Clones in the MBA Classroom: Understanding the Relationship Between Culture and MBA Students’ Attitudes Toward Socially Responsible Business Leadership: A Mixed Methods Cross-National Study

Abstract

Recurrent corporate scandals have underscored the need for business leaders, the majority of whom were trained in business schools, to address tradeoffs between the interests of investors and those who serve the common good as an expression of socially responsible business leadership (SRBL). This study offers an integrated corporate social responsibility model (ICSRM), which displays the factors that scholarly research suggests promote and hinder corporate social responsibility (CSR) practice. However, because the CSR concept originated in the United States and the American business school model is replicated across the globe, most theories that support this conceptual framework were developed through that lens. This study addresses this weakness by exploring the impact of other cultural contexts on CSR thought and practice.Specifically, the purpose of this exploratory mixed methods cross-national study is to examine the impact of culture on the motives and views of Master of Business Administration (MBA) students from three distinctive cultural clusters regarding the factors that support CSR. The findings, gleaned from 290 surveys and three focus groups, indicate that these MBA students have almost identical motives toward CSR, which are expressed in their eagerness to manage the tension between profitability and the common good. Additionally, the students demonstrate very similar views regarding the factors that drive CSR's implementation. In short, the study suggests that cultural dimensions do not seem to have a meaningful influence on students' personal attitudes regarding these factors, providing a basis for scholars to better understand and further explore the possible relationship between cultural factors and SRBL. DEDICATIONTo Olga . . . because over 40 years ago a tiny spring burst forth, creating a stream of life filled with precious moments.

Leadership Competencies in Medical Education: The Importance of Cross-Cultural Validation

“…Importantly, when asked about desired leadership behaviors, they placed a high value on charismatic, value-based, teamoriented, and self-protective leadership styles, and a low value on autonomous leadership. In another study, though, cultural factors had only a limited influence on the personal attitudes of Master's of Business Administration students' regarding socially responsible business leadership, 13 indicating a need for more studies on this subject.…”