THE RELATIONSHIP OF CROSS-CULTURAL DIFFERENCES TO THE VALUES OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS PROFESSIONALS WITHIN
THE CONTEXT OF SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT
DISSERTATION
Presented to the Graduate Council of the University of North Texas in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements
For the Degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
By
Monica C Holmes, B.B.A., M.B.A
Denton, Texas December, 1995
Trang 2
UMI Microform 9612610
Copyright 1996, by UMI Company All rights reserved This microform edition is protected against unauthorized
copying under Title 17, United States Code
UMI
Trang 3| am deeply indebted to the members of my committee, Drs J Wayne
Spence, Richard Yellen, Victor Prybutok and Steve Cobb for their guidance and
Trang 4Page
LIST OF TABLES iv
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS_ viii
Chapter lR INTRODUCTION 1 PUTDPOSSG QQ QQ Do 2 Problem 3 Research Questions 8 Significance 9
Definition of Key Terms 10
Scope and Limitatons 13
Chapter References 16
il SIGNIFICANT PRIOR RESEARCH_ 21
Role of Information Systems Designers in Information Systems Development 21
Characteristics of Information Systems Davelopers 23
Defining Culture 27
Cross-Cultural Research in Information Systems 34
Chapter References 43
HÍ — A MODEL OF THE IMPACT OF CULTURE ON INFORMATION SYSTEMS PROFESSIONALS 51
Work-Related Values 52
Hofstede’s (1980) Four-Dimensional Model 54
Trang 5Hypotheses 72
Chapter References 74
IV - RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 78
Research Design 78
Populations and Subjects 80
Preliminary Questionnaire Trai 82
lnstruments and Measures 83
Data Collection 86
Data Analysis 87
Chapter References 88
V RESULTS OF THE STUDY 90
Demographic Analysis of Subjects 91
Organizational Technical Assessment 102
Resuits of the Field Suwvey 106
Hypothesis One 106
Hypothesis Two 115
Hypothesis Three 119
Comparison of Country Pairs 133
Chapter References 141
Vi CONCLUSION and RECOMMENDATIONS 143
Conclusion 143
Recommendations 158
Chapter References 163
APPENDICES 167
Trang 6Table 1 10 11 12 13 Page Key Differences Between Short-Term and Long-Term Orientation
Societies 0 cc cece eee ete e nee 54
Hypothesis Three Matrx 73
Ethnic Origins of the Respondents in Singapore 95
Ethnic Origins of the Respondents in Taiwan 95
Ethnic Origins of the Respondents in the United Kingdom 95
Ethnic Origins of the Respondents in the United States eee eee eee 96 Religious Affiliation of the Respondents in Singapore 97
Religious Affiliation of the Respondents In TAiWan QQ Q Q Q LG LG Quy 98 Religious Afiiliation of the Respondents in the United Kingdom_ 98
Religious Affiliation of the Respondents in the United States 98
Present Nationality and Nationality at Birth of the Respondents in Singapore 100
Present Nationality and Nationality at Birth of the Respondents in Taiwan 100
Present Nationality and Nationality at Birth of the Respondents in the United Kingdom 101
Trang 715 16 17 18 19 20 21 23 24 25 26
Extended Periods of Time Outside Country of
Birth and Country of Current Employment
for the Respondents in Singapore 102 Extended Periods of Time Outside Country of
Birth and Country of Current Employment
for the Respondents in Taiwan 103
Extended Periods of Time Outside Country of Birth and Country of Current Employment
for the Respondents in the United Kingdom 103 Extended Periods of Time Outside Country of
Birth and Country of Current Employment
for the Respondents in the United States 104 Categories of Organizations’ Technological Level 105
Categories of Respondents on the Power
Distance lndex 108
Categories of Respondents on the Uncertainty
Avoidance lndex 110
Categories of the Respondents on the
Individualism Index eee eee eee 111
Categories of the Respondents on the
Masculinity/Femininity Index 112 Results of Data Analysis forH, 113 Significance Levels for Hofstede's (1980)
Questions 114
Categories of Respondents on Their Technical
Values ce cee ence nena eneas 116
Trang 828 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 41
Categories of Respondents on Their Socio-Political Values
Results of Data Analysis for H,
Correlations between Cultural Dimensions and
IS Values for Singapore "ằẶẶ Resuits of Data Analysis for Hypothesis Three
for Singapore
Correlations between Cultural Dimensions and
IS Values for Tawan
Results of Data Analysis for Hypothesis Three
for Taiwan 2.0 eee eee e nee nees
Correlations Between Cultural Dimensions and
- J§ Values for United Kingdom Results of Data Analysis for Hypothesis Three
for United Kingdom_
Correlations Between Cultural Dimensions and
