Hostname: page-component-7b9c58cd5d-bslzr Total loading time: 0.001 Render date: 2025-03-16T00:10:24.192Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Breaking the Silence Culture: Stimulation of Participation andEmployee Opinion Withholding Cross-nationally

Part of: Cross Cultural Collection

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Xu Huang ,
Evert Van de Vliert  and
Gerben Van der Vegt
Xu Huang
Affiliation:
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Horn, Kowloon
Evert Van de Vliert
Affiliation:
University of Groningen
Gerben Van der Vegt
Affiliation:
University of Groningen
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

We investigated the relationship between the national cultural value ofpower distance and collective silence as well as the role of voice-inducingmechanisms in breaking the organizational silence. Using data from 421organizational units of a multinational company in 24 countries, we foundthat both formalized employee involvement and a participative climateencouraged employees to voice their opinions in countries with a small powerdistance culture. In large power distance cultures, formalized employeeinvolvement is related to employee voices only under a strong perceivedparticipative climate.

Type
Articles
Information
Management and Organization Review , Volume 1 , Issue 3 , November 2005 , pp. 459 - 482
Copyright
Copyright © International Association for Chinese Management Research 2005

References

Argyle, M., Hengerson, M., Bond, M., Iizuka, Y. and Contarello, A. (1986). ‘Cross-cultural variations in relationship rules’. International Journal of Psychology, 21, 287–315.10.1080/00207598608247591Google Scholar
Ashford, S.J., Rothbard, N. P., Piderit, S. K. and Dutton, J. E. (1998). ‘Out on a limb: The role of context and impression management in selling gender-equity issues’. Administrative Science Quarterly, 43, 23–57.10.2307/2393590Google Scholar
Aycan, Z., Kanungo, R. N. and Sinha, J. B. P. (1999). Organizational culture and human resource management practices: The model of culture fit. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 30, 501–26.10.1177/0022022199030004006Google Scholar
Becker, B. and Gerhart, B. (1996). ‘The impact of human resource management on organizational performance: Progress and prospects’. Academy of Management Journal, 39, 770–801.Google Scholar
Berger, P. L. and Luckmann, T. (1967). The Social Construction of Reality. New York: Doubleday.Google Scholar
Bies, R.J. and Tripp, T. M. (1999). ‘Two faces of the powerless: Coping with tyranny’. In Kramer, R. M. and Neale, M. A. (Eds.), Power and Influence in Organizations (pp. 203–19). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Boroff, K. E. and Lewin, D. (1997). ‘Loyalty, voice, and intent to exit a union firm: A conceptual and empirical analysis’. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 51, 50–65.10.2307/2525034Google Scholar
Bowen, D. and Ostroff, C. (2004). ‘Understanding HRM-firm performance linkages: The role of the “strength of the HRM system’ Academy of Management Review, 29, 203–21.Google Scholar
Bowen, F. and Blackmon, K. (2003). ‘Spirals of silence: The dynamic effects of diversity on organizational voice’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1393–4-17.10.1111/1467-6486.00385Google Scholar
Brewster, C. (2004). ‘Human resource practices in multinational companies’. In Gannon, M.J. and Newman, K. L. (Eds.), Handbook of Cross-Cultural Management (pp. 126–41). Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Burns, J. M. (1978). Leadership. New York: Harper and Row.Google Scholar
Coye, R. W. and Belohlav, J. A. (1995). ‘An exploratory analysis of employee participation’. Group and Organization Management, 20, 4–17.10.1177/1059601195201002Google Scholar
Creed, W. E. D. (2003). ‘Voice lessons: Tempered radicalism and the use of voice and silence’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1503–3610.1111/1467-6486.00389Google Scholar
Daily, B. F. and Bishop, J. W. (2003). ‘TQM workforce factors and employee involvement: The pivotal role of teamwork’. Journal of Managerial Issues, 15, 393–412.Google Scholar
Deci, E. L., Connell, J. P. and Ryan, R. M. (1989). ‘Self-determination in a work organization’. Journal of Applied Psychology, 74, 580–90.10.1037/0021-9010.74.4.580Google Scholar
Deming, W. E. (1986). The New Economics for Industry, Government, Education. Boston, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar
Edmondson, A. G. (2003). ‘Speaking up in the operating room: How team leaders promote learning in interdisciplinary action teams’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1419–52.10.1111/1467-6486.00386Google Scholar
