Power Distance in Organizational Contexts: A Review of Collectivist Cultures (original) (raw)
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Power Distance as A National Culture Observed in Organizational Scope
Objective – Cultural factors have significant roles in creating behavior in an organization. This research claims that national culture like power distance that is usually measured in a national scope actually can have a better result when it is measured in the organizational scope. The goal of this research is to find out the level of power distance among private lecturers in Banjarmasin, Indonesia, and compare it to Hofstede’s power distance for the whole country. Methodology/Technique – This research uses explanatory research that tries to understand the degree of power distance among private university lecturers in Banjarmasin. The populations used were all lecturers in private colleges in Banjarmasin City. The samples used were 86 lecturers who have become a lecturer for at least 2 years. The analysis is done through a descriptive quantitative method measuring the level of power distance among lecturers in Banjarmasin and with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to understand which indicators that have the strongest influence in creating power distance culture among lecturers in Banjarmasin. Findings – The results of the research show that power distance culture is low among the lecturers in Banjarmasin City, with indicator “The level of authority used by the leader” as the lowest factor. The result also finds that the indicator “subordinates Exclusion in decision-making” as the strongest indicator to form power distance culture. Novelty – This research conducted in the context of Indonesia using primary data.
Reconsidering the exploration of power distance: an active case study approach
Omega, 2002
In this paper, we present what we call an "active case study" and we theorize speciÿcally on the relevance hereof for an exploration of power distance (as conceptualized by Hofstede (Culture's Consequences: International Di erences in Work-Related Values, Sage, Beverley Hills, CA, 1980)). As Hofstede conceives it, the notion of "power distance" enables an understanding of the predominant ideas about inequality prevalent in a (national) culture, which in turn infuse work relationships. An active case study approach-as we elucidate in the paper-implies an acknowledgement on the part of those organizing the research of the manner in which their intervention might a ect the way "respondents" experience their work relationships. We suggest that our proposed active case study approach o ers novel possibilities for exploring power distance and should be added to the repertoire of approaches used to examine this in organizational life. We develop our argument in this regard by o ering a detailed account of the application of this approach to a Taiwanese organization (the Kaohsiung Harbor Bureau in Taiwan). ?
Understanding the meaning and embodiment of power distance in Malaysian public organization
2011
The present chapter examines how employees of a Malaysian public organization interpret and embody the power distance concept. To analyze this question, we conducted a thematic analysis of focus group discussions. The results of our analysis show that power distance is interpreted and embodied in ways that are different from the way Hofstede originally conceived, based on the Malaysian organization we investigated. That is, for the employees, power distance is a symbol that is essential for the creation and sustenance of strong group bonds, mutual respect, and a supervisor's authority in terms of his or her social status, level of education and expertise, and rank in the organizational hierarchy. One of the most difficult challenges for the field of organizational communication is the application of theories and models developed in one part of the world to understand a phenomenon that occurs in another part of the world. Much of the concern about this issue concentrates on the relevance of Western theories and concept abroad (Denison, Haaland, & Goelzer, 2004) to the actual place to be investigated. Although Western theories, models, and concepts have provided us with important information on communicative behavior in organization, there have been criticisms on the application of Western-based research concepts applications in specific cultural concepts.
Cultural Profile as Determinant of Work Outcomes in a Collectivist Context
Journal of global awareness, 2022
Extant research evidence shows that interpersonal bonds-the bond to the immediate supervisor and work team-have an incremental predictive effect in western settings, neglecting emerging economic and cultural environments. This study, thus, examines the impact of cultural profiles on interpersonal bonds and related performance in an emerging market context. Specifically, the study examines the emergence of profiles based on micro-level psychological collectivism (individualism) and power distance orientations. The study further examines the effect of the emerged profiles on interpersonal bonds and the performance of activities related to the targets of the bonds. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from 148 multiple public and private organizations of varied industries (banking, manufacturing, education, and local government) in an emerging market. Using the MANOVA analytic procedure, the study finds that the supervisor-oriented and team-involved profile rather than the team-alienated profile demonstrates a significantly higher level of work outcomes involving interpersonal commitment to the supervisor and substantially higher task performance. The outcome suggests that power distance cultural value may have a negative psychological effect while collectivism has a positive psychological effect on work outcomes in this context. The implication of the outcome for theory and policy in the collectivist context is discussed.
