Learning tools to develop cultural intelligence for SMFEs: the role of social cognitive processes

Abstract

Purpose of the paper:The aim of this paper is to investigate how SMFEs can develop cultural intelligence (CQ) from international experience (IE) using Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory as a theoretical framework.Methodology: The study involved the submission of a questionnaire to 150 owner-managers of Italian SMFEs. Participants were selected on the basis of a proportional quota sampling. Moderated multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses.Findings:The study shows that a learning method based on the observation of the link between behaviors of external economic agents and consequences of such behaviors can support SMFEs in developing CQ to inform decision-making activities and drive improvement in the internationalization process.Research limits: The weight of each dimension is highly dependent on the context and time of the analysis and this may create some problems in the generalization of the findings. Potential bias may occur due to self-report surveys.Practical implications: The findings reveal that, through observational learning, SMFEs are more likely to acquire and accumulate cultural and marketspecific knowledge able to compensate their knowledge constraints in terms of internationalization.Originality of the paper: The present study is the first attempt to explicitly examine the moderating effect of Social Cognitive Theory on the relationship between IE and CQ in family businesses. Yet to date, no research has empirically tested these links.

The imitation game: building cultural intelligence as a social learning capability to boost SMEs' international performance

“…Such a vicarious learning helps owner-managers become closer to the cultural psychology, practices, values and norms of local stakeholders. This supports SMEs in reducing the effects of the liabilities of foreignness and outsidership and strengthening owner-managers' cognitive engagement with the local environment (Pauluzzo, 2020). Similarly, the spreading of culturally aware and competent behaviors throughout the organization would allow SMEs to better coordinate, recombine and allocate their resources to address the needs of diverse cultural markets.…”

“…Attention reflects the process in which people selectively observe and extract information from the ongoing modeled activities on the basis of their distinctiveness, complexity, prevalence, functional value and the observer's characteristics, such as cognitive capabilities, preferences and past reinforcement (Bandura, 1977). In the ambiguous, multifaceted and complex scenario of international markets, decisionmakers may seek information from existing business relationships to determine appropriate behaviors and make informed decisions (Pauluzzo, 2020). One option to develop a cultural intelligent behavior is by observing firms with similar characteristics that show actions they want to imitate in the cultural context (Michailova and Ott, 2018).…”

“…In the foreign context, positive outcomes/ consequences of similar firms' actions reinforce imitating behaviors. Similarly, during interactions with local stakeholders, the owner-manager experiences which behaviors better suit local needs and receives feedbacks that can reinforce or discourage previous actions (Pauluzzo, 2020).…”

“…3.2 Measurement of constructs 3.2.1 Social cognitive processes. The measurement of SCPs was adopted from the 16-item scale of Yi and Davis (2003), developed to measure attention, retention, reproduction and motivation in computer software training and skill acquisition and further refined and tested by Pauluzzo (2020) in the small family firms' context. The scale involves four sub-dimensions: attention (four items; e.g.…”