. Design/methodology/approach – Employing path analytical framework and bootstrap methods, the authors analyze data from a sample of 73 cross cultural project teams. Relying on ordinary least-squares regression, the authors estimate the direct and indirect effects of the moderated mediation model. Findings – The findings demonstrate that the indirect effect of collective team orientation on performance through team trust is moderated by team member consensus, diversity heterogeneity and faultlines’ strength. By contrast, high dispersion among members, heterogeneous team configurations and strong team faultlines lead to low levels of trust and team performance. Research limitations/implications – The specific context of the study (cross-cultural students’ work projects) may influence external validity and limit the generalization of the findings as well as the different compositions of countries-of-origin. Practical implications – From a practical standpoint, these results may help practitioners understand how the emergence of trust contributes to performance. It will also help them comprehend the importance of managing teams while bearing in mind the cross-cultural contexts in which they operate. Social implications – In order to foster team consensus and overcome the effects of group members’ cross-cultural dissimilarities as well as team faultlines, organizations should invest in improving members’ dedication, cooperation and trust before looking to achieve significant results, specially in heterogeneous teams and cross-cultural contexts. Originality/value – The study advances organizational group research by showing the combined effect of team configurations and collective team orientation to overall team performance and by exploring significant constructs such as team consensus, team trust and diversity faultline strength to examine their possible moderated mediation role in the process.

Hur, Won-Moo ; Kang, Seongho ; Kim, Minsung

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-10-2013-0150

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to enhance the understanding of customer-brand relationships in the international marketplace, and empirically investigates and compares the customer-brand relationship development process between Indian and Chinese markets. In detail, four out of Hofstede’s original five national culture dimensions were adopted as moderators in the process of customer-brand relationship development between two markets. Design/methodology/approach – To test hypotheses, responses from 539 Indian and 400 Chinese mobile phone consumer samples were achieved, and the proposed model was estimated by using structural equations based on the partial least squares algorithm. Findings – The results demonstrate that utilitarian value and brand affect play a significant role in building brand loyalty for Chinese consumers, while hedonic value and perceived risk contribute more in building brand loyalty for Indian consumers. Research limitations/implications – This study indicated that the cultural difference affects both on brand trust formation and on the relationship between brand trust/affect and brand loyalty, implying that more customized brand management strategies should be adopted. Practical implications – Global brand values must be communicated for each culture appropriately. It is desirable that the identified match, utilitarian value-Chinese customers and hedonic value-Indian customers, be consistently presented to each cultural market in a more integrative manner. Originality/value – This study identified that the route from the development of value proposition to building up brand trust and brand affect is a critical step toward achieving brand loyalty in Indian and Chinese markets.

López-Duarte, Cristina ; Vidal-Suárez, Marta M. ; González-Díaz, Belén

2015 Cross Cultural Management

doi: 10.1108/CCM-07-2014-0086

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of cultural positions on the choice of entry mode in foreign direct investment (FDI) – joint ventures vs wholly owned subsidiaries. The paper focusses on the impact of cultural positions along four cultural dimensions, as well as on the interactions between these positions and FDI’s contextual variables (i.e. linguistic differences). Design/methodology/approach – A fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis is performed on a data set of Spanish investments located in the European Union. Findings – Existence of interaction effects among cultural positions along different dimensions, as well as between cultural positions and FDI’s contextual variables. Research limitations/implications – Main limitations relate to the data set, as only FDIS carried out by big corporations and coming from a single country are considered. Practical implications – Managers making decisions on the choice of entry mode must take into account the position relative to each individual cultural dimension, as well as its interaction with other cultural dimensions and FDI’s contextual variables, rather than just considering cultural distances (CDs) between countries. Originality/value – First, focus on cultural positions (rather than CDs). It allows taking into account both the cultural characteristics of each party and their relative values along individual cultural dimensions. Second, development of a qualitative analysis that considers the contextual features of the investment.