Moving Beyond Conventional Wisdom: Advancements in Cross-Cultural Theories of Leadership, Conflict, and Teams

Enhancing work relationships across cultures: The role of energy in cross-cultural work interactions

As culturally different individuals work together, energy may be employed as a resource towards building and sustaining a work relationship. However, current scholarship on energy at work and relational energy fail to take into account cultural considerations. To address this gap, we develop novel theory that distinguishes amongst various forms of energy to explicate how they are differentially interpreted in interactions based on cultural orientation. Integrating theories of interaction rituals and energy at work, our theorizing calls into question common assumptions in prior literature which privilege certain forms of energy expression (such as high intensity) over others (such as calm restraint). We further theorize that energy becomes a resource when culturally-different relationship partners go through a process of discovery as they interact, in which they learn about their partner’s energy contributions and communication preferences. Through adaptation, intercultural partners can then establish an equilibrium, or balanced state, of energy contributions to their interactions. The relational energy gained from reaching this equilibrium replenishes personal resources used in interdependent work with culturally diverse others. We explain how such resource enhancement plays a critical role in sustaining high quality interdependent work in multicultural organizations.

“One Size Does Not Fit All”: Revisiting Team Feedback Theories From a Cultural Dimensions Perspective

Feedback is a critical component of teamwork regulation. Research underscores the importance of feedback processes for its effectiveness in teams and further notes how individual differences can affect these processes. Nonetheless, few have theorized on the cultural dimensions associated with feedback to specify how these can attenuate such processes. We contend that research can be advanced by specifying how cultural dimensions may shape individual perception and processing of feedback and team processing of feedback in homogeneous and heterogeneous teams with respect to cultural dimensions. To address this foundational question, we review and integrate the literature on feedback in teams and culture in teams by (a) incorporating the role of culture in team feedback models, (b) discussing how cultural dimensions could influence the perception and processing of feedback, and (c) highlighting important directions for future inquiries at the intersection of feedback and cultural theories. We discuss the links between cultural dimensions derived from the field of intercultural communication and feedback behaviors and processes and provide propositions concerning culturally informed differences in specific feedback responses at individual and team levels.

Culture moderates changes in linguistic self-presentation and detail provision when deceiving others

Change in our language when deceiving is attributable to differences in the affective and cognitive experience of lying compared to truth telling, yet these experiences are also subject to substantial individual differences. On the basis of previous evidence of cultural differences in self-construal and remembering, we predicted and found evidence for cultural differences in the extent to which truths and lies contained self (versus other) references and perceptual (versus social) details. Participants (N = 320) of Black African, South Asian, White European and White British ethnicity completed a catch-the-liar task in which they provided genuine and fabricated statements about either their past experiences or an opinion and counter-opinion. Across the four groups we observed a trend for using more/fewer first-person pronouns and fewer/more third-person pronouns when lying, and a trend for including more/fewer perceptual details and fewer/more social details when lying. Contrary to predicted cultural differences in emotion expression, all participants showed more positive affect and less negative affect when lying. Our findings show that liars deceive in ways that are congruent with their cultural values and norms, and that this may result in opposing changes in behaviour.

Utilization of carrageenan, citric acid and cinnamon oil as an edible coating of chicken fillets to prolong its shelf life under refrigeration conditions

AIM

The present study was conducted to determine efficacy of edible coating of carrageenan and cinnamon oil to enhance the shelf life of chicken meat stored under refrigeration conditions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Chicken breast was coated with carrageenan and cinnamon oil by three methods of application viz., spraying brushing and dipping. The coated meat was evaluated for drip loss, pH, thiobarbituric acid number (TBA), tyrosine value (TV), extract release volume (ERV), Warner-Bratzler shear force value (WBSFV), instrumental color, microbiological, and sensory qualities as per standard procedures.

RESULTS

There was a significant difference observed for physicochemical parameters (pH, TBA, TV, ERV, drip loss and WBSFV) and microbiological analysis between storage periods in all the samples and between the control and treatments throughout the storage period but samples did not differed significantly for hunter color scores. However, there was no significant difference among three methods of application throughout the storage period though dipping had a lower rate of increase. A progressive decline in mean sensory scores was recorded along with the increase in storage time.

CONCLUSION

The carrageenan and cinnamon edible coating was found to be a good alternative to enhance the shelf life of chicken meat under refrigeration conditions. It was also observed from study that dipping method of the application had comparatively higher shelf life than other methods of application.