Introduction to the special issue: preferred explicit leadership preferences across cultures

Citation

Frederick Littrell, R. (2013), "Introduction to the special issue: preferred explicit leadership preferences across cultures", Journal of Management Development, Vol. 32 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/jmd.2013.02632faa.001

Introduction to the special issue: preferred explicit leadership preferences across cultures

Introduction to the special issue: preferred explicit leadership preferences across cultures

Article Type: General review From: Journal of Management Development, Volume 32, Issue 6.

Purpose – The purpose of this editorial commentary is to present an introduction to the research project and an overview of the papers in this special issue.Design/methodology/approach – This short introduction introduces some history of the Preferred Explicit Leader Behaviour and Values Across Cultures project, and introduces the articles in the special issue.Findings – The findings in the special issue indicate that the LBDQXII is adequate for the task at hand, and that societal cultural differences moderate variability in preferences for leader behaviour associated with leadership effectiveness. The reputation of the LBDQXII has been damaged by researchers, editors, reviewers, and dissertation and thesis supervisors’ lack of knowledge or disregard of available knowledge concerning the development of the instrument, its use, and proper methods and methodology. The results in the project studies indicate that similarities such as the same local language coupled with geographic proximity lead to similar kinds of preferred leader behaviour priorities between countries and within countries having diverse sub-cultures, such as China. Although the samples were all employed businesspeople, sample differences can have significant effects, such as influence stemming industry membership. A conclusion is that, carefully applied and analysed, the LBDQXII is a useful, reliable, and valid survey instrument that can be employed to prepare, educate, and develop expatriates and local managers as to what behaviours are expected in business organisations in different cultures.Originality/value – The large majority of studies of leadership focus on implicit leadership theory, describing characteristics and traits of leaders. The studies in the preferred leader behaviour project employ explicit leader behaviour theory and operationalisations to identify subordinates’ ideal leader behaviour, which can be compared to actual organisational manager behaviour or the behaviour preferences of oneself. The studies are of value to practitioners and researchers interested in managerial leadership across and within countries.

Keywords: IntroductionSpecial issue, Preferred leader behaviour, Cross-cultural, Leaders, Leadership, Culture (sociology)

Introduction

The subsequent papers in this issue are products of a global project consortium studying preferred leader behaviour dimensions of employed business people across country and intra-country samples from project's 15 years of study, 1997 through 2012. The consistent thread is the Behavioural and Contingency theory of leadership initiated by Stogdill and associates at Ohio State University (Stogdill, 1963, 1969, 1974; Day and Stogdill, 1972), operationalised by the Leader Behaviour Description Questionnaire XII (LBDQXII). In some studies, the relationships amongst preferred leader behaviour dimensions and Schwartz’ individual values dimension topology are investigated, operationalised by the Schwartz Values Survey (SVS, Schwartz, 1992, 1994).

Some background, in 1997 the Preferred Leader Behaviour Across Cultures project was initiated, first in China, now with data from China, South Korea, Japan, England, Germany, Romania, Turkey, Uganda, Ghana, Kenya, Zambia, South Africa, Mexico, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand, with work underway in other countries. In 2001 after personal communications with Shalom Schwartz, the SVS was included in some subsequent studies. The project contributes to the empirical field research study literature concerning societal cultural and individual value priorities’ effects on explicit preferred leader behaviour of employed businesspeople, and in some cases tertiary business students.

Papers in this issue

The review and research papers begin with a long paper discussing the history of the development and the findings of the preferred leader behaviour project across multiple country and within-country samples. This paper introduces the theoretical underpinnings of the project, which contributes to the empirical field research study literature concerning societal culture and individual value priority effects on explicit preferred leader behaviour of employed businesspeople, and in some cases business students. The paper then reviews research studies, results, and conclusions related to the theories and operationalisations.

The two subsequent reports of empirical studies discuss two country-oriented projects. The first is a study in Turkey titled “Explicit leader behaviour preferences: Turkish & cross-national sample comparisons”, comparing intra-country samples along with comparisons of preferred managerial leader behaviour preferences in countries that are major trading partners.

The next paper, “North and South Latin America: influence of values on preferred leader behaviour in Chile and Mexico” investigates the existence and meaning of “Latin America” and compares the LBDQXII and SVS dimension response data for samples from Santiago, Chile, and Guadalajara, Mexico.

Conclusions

The findings of the project and the two country-related papers indicate that societal cultural differences moderate variability in preferences for leader behaviour associated with leadership effectiveness. The LBDQXII is an adequate instrument to compare behaviour preferences. One objective of the project is to build an improved version of the LBDQXII that will be shorter, more reliable, and more valid across cultures.

Studies in the project have so far been unable to identify any consistent relationships between the dimensions of Schwartz’ individual value topology and preferred leader behaviour dimension.

Romie Frederick LittrellDepartment of International Business, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand

About the author

Romie Frederick Littrell is an Associate Professor of International Business at Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand. He has worked for the past 14 years as a university professor and cross-cultural researcher of preferred leader behaviour and cultural value relationships. Previously he worked for 37 years in international business operations in the USA, Latin America, and China. He facilitates two consortia, the Leadership & Management in Sub-Saharan Africa biennial conferences, and the Global Preferred Leader Behaviour & Cultural Values Project. He is editor of AIB Insights and international management area editor for the International Journal of Emerging Markets. Romie Frederick Littrell can be contacted at: romie.littrell@aut.ac.nz