IS Values for the United States
Results of Data Analyis for Hypothesis Three
for United States Summary of the Results for Hypothesis Three Comparison of Means for Singapore and Taiwan Comparison of Means for Singapore and the United Kingdom Comparison of Means for Singapore and the
United States
Trang 9Comparison of Means for Taiwan and the
United States 198
Comparison of Means for the United Kingdom and
Trang 11INTRODUCTION
The current dynamic economic environment means that organizations
have to react faster as well as compete across national borders Services such as electronic data interchange across national borders become a necessity
Opportunities abound for companies to increase their share of the world’s international trade
This situation has led to a tremendous expansion of Global Information Technology (GIT) that crosses national boundaries and brings many benefits An advantage is the ability to enhance international information exchange
However, a critical problem, one of managing the Information Systems (IS)
designers that come from different cultures, has emerged Effective GIT should account for the cultural differences among its developers and users as well as the potential for a mismatch between them The lack of transportable design can be a reality with the differences in computer equipment, the sophistication of computer services and the systems developers themselves Other issues such as foreign outsourcing and diversity further aggravate the situation
Cross-Cultural Research (CCR) in the IS discipline so far has not
Trang 12divergence of technology also provides a confusing picture Consequently this research seeks to fill a void {It endeavors to examine whether IS professionals are culturally different and if the IS function needs to focus on the
consequences of these designers’ cultural backgrounds on systems development
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between the cultural backgrounds of IS designers and the degree of importance they attach to certain issues of the process of Information Systems Analysis and Design (ISAD) Many researchers believe that cultural differences exist among IS professionals from different ethnic groups, especially those from different nations (Couger et al 1990; 1991a; 1991b; Kumar and Bjorn-Andersen 1990;
Palvia, Palvia and Zigli 1992)
Although several studies have documented the effect of these
differences on the development and implementation of IS (e.g., Harrison and Farn 1990; Kumar and Bjorn-Andersen 1990: Palvia and Palvia 1992), most of
these studies have compared IS or IS-related issues in only two countries In
general, research in IS has also not considered culture when investigating the
Trang 13Problem
This study is motivated by the confusing and often conflicting research findings on the significance of considering cross-cultural differences during IS research and design The problem is the need to investigate the impact of the
cultural values of IS designers on systems development
First, the process of ISAD is complex and ambiguous, often wrought
with uncertainty 1S designers have to make critical choices, using their
general knowledge, expertise, perceptions of systems requirements and the limited resources at their disposal In fact, the history of IS is plagued with rejected systems because they do not meet the users’ needs (Bostrom and Heinen 1977) The situation is further complicated by the fact that many end users often have unclear expectations of systems requirements until after a system is delivered
By the year 2000, the global market for computer equipment and services will total approximately $3 trillion, based on an average annual
Trang 14software exports by India, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Singapore Kraar (1994) reports that Asian countries are projected to invest more than $1 trillion in telecommunications and other infrastructure Even Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba and Malaysia have computer-deployment programs for schools and community centers Such programs are augmented by aggressive government-sponsored marketing activities
According to labor trends, the United States is suffering from a shortage of computer professionals (Standard & Poor's 1994) This shortage is
expected to worsen in the future with the nation’s drop in college enrollment in
computer courses Consequently, companies have used overseas
programmers for their needs Tata Consultancy in India is perhaps the first and largest exporter of programming services (Press 1993)
