MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES AND ECONOMIC NATIONALISM: A STRATEGIC ANALYSIS OF CULTURE

摘要

This paper presents a political psychological analysis of culture to conceptualize it as apolitical value, i.e. as a causal factor shaping intra- and inter-organizational international business behavior. It highlights how culture manifests itself circumstantially as a variable shaping intra- and inter-organizational collective behavior amidst rapid, crisis-level, multinational conflictual change. Internal and external contextual factors determine the intensity and the saliency of this value in an organization. Values are individual and collective active actor drives to achieve an end state. Norms are distinguished from values in that they display behavioral pattern principles that may be explicit or implicit, manifested as behavioral attitudes. The paper thereby conceptualizes the policy making relevance of difference in national cultures. It critiques economic nationalism from the perspective of organizational management. It discusses the implications for leadership of reconciling these cultural differences as national values among multinational staff members in regard to communication among personnel. Intercultural/international perceptions of other cultures, specifically stereotyping, are part of the challenge to effective leadership communication within a multicultural/multinational organizational environment. A leadership imperative is to facilitate multinational cultural organizational value integration. A response to recent survey critiques of the state of the field regarding culture and international business is presented.