A critical analysis of cultural metaphors and static cultural frameworks with insight from cultural neuroscience and evolutionary biology

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 530-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mai Nguyen-Phuong-Mai
Keyword(s):  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Neuroscience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cultural Frameworks ◽  
Interdisciplinary Framework ◽  
The Mind

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to conduct a critical analysis to address cultural metaphors – a much overlooked aspect of cross-cultural studies. Mainstream cultural metaphors (e.g. the iceberg, the software of the mind, the onion, and the distance) are not only limited in number, but are also overwhelmingly based on the static paradigm – as opposed to the dynamic paradigm that is often sidelined in academic discourse. Design/methodology/approach The paper introduces the Diagram of Diversity Pathways – an interdisciplinary framework that sheds some light on how the inherent meaning and heuristic orientation of static cultural metaphors may stand at odds with evidence from the newly emerged field of neurobiology. Findings The implications of these metaphors are called into question, namely, culture is all about differences; values are stable; values guide behaviors; and values are seen as binaries. Research limitations/implications The paper suggests that theorists and practitioners should pay more attention to the contribution and scholarly work of the dynamic paradigm since there appears to be substantial compatibility between them. Originality/value The matching of neurobiology and dynamic paradigm brings into focus alternative metaphors which not only offer insightful perspectives but also may open doors to perceive culture in a new way. Furthermore, cultural metaphors deserve more academic scrutiny because metaphors and theory development can have a symbiotic existence.

Cross-cultural management and digital societies

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-115
Author(s):  
Dariusz Jemielniak
Keyword(s):  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Management Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Internet Studies ◽  
Cultural Management ◽  
Contemporary Research ◽  
Cross Cultural Management

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to see how digital societies’ studies can be inspired by cross-cultural management. Design/methodology/approach – Theory critical analysis and review. Findings – The paper reveals many similarities and analogies, allowing for useful connections between cross-cultural management research, and studying digital societies. Originality/value – By exposing methodological and theoretical links of cross-cultural management field in general, and Magala’s contribution in particular, the following paper helps in better understanding of contemporary research on digital societies, as well as allows for the use of already proven methodologies and approaches in the emerging field of the internet studies.

Haunted by the past: transformations and daily challenges of China's prosthetics

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-124
Author(s):  
Chunchun Wang
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Institutional Pressures ◽  
Rehabilitation Center ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Daily Experiences ◽  
History Of ◽  
Depth Interviews

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the transformations of prosthetic practices in China, as well as the daily experiences and dilemmas arising from the everchanging practices since 1949. On the basis of materials, this paper explores an everyday perspective to review the history of technology.Design/methodology/approachEthnography was collected with the application of participant observations, informal interviews and in-depth interviews during a 13-months study at a rehabilitation center in Chengdu, China. The literature on prosthetic manufacturing was also reviewed for this paper.FindingsChina's prosthetic technology seems to evolve from traditional to modern. However, this progressive narrative – innovation-based timeline (Edgerton, 2006, xi) – has been challenged by daily practices. Due to institutional pressures, prosthetists are in a dilemma of selectively using their knowledge to create one kind of device for all prosthesis users with a certain kind of disability, thereby regulating the physical and social experiences of prosthesis users. Besides, prosthesis users are accustomed to prostheses made with old techniques, and must correct themselves from old experiences to the daily practices recognized by the selected techniques.Originality/valueThis paper provides a cross-cultural case to reexamine Edgerton's criticism of the progressive and orderly innovation-centric technological narrative. More importantly, it reviews the history and practices of China's prosthetics from daily experiences rather than Edgerton's concentration on technology; therefore, it provides an everyday perspective for future research on technological transformations.

scholarly journals Toward Experimental International Business

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 530-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arjen van Witteloostuijn
Keyword(s):  
International Business ◽  
External Validity ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Internal Validity ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Experimental Laboratory ◽  
Experimental Management ◽  
Missed Opportunity

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to argue that the time is ripe to establish a powerful tradition in Experimental International Business (IB). Probably due to what the Arjen van Witteloostuijn refers to as the external validity myth, experimental laboratory designs are underutilized in IB, which implies that the internal validity miracle of randomized experimentation goes largely unnoticed in this domain of the broader management discipline. Design/methodology/approach – In the following pages, the author explains why the author believes this implies a missed opportunity, providing arguments and examples along the way. Findings – Although an Experimental Management tradition has never really gained momentum, to the author, the lab experimental design has a very bright future in IB (and management at large). To facilitate the development of an Experimental IB tradition, initiating web-based tools would be highly instrumental. This will not only boost further progress in IB research, but will also increase the effectiveness and playfulness of IB teaching. Originality/value – Given the high potential of an Experimental IB, the Cross-Cultural and Strategic Management journal will offer a platform for such exciting and intriguing laboratory work, cumulatively contributing to the establishment of an Experimental IB tradition.

