Cheryl Van Deusen

Are work stress relationships universal? A nine-region examination of role stressors, general self-efficacy, and burnout

Cross-national studies of job stress have not kept pace with other streams of research in the international milieu. To begin to address this lack of development, we examined the relationships among role stressors, general self-efficacy (GSE), and burnout across nine regions (i.e., U.S., Germany, France, Brazil, Israel, Japan, China, Hong Kong, and Fiji). Findings indicated GSE had a universally negative association with burnout across all regions. Further, self-efficacy mediated the relationship between role conflict and/or role ambiguity and burnout across eight of the nine cultures. Conclusions center around how low self-efficacy may help to explain why occupational role stressors have a positive association with burnout cross-nationally. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Learning in acquisitions: understanding the relationship between exploration, exploitation and performance

Organizational learning has received widespread attention in research yet few empirical studies exist. This study analyzed the constructs of exploration and exploitation in the acquisition process within the hospitality industry. Turnover and previous performance were found to affect the choice of exploration and exploitation, and their impact on subsequent acquisition performance was analyzed.

Information and Communication Technology in the Classroom: An Empirical Study with an International Perspective

Abstract Researchers posit that the use of information and communication technology (ICT) will revolutionize traditional educational methods in university contexts and change the process of how educators do their job. However, research offers conflicting views regarding the benefits of ICT in the classroom. To better understand the various advantages and disadvantages of using ICT in university teaching, findings of a major cross-sectional empirical study of the perceptions and practices of international business faculty located in fourteen countries are reported. The study identifies obstacles that prevent faculty from successfully using ICT, the level of institutional support provided, faculty intentions to use ICT during the next year, and significant differences by country in the types and amount of ICT faculty use. The primary advantages of using ICT in the classroom appear to be its positive impact on visual as well as audio learners, increased understanding of concepts, added excitement to presentations, and increased student interest. A lack of adequate training and support staff and increased preparation time are identified as the three most significant barriers.

Limited outlet distribution: Selective and exclusive channel distribution of the United States based national paper trade alliance firms

Abstract Within channels of distribution, the profitability of the wholesaler-distributor continues to be threatened from many sources. However, the imminent demise of the middleman that has been predicted for many years has yet to materialize. Those middlemen that do well have found ways of maintaining relevance and creating value. This paper seeks to evaluate how the participants in the supplier to distributor channel in a global industry both perceive and participate in selective or exclusive distribution, i.e. utilize a ‘Limited Outlet Distribution (LOD)’ strategy. Data were collected qualitatively through four case studies and quantitatively through the administration of an electronic questionnaire. Results indicate that selective or exclusive distribution strategies are being utilized in the channel, but more so by manufacturers than distributors.

Population growth and regional economy: an empirical analysis of business formation and job

This study investigates the effects of the components of population change - net migration and natural increase - on business starts and job generation in the retail sector of regional economies between 1975 and 1980. Results suggest that population growth has a strong positive impact on the retail sector in metropolitan core, suburban, non-metropolitan adjacent and rural counties in the USA. In the main, net migration had a greater impact on business starts than natural increase, although this pattern did not hold in every county group. By contrast, natural increase had a greater impact on job generation among existing retail businesses; this pattern was found to be consistent in each of the four types of counties studied.

Top management teams of international joint ventures in Thailand: the effects of Heterogeneity on group processes and goal attainment

The relationship between top management team composition, group processes, and the effects of those processes on goal attainment were examined for International Joint Venture (IJV) teams in Thailand. For these culturally diverse teams, heterogeneity was defined by demographic (member age, length of team tenure, education level, functional expertise) and cultural characteristics (country of education, nationality, affiliation with a parent organisation, and primary language spoken.) Overall, demographic heterogeneity most heavily influenced levels of trust, decision quality and decision implementation among team members. Cultural heterogeneity influenced the frequency of communication.

A cross-cultural comparison of problem solving beliefs and behaviours: helping managers understand country differences

This research looked at employee beliefs and behaviours about different problem solving approaches and their effectiveness. A large-scale survey was conducted on employees of 26 organisations located in seven countries Australia, Fiji, France, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, and the USA. While significant differences were found among different employee levels in how organisational problems are solved and the quality of those solutions, national culture, or country, appears to be the principal explanatory measure for these differences. The most important findings appear to be that organisations in individualistic nations are moving toward more collectivist approaches to problem solving, employees at all levels in their organisations are involved in problem solving, and problems appear to re-occur most often in US firms and least often in South Korean organisations.

Continuing Controversies and Ethical Issues in Global Marketing Management

The objective of this panel is to generate interest in controversial and ethical issues in Global Marketing Management. Each of the presenters will bring to the session his or her own experience and knowledge about these issues and will demonstrate that conclusions reached are dependent upon a person’s point of view.

Information and Communication Technology in the International Business Classroom: Comparing Faculty and Student Perspectives

ABSTRACT The use of information and communication technology (ICT) is revolutionizing traditional educational methods in university contexts and changing the process of how educators do their jobs. However, research offers conflicting views regarding the benefits of ICT in the classroom. To better understand the various advantages and disadvantages of using ICT, two major cross-sectional studies of the perceptions and practices of international samples of business faculty and students were conducted. The first study, published in this journal, identified perceived obstacles that prevent faculty from successfully using ICT. The second study was of student perceptions. This paper reports the results of that second study and identifies significant differences and similarities between faculty and student ideas of effective ICT use.

Successful Downsizing: The Case of the Boeing Reemployment Program

Introduction Faced with a downturn in the commercial aircraft business and reduced military spending, The Boeing Company was forced to downsize approximately 55,000 people over a five-year period. The companys management, organized labor, the local community, multiple levels of government, and community colleges collectively worked together to develop Reemployment Centers to assist in the transition of their specialized workforce into alternative forms of employment. The following is a description of how The Boeing Company successfully completed this effort at downsizing. Downsizing is thought to be an effective human resources strategy to increase global competitiveness. Labor costs, generally one of the largest costs for most organizations can be reduced through downsizing. In many cases the downsizing process includes outsourcing or subcontracting jobs previously performed within the organization. Although organizations often consider downsizing necessary in order to remain competitive, this strategy does not always result in increased organizational profitability and performance. One recent survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management reported that only 26% of firms reported productivity improvements while 58% said that productivity was flat or had declined after downsizing (The Washington Post, 1996). In addition, the study found that approximately 54% of companies surveyed cut jobs in 1994 but only 25% expected any further downsizing. Whatever the future course of downsizing, many companies have utilized this business strategy to meet the demands and challenges of U.S. and global competition. Why Companies downsize One of the primary reason that downsizing occurs is that jobs are subcontracted out, both domestically and internationally, to reduce corporate overhead. The Boeing Company is no different than many other multinational enterprises. There are three reasons that most companies subcontract jobs. The first is to lower the total costs of production. This is accomplished by relocating jobs to lower cost wage regions, either domestically or internationally. The subcontracting of jobs internationally not only lowers production costs, but also assists in gaining market share which is the second reason that many companies subcontract out component development. Sometimes firms are required by local content requirements to produce components locally. Other countries require production facilities in order to gain access to their market. For example, China and The Boeing Company celebrated 25 years of working together in June, 1996 (The Boeing News, 1996). Over the past few years, The Boeing Company has invested heavily in developing all areas of the aviation industry in China to the tune of