CROSS-CULTURAL
LEADERSHIP
Crystal Bonneau-Kaya & Heather Stroupe-Smith
Some Differences to Note
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Dutch: place emphasis on egalitarianism and are
skeptical about the value of leadership. Terms like
‘leader’ and ‘manager’ carry a stigma. If a father is
employed as a manager, Dutch children will not
admit it to their schoolmates.
Arabs: worship their leaders—as long as they are in
power!
Iranians: seek power and strength in the leaders.
Malaysians: the leader is expected to behave in a
manner that is humble, modest, and dignified.
Overview
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Importance of Culture
Definition of Culture
Parameters of Culture
Related Concepts &
Cross-Cultural Studies
G. Hofstede
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GLOBE
Universally Desirable
& Undesirable
Leadership Attributes
Challenges to CrossCultural Leadership
Questions & Sources
Importance of Culture
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Globalization
Increased interconnection between people (International
trade, cultural exchange, and worldwide telecommunication
systems)
Need for leaders to become competent in cross-cultural
awareness and practice
Diversity in our country
Operationalization of the Culture Construct
Need for more research:
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No consistency agreed upon a “leadership” definition
No clear understanding of the boundaries of the construct space
(more on this later)
Definitions of Culture
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Common history
Religion
Language
Ethnic heritage
Political experiences
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Ecological variables
Opinions
Values
Beliefs
Definitions of Culture
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A patterned way of thinking, feeling, and reacting,
acquired and transmitted mainly by symbols,
constituting the distinctive achievements of human
groups, including their embodiments in artifacts
(Kluckhohn, 1951).
Systems of shared meanings placed upon events
(Smith & Peterson, 1994)
The collective programming of the mind that
distinguishes the members of one group from
another (Hofstede, 1980)
Definitions of Culture
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Distinctive normative systems consisting of model
patterns of shared psychological properties among
members of collectivities that result in compelling
common affective, attitudinal, and behavioral
orientations that are transmitted across generations
and that differentiate from each other.
 Shared
psychological properties: assumptions, beliefs,
values, interpretations of events (meanings), social
identities, and motives (House, Wright, & Aditya, 1996).
Parameters of Culture
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Culture represents some form and degree of collective
agreement
Culture refers to sharing of important interpretations of
entities, activities, and events
Cultural norms and cultural forces are manifested
linguistically, behaviorally, and symbolically in the form of
artifacts
Common member experiences are inherent in the notion of
culture
Cultural variables take on the force of social influence
largely because members of collectivities identify with an
agreed-upon specific set of values and common social
identities
Parameters of Culture
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Common experiences and agreed-upon norms have
powerful socialization effects on the members of
cultures
Cultural interpretations, symbols, artifacts, and effects
are transmitted across generations
The social influence of cultural forces is assumed to
provide a set of compelling behavioral, affective, and
attitudinal orientations for members of cultures
Members of specific cultures are presumed to abide by
a set of norms that reflect the above-mentioned
commonalities
Related Concepts
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Strength of Culture: the proportion of members who
have common experiences and the intensity of their
reactions.
Multicultural: an approach or system that takes more
than one culture into account; a set of subcultures
defined by race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation,
and age
Monolithic Culture: having a massive uniform structure
that does not permit individual variations (Funk &
Wagnalls Standard Dictionary, 1958).
Pluralist Culture: contains two or more subgroups that
share some common experiences but not others.
Related Concepts
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Ethnocentrism: the tendency for individuals to place
their own group at the center of their observations
of others and the world.
 Obstacle
because it prevents people from fully
understanding or respecting the culture of others
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Prejudice: a largely fixed attitude, belief, or
emotion held by an individual about another
individual or group that is based on faulty data
Both can have an impact on how leaders influence
others.
Cross-Cultural Study
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Haire, Ghiselli, & Porter (1966)
 3,641
managers; 14 countries
 28% of questionnaire variance was a result of country
differences
 Universal characteristics among managers: favored
democratic styles of management; consistently felt that
subordinates lacked the abilities necessary to be led
democratically; endorsed egalitarian organizational
structures yet saw themselves as part of an elite group;
felt it was better to direct than persuade; unsatisfied
needs: autonomy & self-actualization
Cross-Cultural Study
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Bass, Burger, Doktor, & Barrett (1979)
8,566 middle managers; 12 countries; 1966-1973
 Multiple
measures of observed behavior &
questionnaire responses
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Strong main effects of national citizenship & modest
main effects of rate of advancement on many of
the dependent variables (i.e., managers’ responses
to questionnaires, self-reports of behavior in
exercises, observations of each other’s behavior)
G. Hofstede
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“Culture is more often a source of conflict than
synergy. Cultural differences are a nuisance at best
and often a disaster.”
