Cultural repercussions. An analysis of management behaviour through the lens of European cultural variations
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/02635570910968045 |
| Date | 26 June 2009 |
| Published date | 26 June 2009 |
| Pages | 793-808 |
| Author | Rune Ellemose Gulev |
| Subject Matter | Economics,Information & knowledge management,Management science & operations |
Cultural repercussions
An analysis of management behaviour through
the lens of European cultural variations
Rune Ellemose Gulev
Faculty of Management, University of Primorska, Koper, Slovenia
Abstract
Purpose â This pilot study complements the ongoing culture-management behaviour discourse by
systematically investigating two novel dimensions through which culture can be measured and
compared between four European Union (EU) countries. The purpose of this paper is to examine to
what extent these cultural dimensions inïŹuence management behaviour in different countries.
Design/methodology/approach â The results pertaining to the cultural dimensions âAuthority
drivenâ and âCapitalistic drivenâ are derived from European values study data sets. The results
pertaining to variances in management behaviour are derived from an empirical questionnaire-based
study. Spearman rank correlation ïŹtted with conïŹdence intervals yield several signiïŹcant correlations
which are discussed.
Findings â The results, based on country speciïŹc samples from Slovenia, Germany, Austria and
Denmark, conïŹrm that there exists considerable differences in cultural manifestations between the
four countries and that these differences have an impact on management behaviour. Most notably,
a strong positive correlation was found between the comparatively highly authoritative cultures of
Slovenia and Germany to thwart decentralization. Further evidence was found that the highly
subordinate driven cultures of Denmark and Austria tend to have a predilection towards two-way
vertical knowledge ïŹows. Mixed results were found on capitalistic driven culturesâ impact on control
mechanisms and use of motivational factors.
Research limitations/implications â The results are limited to companies within the
manufacturing industry of the four focus countries. It is, however, highly probable that the results
lend themselves to companies in other countries with similar cultural manifestations, albeit this
remains to be empirically proven.
Practical implications â The results provide a deeper understanding of why and how management
models continue to differ throughout Europe. Managers as well as academics beneïŹt from this
discussion.
Originality/value â The cultural dimensions are innovative, and speciïŹcally designed to probe
culture differences between elder EU countries and a transition economy. This digression from
mainstream cultural manifestations provides a refreshing perspective on management implications
and rejuvenates the culture debate.
Keywords Culture, Authority,Behaviour, Capitalist systems,Europe
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
In an aggressively competitive and expanding European Union (EU), the world and its
borders paradoxically appear to decreases in size, thus further prompting the desire
and ability of ïŹrms around the globe to internationalize. Consequently, we observe
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
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Winner of the best paper award at the Management International Conference in Barcelona,
November 2008.
Cultural
repercussions
793
Received 1 October 2008
Revised 27 November 2008
Accepted 17 December 2008
Industrial Management & Data
Systems
Vol. 109 No. 6, 2009
pp. 793-808
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0263-5577
DOI 10.1108/02635570910968045
a rise in the number of ïŹrms taking on the status of a multi-national corporation (MNC)
(Bhagwati, 2004; Lechner and Boli, 2004) and venturing abroad in the attempt to reap
proïŹts peripheral to their home market. This sets the stage for multicultural
workplaces and, if not handled carefully, also sets the stage for a wealth of problems
that can follow in its multicultural wake. Hence, considering the circumstances unde r
which companies operate today, it has become essential to understand the impact that
national cultures have on management behaviour and on organizational constructs.
A large number of survey projects and research of a multicultural nature address
these issues and have been published throughout the recent past (Trompenaars and
Hampden-Turner, 2004; Trompenaars and Woolliams, 2003; Throsby, 2001; Schneider
and Barsoux, 1999; Mattock, 1999; Martin, 1992; Inglehart, 1997; Holden, 2002;
Hofstede and Hofstede, 2005) which suggests that the topic is recognized as being of
major importance to the success of international business.
The present study attempts to build on the work of these authors by systematically
linking variances in culture across four EU countries to respective variances in
international management behaviour in each of those countries. SpeciïŹcally, the
cultures of three elder EU members: Germany, Austria and Denmark, are projected
against the culture of a new EU entrant, Slovenia, which has long been recognized as
being one of the most economically advanced transition economies and has displayed
signiïŹcant growth in the recent years (Jaklic and Svetlicic, 2003; Novak, 2003).
Measuring cultural differences
Upon the enlargement of the EU with ten new members in 2004, the multitude of
cultural variances within the union increased by roughly the same amount, with each
new country bringing its own speciïŹc set of cultural and business intricacies that
further extended the cultural spectrum within the common market. Zver et al. (2004)
propose that there exists a signiïŹcant culture gap between Central and Eastern
European Countries (CEECs) that have recently joined the EU and longstanding EU
members.
In an effort to depict this gap, two dimensions through which culture can be
measured have been assembled in order to portray variances relating to collectively
shared values of the four analyzed countries. The rationale is to understan d how the
cultural values of the society in which the organization is embedded inïŹuence the
management behaviour of MNCs within those countries.
The two dimensions absorb economic and business values that exist within the
national culture of a country and represent values germane to Sloveniaâs, Germa nyâs,
Austriaâs and Denmarkâs national cultures. They build on the work of several authorsâ
(Hall, 1981; Hofstede, 2001; Herzberg et al., 1993; Hardin, 2002; Levi, 1996) contributions
to variances in, and deïŹnitions of, national culture.
The two cultural dimensions measure the extent to which the workforce of a
country is inclined to be biased towards a speciïŹc preference of behavioural values and
probes speciïŹcally into the culture gap between CEECs and elder EU members. For
simplicity, they are measured on bipolar scales thus increasing their applications for
comparability:
(1) Capitalistic vs communitarian driven cultures which measures the extent to
which employees provide for themselves.
IMDS
109,6
794
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