Trang 15Yet when the specifications for local systems are designed and coded in foreign countries, the potential to assure not only the failure of implemented systems but also their rejection by end users is imminent A critical
assumption is that software design is globally compatible Researchers call for
caution in managing the global workers (Cox, Jr 1993; Gannon and Associates 1994; O'Hara-Deveraux and Johansen 1994; Trompenaars 1994) They
maintain that the behavioral traits of diverse work groups can contribute to the dysfunctioning of corporations
Human-computer interaction research has increased since 1969 (Beard
and Peterson 1988) The importance of considering the attributes of IS professionals is highlighted by the current usage of psychological tests by IS organizations and software companies (Moad 1994) For example, Autodesk uses the MBTI, the KolbeConcepts and the Campbell interest and Skills Survey to counsel employees as to the types of jobs and activities that best suit them
Autodesk is also using the KolbeConcepts tests to identify individuals required
for certain projects
Trang 16recommend that each group should understand the roles of the other within the context of systems development However, researchers have not
investigated the effects of cross-cultural differences on IS designers’ values Neither have the effects of such values on systems development been studied
Third, the controversy of convergent versus divergent theories of culture
within the context of technology remains unresolved (Aiken and Bacharach
1979; Child and Kieser 1979; Farmer and Richman 1965; Gallie 1978; Haire ei al 1966; Hickson et al 1979; Kerr et al 1964; Negandhi 1979: Nicholas 1985)
The convergent theory of culture maintains that the existence of cultural
differences is diminishing with the acquisition of technology (Farmer and
Richman 1965; Hickson et al 1979; Negandhi 1979) One popular view among
business researchers is that technology will minimize cultural differences After all, a PC in the United States is the same as a PC in China and a PC in
Australia However, the divergent theory of culture emphasizes that individuals differ in how they interact with each other, their values and their problem- solving techniques because of deep-rooted cultural forces (Child and Kieser
1979; Gallie 1978; Haire et al 1966; Nicholas 1985)
Hence, the finished systems may conceivably not fit the needs of end users because of the possible mismatch between the value orientations of IS
Trang 17an individual's behavior within an organizational setting is a
product of both culturally acquired as well as individually acquired
(via life experiences) knowledge systems" (Erez and Earley 1993,
p 44)
The fact that professionals from western societies often misinterpret the behavior of their foreign colleagues is exemplified in a study conducted by Selmar (1985) In an attempt to determine what Swedish Top Managers
(STMs) knew about the work-related cultural values of their Singaporean Middle Managers (SMMs), STMs in Swedish companies in Singapore were surveyed
by Selmar (1985), using Hofstede’s (1980) Value Survey Module (VSM) He
found that STMs Atkinsmisjudged SMMs on 48 percent of the work-related
factors in the study The STMs underestimated the importance of family life and achievement in challenging tasks to SMMs The importance of tension or
stress on the jobs and good physical work conditions to the SMMs were also misjudged by the STMs
Trang 18Given the current demographic trends in the United States, the effects of cultural diversity on systems development warrant investigation However, more attention has been directed to quantifiable aspects of IS such as systems
performance, critical IS issues, frequencies of systems use, systems failure or more easily reported scales such as user satisfaction At the same time, the recent surgence of publications on international business research is also a
strong indication that CCR is vital for the IS discipline Existing research in IS rarely includes nationality or culture as a dimension for research on systems
development It is therefore impossible to draw any conclusion as to the relative effect of cultural differences on diversely-composed systems development groups
Research Questions
To investigate the impact of cross-cultural differences on information systems development, the research questions in this study are:
1 Do the cultural dimensions of IS designers vary across country of origin?
2 Do the process-related values of !S designers vary across country
Trang 19process-related values of IS designers within the context of the information systems analysis and design process?