Erez, M. (1994). ‘Toward a model of cross-cultural industrial and organizational psychology’. In Dunnette, M. D. and Hough, L. M. (Eds.), Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (pp. 559–607). Palo Alto, CA, USA: Consulting Psychologists Press.Google Scholar
Erez, A., Lepine, J. A. and Elms, H. (2002). ‘Effects of rotated leadership and peer evaluation on the functioning and effectiveness of self-managed teams: A quasi-experiment’. Personnel Psychology, 55, 932–47.Google Scholar
Eylon, D. and Au, K. Y. (1999). ‘Exploring empowerment cross-cultural differences along the power distance dimension’. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 23, 373–85.10.1016/S0147-1767(99)00002-4Google Scholar
Foegen, J. H. (1999). ‘Why not empowerment?’ Business and Economic Review, 45, 31–3.Google Scholar
Goldstein, H., Rasbash, J., Plewis, I., Draper, D., Browne, W., Yang, M., Woodhouse, G. and Healy, M. (1998). A User's Guide to MLwiN University of London.Google Scholar
Gollan, P.J. and Davis, E. M. (2001). ‘Employee involvement and organizational change: The diffusion of high involvement management in Australian workplaces’. In Markey, R., Gollan, P., Hodgkinson, A., Chouraqui, A. and Veersma, U. (Eds.), Models of Employee Participation in a Changing Global Environment: Diversity and Interaction (pp. 56–80). Singapore: Ashgate.Google Scholar
Gorden, W. I., Infante, D. A. and Graham, E. E. (1988). ‘Corporate conditions conducive to employee voice: A subordinate perspective’. Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 1, 101–11.10.1007/BF01385039Google Scholar
Hofstede, G. H. (1991). Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind. McGraw-Hill: London.Google Scholar
Hua, H., Chin, K. S., Sun, H. and Xu, Y. (2000). ‘An empirical study on quality management practices in Shanghai manufacturing industries’. Total Quality Management, 11, 1111–2210.1080/095441200440368Google Scholar
Huang, X. and Van de Vliert, E. (2003). ‘Where intrinsic motivation fails to work: National moderators of intrinsic motivation’. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 24, 159–7910.1002/job.186Google Scholar
Huselid, M. (1995). ‘The impact of human resource management practices on turnover, productivity, and corporate financial performance’. Academy of Management Journal, 38, 635–72.10.2307/256741Google Scholar
Ilgen, D. R., Fisher, C. D. and Taylor, M. S. (1979). ‘Consequences of individual feedback on behavior in organizations’. Journal of Applied Psychology, 64, 349–71.10.1037/0021-9010.64.4.349Google Scholar
James, L. R. (1982). ‘Aggregation bias in estimates of perceptual agreement’. Journal of Applied Psychology, 67, 219–29.10.1037/0021-9010.67.2.219Google Scholar
Johnson, J. D., Donohue, W. A., Atkin, C. K. and Johnson, S. (2001). ‘Communication, involvement, and perceived innovativeness’. Group and Organization Management, 26, 24–52.10.1177/1059601101261003Google Scholar
Juran, J. M. (1988). Juran on Planning for Quality. New York, NY: Free Press.Google Scholar
Kim, S. (2002). ‘Parcipative management and job satisfaction. Lessons for management leadership’. Public Administration Review, 62, 231–41.10.1111/0033-3352.00173Google Scholar
Kirkbride, P. S., Tang, S. F. Y. and Westwood, R. I. (1991). ‘Chinese conflict preferences and negotiating behaviour: Cultural and psychological influences’. Organization Studies, 13, 365–86.Google Scholar
Kopelman, R. E., Brief, A. P. and Guzzo, R. A. (1990). ‘The role of climate and culture in productivity’. In Schneider, B., (Ed.), Organizational Climate and Culture (pp. 282–318). Oxford: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Krefting, L. and Powers, K. J. (1998). ‘Exercised voice as management failure: Implications of willing compliance theories of management and individualism for de facto employee voice’. Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 11, 263–77.10.1023/A:1027396525970Google Scholar
Leana, C. R., Ahlbrandt, R. S. and Murrell, A. J. (1992). ‘The effects of employee involvement programs on unionized workers’ attitudes, perceptions, and preferences in decision making’. Academy of Management Journal, 35, 861–73.10.2307/256319Google Scholar
Lee, C. Y. (2004). ‘Perception and development of total quality management in small manufacturers: An exploratory study in China’. Journal of Small Business Management, 42, 102–15.10.1111/j.1540-627X.2004.00100.xGoogle Scholar
Mackie, K. S., Holahan, C. K. and Gottlieb, N. H. (2001). ‘Employee involvement management practices, work stress, and depression in employees of a human services residential care facility’. Human Relations, 54, 1065–92.10.1177/0018726701548004Google Scholar
