Doing Business in the 21st Century with the New Generation of Chinese Managers: A Study of Generational Shifts in Work Values in China

Ralston, David A.; Egri, Carolyn P.; Stewart, Sally; Terpstra, Robert H.; Yu, Kumlan

doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8490077

Cited by 309 publications

(230 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…This is consistent with the modernization hypothesis, which suggests that the adoption of modern (e.g., Western, capitalist) governance practices and production methods will bring about values of Western societies (Inglehart & Welzel, 2005). For example, numerous accounts suggest that the economic development and increasing income level in China and India bring about an increase in individualistic and more materialistic values (e.g., Ralston, Egri, Stewart, Terpstra, & Kaicheng, 1999;Shah, 2007). If the changes in business and political practices are occurring rapidly, for example as a result of a mandated top-down restructuring, the changes in values may be lagging, causing a discrepancy between practices and values.…”

Section: The Degree Of Value Internalizationsupporting

confidence: 71%

Negative practice–value correlations in the GLOBE data: Unexpected findings, questionnaire limitations and research directions

2010

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Abstract:The study of culture and cultural values continues to be hotly debated among cross-cultural researchers worldwide. Starting with the seminal work of Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck, and Hofstede, and continuing with more recent efforts, researchers have continued to develop and empirically examine cultural value frameworks in an attempt to understand how cultural differences affect work-related behaviors and attitudes. The purpose of this commentary is to briefly describe the interesting -and counterintuitive -findings from the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) project, summarize the different interpretations of these findings offered by Maseland and van Hoorn, and by Brewer and Venaik, provide a critique of their arguments, and finally offer a list of possible alternative interpretations and explanations for the conflicting findings in the GLOBE study.GLOBE | Hofstede | cross-cultural research/measurement issues | cultural values | Keywords: cultural value frameworks | work attitudes | business management | international business Article:The study of culture and cultural values continues to be hotly debated among cross-cultural researchers worldwide. Starting with the seminal work of Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck (1961) and Hofstede (1980), researchers have continued to develop and empirically examine cultural value frameworks in an attempt to understand how cultural differences affect work-related behaviors and attitudes. One of the most recent attempts to create a comprehensive framework to understand cultural values and their effects has been the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) study (House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman, & Gupta, 2004). Recently, Maseland and van Hoorn (2009), in their research note published in this journal and revisited in this issue (Maseland & van Hoorn, 2010), and Brewer and Venaik (2010) offered competing explanations for some of the more intriguing findings in the GLOBE study. The purpose of this commentary is to briefly describe the interesting -and counterintuitive -findings from the GLOBE project, summarize the different interpretations of these findings offered by Maseland and van Hoorn (2010) and Brewer and Venaik (2010), and consider possible alternative interpretations and explanations for the conflicting findings in the GLOBE study. The GLOBE StudyAmong the many attempts to measure the cultures of the world (e.g., Hofstede, 1980;Schwartz, 1992;Smith, Dugan, & Trompenaars, 1996), the GLOBE study (House et al., 2004) is one of the most recent, ambitious, and comprehensive efforts. Methodologically, the GLOBE study is very similar to other cultural comparison studies, in that all of them measure culture using a series of self-report survey questions with Likert-type response scales. Nevertheless, the GLOBE study is unique in one important way, in that it measures cultural values and cultural practices separately, and thus provides two different sets of cultural indices.

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Section: The Degree Of Value Internalizationsupporting

confidence: 71%

Negative practice–value correlations in the GLOBE data: Unexpected findings, questionnaire limitations and research directions

2010

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“…As a result of the weakening control of both traditional values and Communist ideology amid the rapid social and economic upheaval in China, there have been ongoing cultural changes (Kwong, 1994;Wang, 2005). Ralston, Egri, Stewart, Terpstra, and Yu (1999) find evidence of a shift in the attitude of Chinese people across generations toward the Western values of individualism and materialism. They surmise that today's Chinese managers are more likely to take risks in the pursuit of profit, even when these actions conflict with traditional ways, and to move to where the best opportunities are perceived to lie.…”

Section: Macro-level Antecedents Of Perceived Vulnerabilitymentioning

confidence: 97%

Wary managers: Unfavorable environments, perceived vulnerability, and the development of trust in foreign enterprises in China

Tsui‐Auch

Möllering

2009

J Int Bus Stud

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Vulnerability is salient among international managers, who tend to be wary when operating in transition economies like China. Systematic research is lacking, though, on how the local environment influences foreign managers' perception of vulnerability, and how foreign managers can develop trust even when their perceived vulnerability is high. We conducted in-depth case studies of two foreign-controlled enterprises in China, and developed a theoretical model that links perceptions of the macro-level environment to micro-level management. Our results illustrate the antecedents and consequences of perceived vulnerability and the processes of trust building in unfavorable environments. Through comparative analysis of the two cases, we found that the foreign managers' perceived vulnerability was shaped by the institutional, technological, and market conditions of the local environment, and we learned how this perceived vulnerability influenced their trust in the local workforce and the joint investment in formal and social control they used in building trust. The effect of perceived vulnerability on trust was moderated over time when the implementation of control was combined with active investments in trust, which led to behavioral changes on the part of the local employees, which in turn increased their trustworthiness. The implications of these findings are discussed.

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“…Most cross-cultural researchers (including Hofstede) assume that cultures 'are relatively stable systems in equilibrium' (Brett et al, 1997, 79). However, empirically Ralston et al (1999) compared three generations in the PRC and showed that Chinese managers are becoming more individualistic, less collectivistic, and lower in Confucian dynamism. In urging researchers to collect primary data, we do not suggest that this must take the form of self-report, survey-based methods.…”

Section: Primary or Secondary Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

A quarter century of Culture's Consequences: a review of empirical research incorporating Hofstede's cultural values framework

2006

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Since Geert Hofstede's Culture's Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values (Sage, 1980) was published, researchers have utilized Hofstede's cultural values framework in a wide variety of empirical studies. We review 180 studies published in 40 business and psychology journals and two international annual volumes between 1980 and June 2002 to consolidate what is empirically verifiable about Hofstede's cultural values framework. We discuss limitations in the Hofstede-inspired research and make recommendations for researchers who use Hofstede's framework in the future. Journal of International Business Studies (2006) 37, 285–320. doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400202

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Doing Business in the 21st Century with the New Generation of Chinese Managers: A Study of Generational Shifts in Work Values in China

Cited by 309 publications

References 17 publications

Negative practice–value correlations in the GLOBE data: Unexpected findings, questionnaire limitations and research directions

Negative practice–value correlations in the GLOBE data: Unexpected findings, questionnaire limitations and research directions

Wary managers: Unfavorable environments, perceived vulnerability, and the development of trust in foreign enterprises in China

A quarter century of Culture's Consequences: a review of empirical research incorporating Hofstede's cultural values framework

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