This study used Hofstede’s (1980) VSM to examine the cultural dimensions of IS designers in different countries To answer the second
question, the process-related items of Kumar's (1984) information systems designer personal value questionnaire was utilized This study also
investigated the relationship between the cultural dimensions and the process- related values of IS designers within the context of systems analysis and
design in each country
Significance
The significance of this study is highlighted by the status of the global
computing market and computer professionals The fact that the workforce is
becoming more diverse in the United States as well as in other countries mean that in order for the IS function to operate efficiently and effectively, IS
managers need to be sensitive to diversity issues
_ Culture as defined by nationality may conceivably impact the software production market IS researchers have also suggested that the effects of culture in the IS working environment should be more thoroughly examined
Trang 20such as (1) the linkage between information technology (IT) and the global business strategy, (2) the IT platforms in a global arena, (3) the sharing of international data and (4) the consequences of the cross-cultural environment
on IT
This study should provide insight into the criteria for managing
multicultural 1S project teams It should also improve the generalization of research findings about the impact of diversity on group dynamics within an IS environment The identification of cultural differences could aid in the effective and efficient localization of software production in certain countries For example, on the microscopic level, the evaluation procedures that an
organization will go through in the selection of software, could be based on the
location of software production This study should also indicate the mediating level of technology That is, is there a perceptible impact by culture on the
diffusion of technology?
DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS
For the purpose of this study, a brief definition of key terms is provided
A discussion of their usage is given in other sections Culture
Trang 21as a member of society" (Tylor 1958, p 12) At the same time, Kluckhohn
"asserts that:
Culture consists of patterned ways of thinking, feeling and reacting, acquired and transmitted mainly by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievements of human groups, including their embodiments in artifacts; the essential core of Culture consists of traditional (i.e historically derived and
selected) ideas and especially their attached values (Kluckhohn
1951, p 86)
Triandis (1972) defines culture as a “subjective perception of the human-made part of the environment." These subjective cultural aspects include social stimuli, associations, beliefs, attitudes, norms, values and roles that individuals
share
Cultural Norms
Cuitural norms refer to values held by the majority of a group—values that are specific to that group These values distinguish one group from
another
Norms
Trang 22Values
Values are qualities, principles, or behaviors considered morally or intrinsically valuable or desirable (Hofstede 1980, 1984; Kiuckhoin 1951; Rokeach 1973) More specifically, Kiuckholn states:
A value is a conception, explicit or implicit, distinctive of an individual or characteristic of a group, of the desirable which influences the selection from available modes, means and ends of actions (Kluckhoin 1951, p 359)
England defines values as:
a relatively permanent perceptual framework which shapes and influences the general nature of an individual's behavior Values are similar to attitudes but are more ingrained, permanent, and stable in nature A value, as used here, is closer to ideology or philosophy than it is to attitude (England 1967, p.54)
Values are also defined as broad tendencies to prefer certain states of affairs
over others (Hofstede 1980, 1984, 1991) Therefore, personal values represent
wants, preferences, or general standards of conduct
Values can have intensity, direction and norms Values with greater intensity have increased probabilities of being translated into behaviors
(England 1967; Hofstede 1980, 1984; Rokeach 1973) The direction of values
refers to whether certain outcomes are beneficial or harmful to the individual
The difficulty of operationalizing values deals with establishing pragmatic validation, that is, establishing the relationship between expressed intentions
Trang 23Scope and Limitations
One of the key issues in CCR is deciding what research strategy †o use
Generally, six approaches to investigating cross-cultural issues in |S are adopted: parochial, ethnocentric, polycentric, comparative, geocentric and synergistic (Adler 1983) Most CCR studies in IS are parochial research, i.e., the publication of the results of research in a single country, usually in a western society In these cases, culture is implicitly considered as a constant
In ethnocentric research, studies originally designed and conducted in
one culture by researchers from that culture are replicated in a second culture These researchers primarily search for similarities across theoretical
frameworks under the more extreme conditions found in a second culture
Comparative research involves the comparison of IS in two or more
countries Polycentric studies are studies designed to describe, explain and interpret IS practices within specific foreign cultures Geocentric studies
investigate the managing of global ISIS that operate in more than one
country Such research often assumes cross-cultural universality without questioning its validity
Lastly, synergistic studies focus on understanding the patterns of relationships as well as the theories that apply when people from more than one culture associate with each other within a work setting Synergistic