Marchington, M., Wilkinson, A., Ackers, P. and Goodman, J. (1994). ‘Understanding the meaning of participation: Views from the workplace’. Human Relations, 47, 867–94.10.1177/001872679404700801Google Scholar
Markey, R. (2001). ‘Introduction: Global patterns of participation’. In Markey, R., Gollan, P., Hodgkinson, A., Chouraqui, A. and Veersma, U. (Eds.), Models of Employee Participation in a Changing Global Environment: Diversity and Interaction (pp. 3–22). Singapore: Ashgate.Google Scholar
Miceli, M. P. and Near, J. P. (1992). Blowing the Whistle. New York: Lexington Books.Google Scholar
Milliken, F. J., Morrison, E. W. and Hewlin, P. F. (2003). ‘An exploratory study of employee silence: Issues that employees don’t communicate upward and why’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1453–76.10.1111/1467-6486.00387Google Scholar
Mintzberg, H. (1979). The Structuring of Organizations: A Synthesis of the Research. London: Prentice Hall International.Google Scholar
Morrison, E. W. and Milliken, F. J. (2000). ‘Organizational silence: A barrier to change and development in a pluralistic world’. Academy of Management Review, 25, 706–25.Google Scholar
Noesjirwan, J. (1978). ‘A rule-based analysis of cultural differences in social behavior: Indonesia and Australia’. International Journal of Psychology, 13, 305–16.10.1080/00207597808246634Google Scholar
Noronha, C. (2002). ‘Culture-specific TQM in China: Case studies for theoretical consideration’. Asian Business and Management, 1, 125–45.10.1057/palgrave.abm.9200008Google Scholar
Parker, M. P. (1997). National Cultures of the World: A Statistical Reference. Westport, CT; London: Greenwood Press.Google Scholar
Piderit, S. K. and Ashford, S. J. (2003). ‘Breaking silence: Tactical choices women managers make in speaking up about gender-equity issues’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1477–502.10.1111/1467-6486.00388Google Scholar
Premeaux, S. F. and Bedeian, A. G. (2003). ‘Breaking the silence: The moderating effects of self-monitoring in predicting speaking up in the workplace’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1537–62.10.1111/1467-6486.00390Google Scholar
Robert, C., Probst, T. M., Martocchio, J. J., Drasgow, F. and Lawler, J. J. (2000). ‘Empowerment and continuous improvement in the United States, Mexico, Poland, and India: Predicting fit on the basis of the dimensions of power distance and individualism’. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85, 643–58.10.1037/0021-9010.85.5.643Google Scholar
Rosen, S. and Tesser, A. (1970). ‘On reluctance to communicate undesirable information: The MUM effect’. Sociometry, 33, 253–63.10.2307/2786156Google Scholar
Rusbult, C. E., Farrell, D., Rogers, G. and Mainous, A. G. III. (1988). ‘Impact of exchange variables on exit, voice, loyalty, and neglect: An integrative model of response to declining job satisfaction’. Academy of Management Journal, 31, 599–627 10.2307/256461Google Scholar
Ryan, K. D. and Oestreich, D. K. (1991). Driving Fear out of the Workplace: How to Overcome the Invisible Barriers to Quality, Productivity, and Innovation. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Salancik, G. and Pfeffer, J. (1978). ‘A social information processing approach to job attitudes and task design’. Administrative Science Quarterly, 23, 224–5310.2307/239256310307892Google Scholar
Saunders, D. M., Sheppard, B. H., Knight, V. and Roth, J. (1992). ‘Employee voice to supervisors’. Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 5, 241–59.10.1007/BF01385051Google Scholar
Smith, P. B., Dugan, S., Peterson, M. F. and Leung, K. (1998). ‘Individualism: Collectivism and the handling of disagreement. A 23 country study’. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 22, 351–67.10.1016/S0147-1767(98)00012-1Google Scholar
Spencer, D. G. (1986). ‘Employee voice and employee retention’. Academy of Management Journal, 29, 488–502.10.2307/256220Google Scholar
Tesluk, P. E., Farr, J. L., Mathieu, J. E. and Vance, R.J. (1995). ‘Generalization of employee involvement training to the job setting: Individual and situational effects’. Personnel Psychology, 48, 607–32.10.1111/j.1744-6570.1995.tb01773.xGoogle Scholar
Van Dyne, L., Ang, S. and Botero, I. C. (2003). ‘Conceptualizing employee silence and employee voice as multidimensional constructs’. Journal of Management Studies, 40, 1359–92.10.1111/1467-6486.00384Google Scholar
Weick, K. E. (1995). Sensemaking in Organizations. London: Sage.Google Scholar
Zand, D. E. (1972). ‘Trust and administrative problem solving’. Administrative Science Quarterly, 17, 229–39.10.2307/2393957Google Scholar