CRITICAL EVALUATION

Critical Evaluation

Critical Evaluation

Introduction

Cultural distance relates to the extent to which members of the same group differ on various grounds such as political opinions and ideologies, economic and social conditions, their views and theories regarding reality, their religious beliefs, their native languages, and so on.

Various attempts have been made by a number of authors in the past to address the significance of cultural distance and the impact it has made on managers that are working on an international level. Existing managerial practices are influenced by these contemporary theories and notions. However, majority of them treat cultural distance as an absolute measure, one which is treated on a unilateral basis.

Chapman's study is a “...ethnographic account of cultural difference” which mainly focuses on the perceptual element of cultural distance, by taking into account the complex issues which had not been addressed by earlier studies. It finds its roots in the previous studies but grows further from them by proposing that cultural distance should be explained in a bilateral context instead of unilateral one. The study is based on the collection of primary data from 63 face-to-face interviews with managers in different companies located in Germany, Poland, and United Kingdom. The main purpose of this study is to focus on the experiences and perceptions of managers in Poland, Germany, and United Kingdom.

This paper aims to critically evaluate the selected literature “Close neighbours and distant friends - perceptions of cultural distance” for the approach that it has adopted, the research design that has been incorporated, and any alternative course of action that could have been taken. A number of comparisons have been made in previous studies and this one, and the suggestions have also been made for future courses of action and avenues for further future research.

Discussion

The Literature Review

The literature review serves as a good foundation for the proposed research. It draws on from a number of sources, including Shenkar, Hofstede, and Leung. Since the study was ethnographic in nature, it focused on the individual differences and similarities that contribute to the formation of cultural distance. The article was highly influenced by Shenkar's work, as stated by the authors themselves. However, it gave an extensive view of his work by adding another illusion: the illusion of neutrality. Also, the authors have realized that Hofstede's work was over-simplified in nature and does not provide for a comprehensive account of a detailed or unbiased analysis. It also states that the simplification of the theory was being widely followed in contemporary managerial literature. The good part is that it also acknowledges that newer studies have identified the negative impact of Hofstede's influence (Hofstede 1984, pp.81-99). His work was elementary at the time when the field was relatively newer, however, now, the author proposes to look into a “systems view of culture”.

The presented literature also identifies the contrast and comparison being done between similar terms, such as 'culture', and 'individual'. It also differs from Sousa and Bradley's study in that instead of the differences, it focuses on the similarities ...