Personality Effects on the Endorsement of Ethically Questionable Negotiation Strategies: Business Ethics in Canada and China

This study explores personality effects on the endorsement of ethically questionable negotiation strategies in Canada and China. With a sample of over 400 business professionals, this study examines the relationship between the Big Five personality traits and the perceived appropriateness of five categories of negotiation strategies in the two cultures. The results show that the Big Five personality traits strongly affect the endorsement of ethically questionable negotiation strategies (EQNS) both in Canada and in China, but in different ways. For Canadian negotiators, individuals high in conscientiousness, extraversion, and openness are more prone to use EQNS, and individuals high in emotional stability and agreeableness are less likely to use them. For negotiators from Mainland China, only agreeableness and emotional stability are negatively associated with the endorsement of the EQNS. Implications for research on business ethics and for negotiation practitioners and policymakers are then discussed.

The Influence of Confucian Ideology on Conflict in Chinese Family Business

The dual-concern conflict model argues that choice of conflict strategies are based on two concerns: concern for interests or goals of self and other. This article argues that the dual-concern model may only partially account for choice of conflict management strategies in Chinese family businesses, particularly in families that are strongly influenced by Confucianism. The article uses Confucian values and norms, which are an ancient set of guidelines for social interaction, as the basis for introducing additional concerns to explain choice of conflict strategies in Chinese family businesses: concern for relationships, interpersonal norms, and collective interests. Two sets of moderating variables are introduced based on the unique features of Confucian ideology. They include differences in age, status, and gender between conflicting parties, and types of conflict – normative or personal goal related, and task or relationship. Propositions summarize the major arguments.

Chinese Conflict Management Styles and Negotiation Behaviours

China has been one of the most important markets for western firms, but negotiating with the Chinese is quite a challenging task. Researchers have been investigating the distinctness in Chinese negotiation and conflict management styles, but have yet to provide solid evidence for it. An attempt is made in this study to illustrate how Chinese people approach conflicts, and thus how this affects their negotiation behaviours during business negotiation, which provides an empirical test of Chinese conflict management styles and their impact on negotiation outcomes. Results show that compromising and avoiding are the most preferred methods of conflict management in China, while accommodating and competing lead to more satisfaction during business negotiation. Managerial implications and future studies are then discussed.

Cross-Cultural Organizational Behavior

This article reviews research on cross-cultural organizational behavior (OB). After a brief review of the history of cross-cultural OB, we review research on work motivation, or the factors that energize, direct, and sustain effort across cultures. We next consider the relationship between the individual and the organization, and review research on culture and organizational commitment, psychological contracts, justice, citizenship behavior, and person-environment fit. Thereafter, we consider how individuals manage their interdependence in organizations, and review research on culture and negotiation and disputing, teams, and leadership, followed by research on managing across borders and expatriation. The review shows that developmentally, cross-cultural research in OB is coming of age. Yet we also highlight critical challenges for future research, including moving beyond values to explain cultural differences, attending to levels of analysis issues, incorporating social and organizational context factors into cross-cultural research, taking indigenous perspectives seriously, and moving beyond intracultural comparisons to understand the dynamics of cross-cultural interfaces.