Question

Most motivation theories in use today were developed in the United States by Americans and about Americans. Of those that were not, many have been strongly influenced by American theories. But several motivation theories do not apply to all cultures. For example, Maslow’s theory does not often hold outside the United States. In countries higher on uncertainty avoidance (such as Greece and Japan) as compared with those lower on uncertainty avoidance (such as the United States), security motivates employees more strongly than does self-actualization. Employees in high-uncertainty-avoidance countries often consider job security and lifetime employment more important than holding a more interesting or challenging job. Also contrasting with the American pattern, social needs often dominate the motivation of workers in countries such as Denmark, Norway, and Sweden that stress the quality of life over materialism and productivity.

When researchers tested Herzberg’s theory outside the United States, they encountered different results. In New Zealand, for example, supervision and interpersonal relationships appear to contribute significantly to satisfaction and not merely to reducing dissatisfaction. Similarly, researchers found that citizens of Asia, Canada, Europe, Latin America, the Republic of Panama, and the West Indies cited certain extrinsic factors as satisfiers with greater frequency than did their American counterparts. In other words, the factors that motivate U.S. employees may not spark the same motivation in employees in other cultures. Some of the major differences among the cultural groups include the following:

1. English-speaking countries such as England and the United States rank higher on individual achievement and lower on the desire for security.
2. French-speaking countries and areas such as France and the province of Quebec in Canada, although similar to the English-speaking countries, give greater importance to security and somewhat less to challenging work.
3. Northern European countries such as Sweden have less interest in getting ahead and work towards recognition goals and place more emphasis on job accomplishment. In addition, they have more concern for people and less for the organization as a whole (it is important that their jobs not interfere with their personal lives).
4. Latin American and Southern European countries find individual achievement somewhat less important; Southern Europeans place the highest emphasis on job security, whereas both groups of countries emphasize fringe benefits.
5. Germany ranks high on security and fringe benefits and among the highest on getting ahead.
6. Japan, although low on advancement, also ranks second-highest on challenge and lowest on autonomy, with a strong emphasis on good working conditions and a friendly working environment.

Critical Thinking Questions
1. In today’s global business environment, with its diversity of perspectives, can a manager ever successfully use equity theory? Why or why not?
2. What impact, if any, do these cultural differences have on managers managing an entirely American workforce? Explain.

Answer 1

1) Yes, no matter how diverse the environment or perspectives might be , the use of equity theory will always stay relevant for today as well as in future.

With the growing awareness of businesses towards corporate ethics , more emphasis is laid down on the concept of using morality and fairness in routine operations. And this introduction of ethical standards in business ensures the existence of equity theory in workplace which holds that there should be a fair balance to be established between the inputs put by the employee and the output achieved by the employee so as to discharge fairness and equality.

The new technological advancements, innovations or changes in mentality taking place cannot over shadow the core values and principles of fundamental rights demonstrating fairness, equality and justice. These core values have not lost its significance no matter how much profit driven an organization has become.

Moreover only those organizations who are able to satisfy its stakeholders through implementing impartiao, equality and fairness are only able to thrive in the intense competition.

As per the equity theory the main inputs can be the, time , hard work, knowledge, acceptance, enthusiasm, etc put by the employees in the workplace for which they expect to receive outputs equivalent to the inputs such as in the form of salary, benefits, recognition, incentives and economic security.

Equity theory ensures that an organization is able to attract top talents in the highly competitive environment where employees have so many options to opt for,,,, and also enables the business to satisfy its existing stakeholders and attain sustainability to survive in the dynamic environment.

2) The various cultural differences that a manager might face while managing an entirely American workforce will not be so significant as in managing culturally diverse workforce.

Managing entirely American Workforce , will mean that the manager will have to only satisfy the needs of US based culture. They will manage the workforce depending on the nature of the American culture and applying the motivational theories that will suit the Workforce based in America. And as explained above the managers will not have to take keen measures in ensuring that economic security is being provided to the workforce as American culture scores low on uncertainty avoidance and better prefer challenging tasks.

So if the manager's workforce is composed of just Americans, he would not get impacted by these cultural differences as the differences in perspective and mentality will not be so diverse as found in culturally diverse workforce such as employees from Greece, England, Asia, Japan etc , and thus does not need to take into consideration the various cultural differences present in these cultures as American workforce will have similar mentality attained by their place of upbringing.

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