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From cultural differences to cultural globalization: towards a new research agenda in cross-cultural management studies

Mehdi Boussebaa

Published 2020 in Critical Perspectives on International Business

ABSTRACT

Purpose: This paper responds to calls for a new raison d’etre in the field cross-cultural management (CCM) and culture-sensitive studies of international business (IB) more broadly. It argues that one way of addressing the crisis of confidence in the field is to develop a line of inquiry focussed on corporate-driven cultural globalization. This paper also proposes a theoretical approach informed by international political economy (IPE) and postcolonial theory and outlines a research agenda for future work on cultural globalization. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is a desk-based analysis that draws on relevant research in the wider social sciences to insert cultural globalization into the CCM/IB field’s intellectual project. Findings: The paper finds the field of CCM and culture-sensitive IB studies more broadly to be almost exclusively focussed on studying the impact of cultural differences. Surprisingly, little attention has been devoted to the phenomenon of corporate-driven cultural globalization. Research limitations/implications: The paper redirects the field and presents a research agenda, calling for studies on the role of four related actors in cultural globalization: MNEs, global professional service firms, business schools and CCM/IB researchers themselves. Practical implications: CCM/IB scholars may be able to reorient themselves towards the phenomenon of cultural globalization and, in so doing, also seize an opportunity to contribute to important debates about it in the wider social sciences. Originality/value: The paper suggests possibilities for renewal by redirecting CCM/IB towards the study of cultural globalization and by encouraging the field to develop a postcolonial sensibility in future research on the phenomenon.

PUBLICATION RECORD

  • Publication year

    2020

  • Venue

    Critical Perspectives on International Business

  • Publication date

    2020-06-15

  • Fields of study

    Sociology, Business, Political Science

  • Identifiers
    DOI 10.1108/cpoib-01-2020-0003
  • External record

    Open on Semantic Scholar

  • Source metadata

    Semantic Scholar

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