National Cultures and Organisations in Search of a Theory

Abstract

The idea of a national culture is generally challenged by those using an interpretative approach. They argue that, within a given society, one comes across rival definitions of reality. But it is possible to present a theory enabling us to take into consideration what is diverse and changing as well as what is shared and stable. We will base our demonstration on empirical research related to the US and France. We will be referring to two main ideas. On the one hand, within one country, a core concern is at the heart of social existence. On the other, people, using very diverse ways, strive to find forms of organisation as well as representations that enable their members to cope with this concern. In the US, reference to the contract is pivotal, whereas in France, the main reference would be to one’s ‘ métier ’.

Winding Down the Workday: Zoning the Evening Hours in Paris, Oslo, and San Francisco

“…Even in today's France, individuals still associate their métier with their rank in society at large (D'Iribarne 1989(D'Iribarne , 2006. Those who perform their métier well and make themselves worthy of the status of cadre acquire a characteristically French form of social currency, namely personal honor and status (D'Iribarne 2006(D'Iribarne , 2009. By working conspicuously during the evening hours, these highly-ranked men and women affirm their worthiness as members of this social order which transcends any specific occupational or organizational affiliation.…”

“…For Americans, engagements with employers, coworkers, and bosses are structured by a fundamentally distinct cultural template, a template which d'Iribarne and others term Bcontractualism^ (Fischer 2008;D'Iribarne 1989D'Iribarne , 2006D'Iribarne , 2009. This template models employment and work relations on contracts between juridically equal owners of property.…”

Delegating effectively across cultures

“…Using this perspective, culture is a shared system of values that determines individual preferences and attitudes. In this paper, we adopt an interpretative approach to culture (d'Iribarne, 2009;Primecz, Romani, & Sackmann, 2011). In this approach, culture is the shared context of meaning (i.e., a set of references with which actors give meaning to their experiences).…”

“…Indeed, it appears that in any society, an opposition was formed between a dominant peril (i.e., a basic concern that makes people uneasy or even anxious) and paths to salvation that enable people to avert this fear (d'Iribarne, 2009). This fear marks all social existence and, particularly, the life of an organization because many events taking place in organizations are likely to revive these fears.…”

Multiparadigmatic Studies of Culture: Needs, Challenges, and Recommendations for Management Scholars

“…Conversely, identifying of the most influential works in the subjective tradition in the past four decades proved to be more difficult. As d'Iribarne () explains, subjectivist scholars explore the co‐existence of multiple realities within any given society. This exercise is easier done at the organizational level than at the macro (national, regional, or societal) level.…”