Career satisfaction antecedents of professional accounting returnees in international workplaces: an employee experience perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nga Thi Thuy Ho ◽  
Hung Trong Hoang ◽  
Pi-Shen Seet ◽  
Janice Jones ◽  
Nhat Tan Pham
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Career Satisfaction ◽  
Home Country ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Work ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Employee Experience ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of career satisfaction of professional accounting returnees who have studied and/or worked abroad and then returned to work in different types of international workplaces in their home country.Design/methodology/approachA survey of professional accounting returnees in Vietnam was undertaken and multiple regression analysis was applied to test the proposed relationships.FindingsThis study finds that career satisfaction is affected by career fit, career sacrifice, types of international workplaces (domestically headquartered firms versus globally headquartered firms) and cross-cultural work readjustment. Further, cross-cultural work readjustment partially mediates the effect of career fit and career sacrifice on career satisfaction.Practical implicationsThe research provides the basis for designing career-related employee experiences to support career satisfaction of professional accounting returnees.Originality/valueThis study integrates dimensions of career embeddedness with cross-cultural work readjustment and employee experiences, which are normally studied separately, in different types of international workplaces. It contributes to the limited research on contributors to well-being in the form of career satisfaction among professional returnees in an emerging economy.

The fierce urgency to create safe spaces for the heart in relation to sustainability

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Livingstone
Keyword(s):  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Safe Spaces ◽  
Doctoral Research ◽  
The World ◽  
Moral Superiority ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Made In

Purpose The paper aims to rediscover the subtle heart and discuss its importance in relation to conversations regarding sustainability. Design/methodology/approach Based on the imaginal approach of the author’s doctoral research, this paper is informed by the discourse of transpersonal psychology, attempting to open a space through which it becomes possible to perceive the heart differently. Findings This paper discusses the idea that knowledge as generated through the heart has been rendered subservient to knowledge generated through the mind/brain through a dominant/medical narrative (Bound Alberti, 2012). This means that the heart’s wisdom and the heart’s benevolent qualities cannot gain traction at the level at which decisions are made in society. Research limitations/implications While the heart is not unproblematic, and can carry notions of moral superiority, this paper is written as an appeal to create safe enough spaces to bring the heart back into conversation at the level of political discourse. Practical implications This paper suggests that it is the approach of the heart, the qualities and characteristics that the heart embodies, and the different way of being in the world that the heart makes possible, which could play an important role in guiding us towards a more sustainable world. When taken seriously, the heart offers a way of engaging with, and thinking about, ideas of relationship, wholeness and interconnection – all of which have been identified as important by numerous scholars in relation to engaging with global challenges (de Witt, 2016). Social implications This paper suggests that it is the approach of the heart and the different way of being in the world that the heart makes possible, which could play an important role in guiding humanity towards a more sustainable world. Originality/value Since the late 1900s, scholars have been calling for creative thinking in relation to engaging with the myriad of issues facing our planet, and this paper is written as a response to that call – creating a platform for the heart to speak and making a case for its importance in conversations relating to sustainability.

“Toxic Masculinity” in the age of #MeToo: ritual, morality and gender archetypes across cultures

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 274-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Paul Louis Veissière
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Moral Panics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ideal Types ◽  
Biological Sex ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Gender Archetypes ◽  
Cultural Shifts

Purpose This paper aims to take the “toxic masculinity” (TM) trope as a starting point to examine recent cultural shifts in common assumptions about gender, morality and relations between the sexes. TM is a transculturally widespread archetype or moral trope about the kind of man one should not be. Design/methodology/approach The author revisits his earlier fieldwork on transnational sexualities against a broader analysis of the historical, ethnographic and evolutionary record. The author describes the broad cross-cultural recurrence of similar ideal types of men and women (good and bad) and the rituals through which they are culturally encouraged and avoided. Findings The author argues that the TM trope is normatively useful if and only if it is presented alongside a nuanced spectrum of other gender archetypes (positive and negative) and discussed in the context of human universality and evolved complementariness between the sexes. Social implications The author concludes by discussing stoic virtue models for the initiation of boys and argues that they are compatible with the normative commitments of inclusive societies that recognize gender fluidity along the biological sex spectrum. Originality/value The author makes a case for the importance of strong gender roles and the rites and rituals through which they are cultivated as an antidote to current moral panics about oppression and victimhood.