Trang 24Of all the types of cross-cultural studies, comparative and synergistic research are the most difficult to achieve However, Adler (1983) proposes that both comparative and synergistic approaches should be used in CCR
Comparative studies examine the differences and similarities between cultures, while synergistic research studies how all such interrelationships work towards the achievement of overall organizational goals
This study involves a comparative investigation of the value orientations of IS designers based on couniry of origin IS researchers in different
countries were involved with the data collection from the respondents Other major limitations of this study include:
1 Only the process-related values of the IS designers were
considered in this study to conserve the time and energy of the subjects
Data must be collected from a minimum of three countries to provide the basis for comparison
The ultimate purpose of this study is to provide evidence that supports the necessity of including culture in multi-national IS
research, not to identify the impact of cross-cultural differences on
IS designers
Trang 25The subjects were limited to IS designers Hence, this study does
not address cross-cultural differences that may be inherent in a wider audience
Measurement concerns have been raised with regard to the
limitations of Hofstede’s (1980) four-dimensional model (Lynn
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Trang 31SIGNIFICANT PRIOR RESEARCH
This chapter provides an overview of the literature that serves as the foundation for this study The first section discusses the role that Information Systems (IS) developers play in systems development The importance of
examining the characteristics of the IS developers is reviewed in the second
section The third section addresses the difficulty of operationalizing culture Finally, a summary of the relevant cross-cultural studies in the IS literature is given
Role of Information Systems Designers In information Systems Development
Information systems development refers to the process of systems analysis and design, i.e., that of examining a business situation with the purpose of improving it through better procedures and methods (Senn 1989) As used in this research, systems analysis is the process of gathering and interpreting facts, diagnosing problems and using the information to
recommend improvements to the system More specifically, systems analysis
is viewing a problem in context, collecting facts about that problem and
evaluating alternatives about a system solution (Davis and Olson 1985;
Trang 32Mcintyre and Higgins 1988) Systems design is the process of planning a new business system or one to replace or complement an existing system It is looking for an optimal solution to the organizational needs, using the model produced in the systems analysis process (Mcintyre and Higgins 1988) In the IS discipline, computers are used to facilitate the workings of business
systems Consequently, understanding how a business may use computer- based systems to achieve its goals is a critical requirement of IS developers
(Eliason 1987) Therefore, systems development requires |S professionals to
surface systems objectives and requirements from the users and existing systems Then they provide a new system or changes to an existing system in order to solve the problem
Because the whole process of systems development may also be perceived as one of selecting means and ends, a substantial degree of the
work depends on the behavior of the systems developers While
methodologies, tools and techniques exist to facilitate the IS development
Trang 33third most valuable component of their educational experience Systems productivity, systems quality and user acceptance would increase if systems professionals serve as consultants, educators and researchers Therefore, there is a definite connection between the work behavior of IS professionals and the success of the finished systems
During systems development, IS designers can be one of the following: programmers, systems analyst, programmer/analyst, project leader, maintainer,
chief information officer or consultant (Bartol and Martin 1982: Goldstein 1989)
Thus they can also be of all managerial ranks In fact, according to Igbaria et al (1991), systems programmers, application programmers and software engineers form the category holding technical positions Computer managers, Systems analysts and project leaders form the category holding managerial
positions Consequently, this research surveyed the IS professionals who fill
any of these job categories in order to ensure that the sample was representative of the main roles played by the IS profession
Characteristics of Information Systems Developers
The importance of studying the characteristics of IS professionals has been addressed by several researchers (Amoroso et al 1989; Baroudi 1985;
Trang 341991; Watson 1990) In fact, the recruitment and development of IS human
resources was ranked fourth in importance by a Delphi survey of senior IS executives (Niederman et al 1991) These executives believed that technical and business skills with a high tolerance for ambiguity are required for effective system development
In a review of empirical and selected conceptual research on managing
human resources in the IS field, Bartol and Martin (1982) highlight the fact that the volume of relevant research is small Yet it is vital that the IS function
should understand their employees in order to better motivate them to be more productive Barto! & Martin (1982) found that data processing personnel
appear to have high need for achievement and growth Although [S developers value money, it is valued only as an indication of their
