Cultural gap bridging in multinational teams

Multinational teams are an organizational reality, but they present several challenges. The literature suggests that individuals with multicultural identities are more likely to show behaviors that aim at improving intercultural interactions in multinational teams, though scholars have yet to determ...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of international business studies 2020-10, Vol.51 (8), p.1283-1311
Main Authors: Backmann, Julia, Kanitz, Rouven, Tian, Amy Wei, Hoffmann, Patrick, Hoegl, Martin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Behavior
Business and Management
Business Strategy/Leadership
Cultural differences
Cultural identity
Intelligence
International Business
Management
Multiculturalism & pluralism
Organization
Teams
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Multinational teams are an organizational reality, but they present several challenges. The literature suggests that individuals with multicultural identities are more likely to show behaviors that aim at improving intercultural interactions in multinational teams, though scholars have yet to determine the precise nature of these behaviors. We address this research gap in a multimethod two-study design by identifying five team cultural gap bridging behaviors (CGB behaviors: facilitating, translating, integrating, mediating, and empathetic comforting). In Study 1, we draw on one qualitative and two quantitative datasets to identify within-team CGB behaviors and develop a measure of CGB behaviors. In Study 2, drawing from two-wave survey data, we investigate and find support for the direct relationships between cultural identity plurality and CGB behaviors and the indirect relationships via cultural intelligence.
ISSN:0047-2506
1478-6990
DOI:10.1057/s41267-020-00310-4