Globalizing Denmark

摘要

This exploratory article examines the paradox of being open-minded while ethnocentric as expressed in Danish international management practices at the micro level. With a population of 5.4 million, Denmark is one of the smallest European countries. The pressure on many small advanced countries to keep up the process of globalization may be substantial, and the economic gains for such countries from adjusting to a more internationally integrated world economy are clear. However, in small-population economies, especially social-democratic welfare states, the internal pressure to integrate counteracts to some extent the need to maintain openness to differences. Thus, a strong economy and a feeling of smug ethnocentrism in Denmark generate a central paradox in thinking about internationalization in Danish society.