achievements rather than an end in itself
Among the IS technical/professional employees, the top five motivational
determinants of productive work behavior were meaningful work, supportive relationships, respect, appreciation and a clear job (Ferratt and Short 1986)
Rasch and Tosi (1992) indicate that the two strongest factors determining a
software developer's performance are individual ability and need for
achievement Motivation or level of effort may also be a factor Several studies investigate the many roles of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and the
transformation of information management (Applegate and Elam 1992; Feeny
Trang 35characteristics and career orientations of the IS professionals (Igbaria and
Wormley 1992; Igbaria et al 1991; Shrednick et al 1992) A main concem of the IS discipline is also the need to predict ethical decision making by IS professionals (Oz 1992)
Couger and his colleagues have conducted extensive studies of IS professionals in several countries (Couger and Colter 1985a; Couger and Motiwalla 1985b; Couger et al 1990; 1991a; 1991b; 1994;) These researchers found that systems developers are similar in terms of their individual
characteristics such as growth needs, social needs and perceptions of job variables Couger and his associates also found that these characteristics are
relatively stable over time (Couger et al 1994) IS managers in the 1990s are individuals with very high need for growth and challenge Couger et al (1994)
suggest that the IS field is a “healthy motivating environment" for IS organizations
The findings from the McLean et al (1991) study do not support Couger’s study of motivating needs of IS professionals They submit that entry-level IS developers reported a strong preference for jobs capable of providing them with opportunities to develop professional friendships and to
have close contact with users
In a study of the career attitudes of IS employees, Igbaria et al (1991) indicate that it is important to match career orientation and job setting These
Trang 36and goals Men tend to have a more technical orientation than women The women in their sample had a stronger need than the men to integrate their job with their lifestyle Igbaria et al (1991) also imply that IS developers with
technical orientation are more likely to hold technical staff positions whereas
managerially oriented employees are more likely to hold administrative positions Systems programmers, application programmers and software engineers form the category hoiding technical positions Computer managers, systems analysts and project leaders form the category holding managerial
positions The results from the Igbaria et al (1991) study demonstrate that
employees whose career orientations were compatible with their job settings reported higher job satisfaction and career satisfaction, stronger commitment to their organizations, lower intentions to leave their organizations than employees whose career orientations were incompatible with their job settings
Job satisfaction of IS professionals and turnover potential are common research topics in the IS discipline An investigation of the determinants of IS professionals’ intention to stay with their organization in South Africa reveals that job satisfaction is the most important factor (Igbaria et al 1994) although
organizational commitment also affects an individual's decision to Stay In fact, both task-based and organizational-based activities affect commitment and
Satisfaction The results of this study indicate that the intention to stay with the
Trang 37salary, satisfaction (career and job) and organizational commitment These
findings highlight the importance of organizational commitment and job Satisfaction as the most immediate predictors of intention to stay They
underscore the key mediating role of organizational commitment and job Satisfaction in the intention-to-stay model
IS professionals stress that the ability to work on teams is one of the top ten requirements of an IS education (Richards and Pelley 1994) Teamwork
means the necessity to deal with personality, experience and ability differences
and often with culturally diverse team members
Trauth et al (1993) conducted a survey of IS managers, end-user
managers, IS consultants and IS professors to identify the key skills and knowledge that will be required of future IS professionals Practitioners in their
Study rated "maintain productive user/client relationships" as first in future importance With increasing diversity in the labor force, it is imperative that the IS discipline pays attention to cultural nuances that may dominate the
environment of systems development Yet IS research on culturally diverse IS
teams is lacking
Defining Culture
Cross-cultural scholars seldom agree on what is meant by culture because there is no universal definition Culture is usually used with reference
Trang 38entities such as organizations, professions or families (e.g., organizational
culture, the medical culture or the filial subculture of the Chinese families)
According to Hofstede (1980), values pertain to individuals while culture refers to societies Thus a culture can only be measured by examining the values of the individuals in that group
At the broadest level, culture is typically thought of as a socially
transmitted system of norms and values Schein (1985) defines culture as
basic assumptions and beliefs operating unconsciously but shared by
members of an organization, and defined in a "taken-for-granted" organizational
view According to Erez & Earley (1993), "culture can be defined on different
levels of analysis, ranging from a group level to an organizational level or a
national level."
