To prosper, organizational psychology should… adopt a global perspective

Abstract

SummaryWe argue that for the field of organizational psychology to prosper, it must adopt a global perspective. In this article, we discuss three specific ideals for a more global organizational psychology, our progress toward these ideals (or lack thereof), and potential solutions to move toward a truly global science. First, we argue that a truly global organizational psychology must incorporate global voices. Yet cross-cultural research in organizational psychology still remains largely a U.S. export business wherein the very questions we ask are colored by Western assumptions and values which are then explored to other cultures. To be a global science, we must acknowledge that the questions we ask are value-laden, and we must ensure that the questions we ask to have global relevance. Second, a truly global organizational psychology must articulate with precision the level at which culture operates. Yet the level at which culture is defined varies widely across studies and levels of analysis confusion abounds in the literature. We discuss a number of conceptualizations and measures of culture and suggest the conditions under which each may be warranted. Third, a truly global organizational psychology must advance an understanding of when culture matters. Despite abundant evidence that behavior in organizations is influenced by multiple contextual factors (e.g., the work team, organization, industry), we have little understanding of how national culture and non-cultural factors jointly influence behavior in organizations. We discuss several promising models to guide such efforts.

Organizational Psychology and poverty reduction: where supply meets demand

“…The ambition of the MDGs calls for Organizational Psychology to make an ambitious contribution to promoting effective organizational behavior-from facilitating organizational learning in well-endowed UN organizations, to enhancing the advocacy capabilities of impoverished community groups, and much in between. While no system (humanism included) is perfect or risk-free (Hammond, 2008), a more humanistic science and practice will both contribute to, and develop in, the new global landscape (Gelfand, Leslie, & Fehr, 2008). That landscape compels us to promote more effective ways to alleviate poverty, both locally and globally.…”

La relación entre el estrés laboral, las fuentes que le dan origen y las estrategias de coping en el sector público y el privado

“…However, the organizational context will not only be determined by culture, but also will be determined by non-cultural characteristics of the organization (Gelfand, Leslie, & Fehr, 2008;Ramos & Jordão, 2012b). The sector is one of these non-cultural characteristics mentioned.…”

“…The sector not only will allow to define the context in which the company is operating, but also will serve to define the organizational performance according to the level of culture. In this sense, sector serves as a type of "amplifier" of cultural differences between organizations from different sectors (Gelfand et al, 2008). So, public and private organizations will have cultural differences between them, even if they belong to the same national culture.…”

“…El sector va a permitir no sólo definir el contexto en que la entidad se encuentra operando sino que va a servir para delimitar el nivel de actuación de la cultura, sirviendo, al mismo tiempo, como un tipo de "amplificador" de las diferencias culturales entre organizaciones de diferentes sectores (Gelfand et al, 2008). Griffin (2007) y Weber y Dacin (2011) explicaron cómo el sector de la organización puede ser considerado en sí mismo una unidad de análisis en los estudios, incluido como parte de las variables de control, pues va a influir en el grado en que se manifiesta el fenómeno estudiado.…”

“…De este modo, realizada la observación de los problemas de generalización de los resultados por ser un estudio contextual, hacemos observar que el contexto resulta necesario en la comprensión de los mismos. Estudios de este tipo son relevantes para comparaciones posteriores a nivel de investigaciones transculturales, las cuales constituyen uno de los desafíos fundamentales dentro del área de la psicología organizacional (Gelfand et al, 2008).…”