A cross-cultural analysis of factors influencing choice in volunteering activities

2015 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan H. Offstein ◽  
Rebecca M. Chory ◽  
J. Stephen Childers Jr
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Business Students ◽  
Organizational Structures ◽  
Cultural Analysis ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Situational Variables ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Thoughtful Reflection ◽  
Cross Cultural Analysis

Purpose – This study aims to offer insights into the contextual and situational variables that influence volunteering choices. Design/methodology/approach – An analysis of European and US business students’ volunteering experiences is performed. Cross-cultural and experiential outcomes are compared and contrasted at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Findings – A majority of volunteering decisions are made without thoughtful reflection, based on convenience in an effort to reduce personal hardship, and influenced heavily by institutional and organizational structures. Originality/value – These results call into question the notion that volunteering-related choices are deeply personal, purposeful and/or reflective decisions. Moreover, the findings begin to explain why volunteerism continues to be dogged by labels such as “ineffective”, “inefficient” or “lacking in value” when benchmarked against expectations.

Studying dementia: the relevance of the fourth age

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 241-243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Gilleard ◽  
Paul Higgs
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Cultural Significance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Fellow Citizen ◽  
Social Nature ◽  
Cultural Imaginary ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Person With Dementia

Purpose – To better understand the social nature of dementia, it is important to understand its cultural significance and the role that it plays in re-articulating later life. In this new terrain of ageing it may be worth exploring how the idea of the fourth age can help us better understand the nature of dementia and the way in which its cultural role affects both social and health policies. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – Gilleard and Higgs (2010) argue that the fourth age now serves as a “cultural imaginary” of the deepest and darkest aspects of old age and that dementia figures prominently in fashioning it. Findings – The scope for exploring dementia as a component of the cultural imaginary of the fourth age has already been demonstrated through the small but growing number of studies that have explored the fear of dementia. Originality/value – An avenue for further exploration is the distinction between a fear of losing one's mind (as in the pre-modern meaning of dementia) and the fear of losing one's place (as in the loss of status associated with dependency). Arguably the former exercises a greater influence than the latter, and raises the question of distinguishing between narratives and practices that sustain the mind of the person with dementia and those that sustain the position of the person with dementia as fellow citizen or fellow countryman or woman.

The future is now: calling for a focus on temporal issues in information system research

2021 ◽  
Vol 121 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-47
Author(s):  
Viswanath Venkatesh ◽  
Tracy Ann Sykes ◽  
Ruba Aljafari ◽  
Marshall Scott Poole
Keyword(s):  
Information System ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
System Research ◽  
Dynamic Nature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information System Research ◽  
Study Designs

PurposeAs information systems (IS) phenomena continue to emerge and evolve in our ever-changing economic and social contexts, researchers need to increase their focus on time in order to enrich our theories. The purpose of this paper is to present broad suggestions for IS researchers about how they can direct some of their research efforts to consider, conceptualize and incorporate time into research endeavors and how they might be mindful about considering and specifying time-related scope conditions of their research efforts.Design/methodology/approachThe authors synthesize empirical studies and discuss three distinct yet related frameworks of time and the benefits they can provide. The authors choose two research streams that reflect dynamic economic and social contexts – namely, enterprise systems and social networks – to illustrate how time and frameworks of time can be leveraged in our theory development and research design.FindingsThe authors demonstrate that limited research in IS has incorporated a rich conceptualization and/or discussion of time. The authors build on this gap to highlight guidelines that researchers can adopt to enrich their view of time.Originality/valueGiven the dynamic nature of IS phenomena and the increased availability of longitudinal data, the authors’ suggestions aim to urge and guide IS researchers about ways in which they can incorporate time into their theory and study designs.

New theories and organization research: from the eyes of change

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Masoud Shadnam
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organizational Reality ◽  
Organization Research

PurposeIn recent years, organization scholars have engaged in several conversations about the process of theory development, and offered many proposals for building new theories of organization. The purpose of this paper is to highlight a fundamental, fruitful and often neglected method for developing new theories of organization.Design/methodology/approachThis paper draws on Peirce's typology of reasoning: deduction, induction and abduction. This typology helps in analyzing and categorizing the extant proposals for developing new theories of organization, and also makes it visible what approach has been most often missing.FindingsThis paper shows that the offered proposals can be categorized into the following two models: (1) armchair theorizing; (2) present capturing. This categorization also highlights a third model – change sensitizing – that is based on shifting organization theories by sensitizing ourselves to macro shifts of organizational reality.Originality/valueAlthough the change sensitizing model is an unusual, marginal practice in today's organization research, it has historically been used to develop many of the renowned theories in social sciences. If taken as a serious agenda, it has the potential to generate a host of new, valuable theories of organization.

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