Employee engagement in a collectivist high power distance culture
2018
Oluwasanmi Adegbaju asserts his moral right to be identified as the author of this thesis This copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright belongs to its author and that no quotation from the thesis and no information derived from it may be published without appropriate permission or acknowledgement.
Power Distance Index and Its Role in the Efficient Functioning of Multinational Organizations
SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND EDUCATION IN THE AIR FORCE, 2022
Enveloping a wide-range spectrum of political, cultural, and ethical aspects, the power distance index essentially summarizes the acceptance of hierarchical structures. The number of micro ecosystems in which hierarchy and power-centered forms of organization prevail is undoubtedly large, given the fact that authoritarian regimes have been mostly abolished and invalidated during relatively recent history, and many people are still unconsciously reminiscing on their unwritten rules of conduct. This paper intends to take a closer look into the impact that various power distance index values have on organizational culture, with multinationals being the niche thoroughly studied. By analyzing official performance reports in correlation with dr. Geert Hofstede’s premises, the author intends to give insight into how overall worker performance is affected by autocracy, inequality, and responsibility centralization, which are all consequences of high-power distance indexes.
This study applies a cross-cultural approach to examine if relationships between context and structure are stable and transcend national differences, and if certain configuration of structure is desired in different cultures according to their power distance and uncertainty avoidance orientations. The study first analyzes the structure of twelve Jordanian companies then compares the findings with those reported by Horvath, McMillan, Azumi and Hickson on British, Japanese and Swedish matched samples. Consistent with previous research, the findings confirmed that relationships between context and structure transcend national differences. Yet, the existing organizational structure in Jordan, Japan, Britain and Sweden did not fit well the desired structure in each culture on its power distance and uncertainty avoidance orientations. The study concludes that the classification of some cultures, on certain dimensions, could be considered valid but only after careful examination, and that international instruments of measurement might be useful when used in similar cultures, but it might provide a misleading picture if the cultural peculiarities were not taken into account. Keywords: Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Organizational Structure, Culture Bound, Culture Free, Cross-Cultural
Perceived Effects of Power Distance on Organizational Change in a Multicultural Organization
2021
Organizational change researchers have reported an accelerated rate of change in modern organizations, with as many as 70% of them reportedly failing to deliver expected results. Change management scholars and practitioners have yet to reach consensus on the main contributors to this high rate of failure, despite having evaluated a variety of organizational change success factors. The purpose of this qualitative single case study of a multinational financial organization was to explore the concept of power distance with an aim to increase understanding and general awareness of its perceived effects on the process of an organizational change in a global and multicultural environment. The conceptual framework was based on Hofstede\u27s model of cultural dimensions that differentiates cross-border business in terms of cultural differences. Of the six cultural dimensions, this study focused on the power distance dimension. Data were collected from in-depth telephone interviews with 10 k...
Power Distance Culture and the Construction of the Followership Identity
2016
Cultural values shape the mind and behaviour of the people and numerous researches has empirically signified this phenomenon. Culture tends to become the crucial point for determining the effective leadership and followership and to develop the positive working environment and power distance is one of the cultural dimensions that bind leadership/followership thinking and attribute. With regard to the followership research, mainstream organizational literatures indicate that this area is relatively unexplored. With the recent notion that follower has come into prominence with the increasing effect of followers on the decision making process, it is important to further investigate this area. This study was conducted to examine how the followership was constructed and how their identities were enacted within the power distance culture. It is a qualitative study, utilizing in-depth interviews with 20 employees in Malaysian higher education sector, using purposive sampling. The interview...