culture and management

Culture and Management

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Table of Contents

– What is culture?

– Why studying OB across culture?

– Level of Analysis Issues

– Why using cultural dimensions?

– Values across culture (Hofstede’s Studies)

– Emic and Etic Approches

– GLOBE Studies

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What is culture?

social pattern including shared beliefs, norms,

and values

a multi-layer phenomenon, and people’s

assumptions and values are at the centre of the

phenomenon.

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Why studying OB across cultures?

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Level of analysis issue

– comparing cultures

– Comparing individuals

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Why using cultural dimensions?

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Values across cultures:

Hofstede’s studies

– Quality of life/Quantity of life

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1. Individualism/Collectivism

the degree to which individuals are supposed to look after themselves or remain integrated into in-groups.

Hedonism, independence, and freedom

interdependence, self-sacrificing, and loyalty

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1. Individualism/Collectivism (con.)

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2. Power Distance

• Ideal boss is a well-

meaning autocrat or

a god father

• Subordinates

expect to be told

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3. Femininity/Masculinity

– the extent to which values such as assertiveness, toughness, and competition prevail.

– the degree to which employees value relations and show sensitivity and emotions for the welfare of others.

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4. Uncertainty avoidance

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4. Uncertainty avoidance (con.)

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5. Long term orientation

Value

, , and .

And Disvalue

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Etic and Emic approaches

– Studying behavior from a position outside the system; examining many cultures and comparing them,

– criteria are considered universal.

– Studying behavior from within the system; examining only one culture,

– criteria are relative to internal characteristics.

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GLOBE (Global Leadership and

Organizational Behavior Effectiveness project)

conducted in 61 countries

to investigate the existence of universally

acceptable and universally unacceptable

leadership attributes and to identify those

attributes that are culture specific

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Cultural dimensions in GLOBE

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Iranian sample in GLOBE

– 300 Iranian middle managers from three

industries of

banking,

telecommunications, and

food processing

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Iranian sample in GLOBE

– Fairly levels of (5.43)

Maximum score in GLOBE list: 5.80

Ranking: 14 out of 61

– Quite levels of (3.88)

Minimum score in GLOBE list: 3.25

Ranking: 13 lowest country

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Iranian sample in GLOBE

– Iranian managers reported

of the

of the

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Iranian sample in GLOBE

– strong to in

their culture.

The differences between ‘what was’ and ‘what

should be’ for power distance was the highest

difference of all the dimensions (5.43 ‘what

was’ versus 2.80 ‘what should be’)

– Iranian managers were also likely to

Given the difference between ‘what was’ and

‘what should be’ for societal collectivism (3.88

‘what was’ versus 5.44 ‘what should be’).

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General Conclusions