 Understand
and apply the knowledge of cultural
differences
 THEORY
 Reduce
frustration, anxiety, and concern
G. Hofstede
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…is not without criticism
 Overly
simplistic dimensional conceptualization of
culture
 The original sample came from a single multinational
corp. (IBM) (See commentary from Brendan McSweeney
for a really good bashing session)
 His work ignores the existence of substantial withincountry cultural heterogeneity
 His measures are not valid
 Culture changes over time rather than being static as
suggested by the dimensions
G. Hofstede’s Dimensions
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Power Distance
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Uncertainty Avoidance
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The degree to which less powerful members of a society accept a
hierarchical or unequal distribution of power in organizations/society
The degree to which members of a given society feel uncomfortable in
ambiguous situations and have created beliefs, norms, and institutions
that are intended to minimize the occurrence of or cope with such
situations
Long-term-Short-term Orientation
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Long-term- thrift and perseverance
Short-term- respect for tradition, fulfilling social obligations, protecting
one’s “face”
G. Hofstede’s Dimensions
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Individualism-Collectivism
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Individualist- the degree to which individuals function independently of each
other and are expected to look after themselves and their immediate
families
Collectivist- the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups that
are expected to look after these individuals in exchange for loyalty to the
group
Masculinity-Femininity
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High scores- the degree to which members of cultural entities look favorably
on assertive, aggressive, competitive, and materialist behavior and striving
for success
Low scores- the degree to which members value supportive behavior,
nurturance, care, and service and endorse gender role differentiation and
discrimination
U.S. G. Hofstede Profile
PDI: 40
IDV: 91
MAS: 62
100
90
80
70
AVI: 46
LTO: 29
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Power Distance
Individualism
Masculinity
Uncertainty
Avoidance
Long-term
Orientation
G. Hofstede’s Conclusions
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Gives us insights into other cultures so that we can
be more effective when interacting with people in
other countries
3 noted studies have failed to demonstrate
consistency with Hofstede’s dimensions
 Gerstner
and Day (1994); Ng et al. (1982); Chinese
Culture Connection (1987)
GLOBE
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Global Leadership & Organizational Behavior
Effectiveness
 Robert
House (1991)
 Purpose: Increase understanding of cross-cultural
interactions and the impact of culture on leadership
effectiveness
 Quantitative methodology
 Responses
of 17,000 managers; 950 organizations; 62
cultures
9
cultural dimensions – 7 derived from Hofstede
GLOBE
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For each of the nine dimensions, items were
developed at both the societal and organizational
level
2 measures were used for all 9 dimensions:
 Items
phrased in terms of the society or organization as
they are
 Items phrased to evaluate what practices should be
enacted in the society or organization
Dimensions of GLOBE
1.
Uncertainty Avoidance: Extent to which a society, organization, or group
relies on established norms, rituals, and procedures to avoid uncertainty
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Uncertainty accepting societies have been found to be more
innovative
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Mangers from high UA countries tend to be more controlling, less
delegating, and less approachable
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High UA value career stability, formal rules, & the development of
expertise
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Low UA value career mobility and general skills rather than
specialized skills
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Low UA managers expect resourcefulness & improvisation
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High UA managers expect reliability & punctuality
Dimensions of GLOBE
2. Power Distance: Degree to which members of group
expect & agree that power should be shared unequally
 Participative leadership significantly predicted by the
degree of PD
 Germanic, Anglo, & Nordic Europeans attuned to
PL
 Middle Eastern, East European, Confucian Asian, &
Southern Asian clusters do not endorse
Dimensions of GLOBE
3. Institutional Collectivism: Degree to which organization or
society encourages institutional or societal collective
action
4. In-Group Collectivism: Degree to which people express
pride, loyalty, & cohesiveness in their organizations or
families
Dimensions of GLOBE
5. Gender Egalitarianism: Degree to which an organization
or society minimizes gender role differences and
promotes gender equality
 High GE countries endorse charismatic leader
attributes & participative leader attributes:
 Foresight, enthusiasm, & self-sacrifice
 Delegation
6. Assertiveness: Degree to which people in a culture are
determined, assertive, confrontational, and aggressive in
their social relationships
Dimensions of GLOBE
7. Future Orientation: Extent to which people engage in
future-oriented behaviors such as planning, investing
in the future, and delaying gratification
8. Performance Orientation: Extent to which and
organization or society encourages and rewards
group members for improved performance and
excellence
Dimensions of GLOBE
9. Humane Orientation: Degree to which a culture
encourages and rewards people for being fair,
altruistic, generous, caring, and kind to others
-9 dimensions used to analyze attributes of 62 different
countries
Clusters of World Cultures
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62 Countries divided into regional clusters
Clusters determined by:
Common language
Geography
Religion
Historical Accounts
10 distinct clusters formed
Characteristics of Clusters
Leadership Behavior and Culture
Clusters
Derived in part from Lord and Maher (1991)- implicit
leadership theory
 Individuals have implicit beliefs & convictions about the
attributes and beliefs that distinguish leaders from nonleaders and effective leaders from ineffective leaders
 Leadership is in the eye of the beholder- what
people see in others when they are exhibiting
leadership behaviors
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GLOBE researchers identified 6 global leadership
behaviors
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Global Leadership Behaviors
1.
