CROSS CULTURAL AWARENESS

Cross Cultural Awareness

Cultural Affect on Arab Business

Introduction

Ali (1990) took the position that Arab management thought is fragmented and suffers from direction and identity problems. This position was strengthened during the Kuwaiti crisis (1990-91), its aftermath, and problems associated with the sharp decline in oil revenue after 1982 (e.g., curtailing public spending, privatization of state enterprises, and shift in group alliances). The crises were deep and uncovered how susceptible the Arab states were to foreign influences, pointing not only to the impotency of Arab political thought, but also to the failure of Arab economic and social systems and their inadequacy to deal with internal and external threats.

Discussion

The failure has various practical and theoretical implications for business. The most important one is that management thinking has not made progress in analyzing or in anticipating major events. That is, Arab scholars failed to predict the severity of the economic pressures faced by the Arab regimes, their foreign debt crisis, their urgent needs for cash flow, and their international and external obligations and expectations.

This is where Arab management scholars and practitioners fail to take notice. A quick glance at the Arab management textbooks and writing shows that the majority are mere translations and repetitions of American, and to some extent, European management theories (e.g., Assaf, 1983; Raauf, 1979). Likewise, most major business and government institutions imitate foreign procedures, regulations, and organizational structures. This paper argues that at this particular time there is no Arab management profession and that Arab management theory is, at best, in an early stage of development. Three interrelated issues are tackled. First, we examine the forces that influence the direction of Arab management thinking. Second, we clarify the issue of cultural discontinuity and its impact on management in the Arab world. Finally, we identify some potentially important variables that affect Arab management thought.

Cultural discontinuity and the demise of Arab creativity

Just before the birth of Islam, Arabs were divided into competing states and tribes. For example, the Lakhmids, with their capital at Hira (midwest of Iraq), and the Ghussanids state in modern Syria frequently quarreled with each other and often allied themselves with the Persian and Byzantine empires, respectively. Islam was able to unite the Arabs into a single dynamic nation. It was during the early centuries of Islam (622-1258) that the Arabs contributed to enriching civilization and to establishing a state. The Arabs were armed with a simple but practical idealogy (Islam) that focused on equity among people, hard work, and the belief in one god. The internalization of Islamic concepts strengthened certain qualities: honesty, trust, solidarity, loyalty, and flexibility. Thus, Arabs were attentive to foreign contributions and approached the new events with enthusiasm and confidence.

Islam emerged in Arabia when the community was thriving commercially and intellectually. Naturally, members of the commercial class assumed political position and leadership. It is this class of "merchant warriors" who were able to integrate the Arab world and transformed it into a center for international ...