Thus on a societal level, Protestant ethics may have fostered the capitalistic nature of the U.S.’s culture, creating a society that is
technologically-oriented (Weber 1958) Japanese values are functionally equivalent to the Protestant spirit of capitalism and more efficiently directed
toward attaining economic progress (Morishima 1982) Confucianism is a
major player in the economic development of East Asian societies (Berger 1986) However, this approach leaves many empirical gaps between the identification of philosophical doctrines and evidence that these doctrines influence the behavior of individuals in systematic ways (Lynn 1990) In
Trang 39system, of people with distinctly different group affiliations of cultural
significance" (Cox, Jr 1993)
Several researchers have proposed typologies of cultures that have been used in the studies of managerial practices (Elizur 1984; England 1983; Hofstede 1980; Ronen and Shenkar 1985; Schwartz 1990; and Triandis et al
1988) The most popular typology todate is that developed by Hofstede (1980; 1984), who uses four dirnensions to differentiate national cultures: power
distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism and masculinity in his study of a multinational corporation Hofstede’s (1980) typoiogy of cultures deals with (1) perceptions of the organizational regime, (2) perceptions of the organizational Climate (e.g., feelings of job-induced stress), (8) desirable values (e.g.,
desirability of working in a large company; trustworthiness of people) and (4) desired values (e.g., importance of earning, cooperation and security)
However, Lynn (1990) cautions that the power distance attitudes reported in Hofstede’s questionnaire do not seem to reflect observed behavior
Employees of multinational corporations usually have values that deviate from
the norms of their own society On the other hand, Westwood and Everett
(1987) maintain that the shortcomings of Hofstede’s (1980) model and methodology are not nearly as acute in the organizational context as they would be in the wider sociological context In fact it may be useful to adapt his
Trang 40Other theorists view culture as a system of preferences—a “tool kit’ of symbols, stories, rituals and world-views (Swidler 1986) Benedict (1934) used | the "what-is-wrong-with-this-picture technique" to seek out the rules and values
of Japanese culture Culture is highly malleable an entity to be manipulated by managers (Schein 1985) Materials (e.g., books, films, television programs,
newspapers and electronic media) in which values and norms are reinforced can be used to assess incongruities However, explanations of such deviants
should be provided by representatives of the relevant culture Convergent and Divergent Effects of Technology
Usually there are two classes of cross-cultural researchers: convergent versus divergent Convergent cultural theorists emphasize economic, political,
institutional and sociological variables, assuming that individuals do not
significantly differ from country to country These scholars may concede the
possible existence of cultural differences but implicitly regard such differences
as being of only slight importance
Thus, a cross-national approach to research in technology and
organization is complicated by cross-national differences in the economic or political environment, in the social or institutional environment, or in the norms and values held by organizational members For example, steel firms in Japan adopted new technology faster than their counterparts in the U.S because of