Charismatic/value-based leadership: Ability to inspire,
motivate, and expect high performance from others
based on strongly held core values
 Visionary
 Inspirational
 Self-sacrificing
 Trustworthy
 Decisive
 Performance oriented
Global Leadership Behaviors
2. Team-oriented leadership: Emphasizes team building and
a common purpose among team members
 Collaborative
 Integrative
 Diplomatic
 Administratively competent
Global Leadership Behaviors
3. Participative leadership: The degree to which leaders
involve others in making and implementing decisions
 Participative
 Nonautocratic
4. Human oriented leadership: Emphasizes being supportive,
considerate, compassionate, & generous
 Modesty
 Sensitivity to people
Global Leadership Behaviors
5. Autonomous leadership: Refers to independent and individualistic
leadership
 Autonomous
 Unique
6. Self-protective leadership: Reflects behaviors that ensure the
safety & security of the leader & and the group
 Self-centered
 Status conscious
 Conflict inducing
 Face saving
Universally Desirable Leadership
Attributes
Universally Undesirable Leadership
Attributes
Strengths of GLOBE
Only study to analyze how leadership viewed by cultures
around the world
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Large Scope
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Well-developed quantitative research design
 Standardized instruments = generalizeable
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Cultural dimensions more expansive than Hofstede
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Provide information about what is universally accepted as
“good” & “bad” leadership
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Expand our knowledge to view leadership outside our
perspectives
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Criticisms of GLOBE
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No clear set of assumptions & propositions to form a single
theory about the way culture relates to leadership or
influences the leadership process
Some cultural dimensions and leaderships behaviors are
vague (e.g. power distance, self-protective leadership)
Implicit leadership theory- ignores research that frames
leadership in terms of what people do (e.g. transformational
leadership)
Application of GLOBE
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Help leaders understand their own cultural biases &
preferences
Help leaders understand what it means to be a good leader
Help leaders communicate more effectively across cultural
and geographic boundaries
Practical Ways:
Culturally sensitive websites
Design new employee orientation programs
Improve global team effectiveness
Future of Cross-Cultural Leadership
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Internet has made it easier to obtain samples & answer
questions quickly
Web-based surveys
Real time chat
Video Conferencing
Blessing & a curse
Unqualified individuals try to collect & interpret data
Unresolved Issues/ Limitations
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Magnitude of the effect of cultural influences unknown
The influence of cultural forces on local conceptions of
leadership, the social status of leaders, and the amount of
influence granted to leaders
Processes by which cultural entities affect member
psychological states and behavior not clear
Convenience sampling
Valid information in interviews, self-report measures, etc.
Sources
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Dickson, M.W., Den Hartog, D.N., & Mitchelson, J.K. (2003). Research
on leadership in a cross –cultural context: making progress, and raising
new questions. The Leadership Quarterly, 14, 729-768.
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Earley, P.C. & Erez, M. (1996). Understanding the International Leader,
pp. 535-625.
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Hofstede, G. (2009). Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions. Retrieved April
12, 2009, from itim International Web site: http://www.geerthofstede.com/
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Northouse, P.G. (2007). Leadership Theory and Practice, 4th Edition, pp.
301-325.