How can we comprehend complex thinking across a wide range of cultural settings throughout the world?. .. More importantly, can we teach skills to managers so they are able to do so?-Earley and Ang (2003, p. 22).

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to assess the impact of espoused individual cultural traits on proactive behaviors within an organizational environment. While there have been many reports about the positive outcomes of proactivity, there is much less known about the antecedents, particularly those related to culture. Design/methodology/approach – Sales employees (n=147) in a multi-national organization from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and the USA were surveyed to assess the impact of cultural trait influences on proactive behavior at the individual level. Using linear regression and partial least squares structural equation modeling, three independent variables were found to be significant antecedents to proactive behavior. Findings – Long-term orientation positively influenced proactive behaviors as did uncertainty avoidance. Uncertainty avoidance was hypothesized to have a negative impact on proactive behaviors, but the results of this study implied that individuals found it safer to adjust to a fluid environment rather than to remain inflexible. No relationship was found between power distance and proactivity. Masculinity was found to be positively related to proactive behaviors but collectivism was not. Research limitations/implications – The results of this study should be limited to its own population and not generalized to larger, more culturally diverse populations which were not represented in the sample. Practical implications – This study provides better understanding of managerial proactive behavior related to cultural traits, particularly in the domain of field sales. Originality/value – This study is unique in that it explores individual proactivity in an organizational selling environment related to cultural traits at the individual level.

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The authors used a sample of 155 field sales personnel from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand to examine attachment and adaptation as two ways of addressing individual uncertainty avoidance. Results suggest that both attachment and adaptation are used to reduce uncertainty avoidance in the workplace. Individuals low on uncertainty avoidance had no need to attach with their group or adapt to their environment. Those high on uncertainty avoidance used both techniques to deal with risk. Individuals reporting moderate levels of uncertainty avoidance primarily used adaptation rather than attachment to deal with risk.

In a sample of 1,891 teams (8,556 students) who completed an eight-week international business consulting project, half of the teams developed a team charter, half did not. Teams with charters saw improved process performance metrics only at the forming stage of team development. They also reported higher conflict levels. However, more conflict did not negatively affect peer evaluations or team output quality, suggesting that such conflict was not entirely negative. Team charter use was not directly associated with output quality, measured as the final report's grade.However, team national diversity moderated the solution creativity presented in the team's final report. These findings suggest team charters may initially aid process improvement but not necessarily the quality of output. We propose that the difference between the two groups studied is essentially one of formal written contracting versus informal psychological contracting, defined as a set of unwritten expectations of team members with regard to team behaviors and goals. These two forms of contracting provide for equifinality (the same result) in performance over the lifecycle of a project. The study contributes to research on team charter use, particularly with respect to formal versus informal psychological contracting within the context of global virtual teams.

The study examined outcomes associated with the proactive individual by analyzing the responses of employees who worked in the health and human services sector primarily providing direct care to patients/clients. Of the 271 respondents, 242 completed the entire online survey which tapped, in addition to proactivity, the constructs of work-group cohesion, compassion satisfaction, burnout, and job withdrawal intentions. While correlations were appraised, the principal analysis of the data was conducted using partial least squares (PLS) path modeling. As predicted the antecedent variable, proactivity, was positively related to work-group cohesion and to compassion satisfaction but negatively related to burnout and job withdrawal intentions.

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