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Globally competent leadership : comparison between U.S. American and mainland Chinese conceptualization of effective leadership

Author

Robert Leisey, University of the Pacific

Date of Award

2010

Document Type

Thesis - Pacific Access Restricted

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Department

Intercultural Relations

First Advisor

Janet Bennett

Second Advisor

Christopher Deal

First Committee Member

Kent Warren

Abstract

This project was conducted with the objective of measuring differences between U.S. American and Chinese preferences for specific leadership characteristics and behaviors. An online survey was administered to U.S. American and Chinese nationals working in U.S.-based multinational corporations (MNCs). Respondents were asked to indicate the extent to which they considered 112 characteristics or behaviors to contribute to or inhibit effective leadership. The data were statistically analyzed to measure variances in how the two samples responded to each item, and to provide insight into what characteristics or behaviors contribute to or inhibit effective leadership in China and in the U.S. The research findings were compared with cross-cultural/intercultural leadership literature, in particular the global leadership and organizational behavior effectiveness project (GLOBE).

Several of the findings of this study are similar to those previous research projects conducted on U.S. and Chinese people. Specifically, charismatic and team oriented leadership, which previous research suggests are universal facilitators of effective leadership, were found to facilitate effective leadership. Additionally, many of the individual leader attributes found to facilitate effective leadership in the U.S and China respectively, were also reported to do so in this study. However, the findings also suggest that Chinese orientation towards uncertainty may be weakening, whereas the U.S. data provide a moderate level of support that suggests that the U.S. orientation along the in-group collectivism dimension is strengthening. Unfortunately, due to an unexpectedly small sample size, the findings of this project are limited in their utility. This project did, however, provide invaluable insight into the process of leadership research in China that will inform the design and further define the scope of the second phase of the research.

Pages

121

Recommended Citation

Leisey, Robert. (2010). Globally competent leadership : comparison between U.S. American and mainland Chinese conceptualization of effective leadership. University of the Pacific, Thesis - Pacific Access Restricted. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/760