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Antecedentsofperceivednationalandcorporateculturedifferences:evidencefromChineseinternationalstrategicalliancesLiDonga*andKeithW.GlaisterbaSchoolofManagement,RoyalHolloway,UniversityofLondon,Egham,UK;bManagementSchool,UniversityofSheffield,Sheffield,UKWeinvestigatethedeterminantsofmanagers’perceptionsofnationalandcorporateculturedifferences,usingdataobtainedfromChinesepartnermanagersofinternationalstrategicalliances.Anexpectedpositiverelationshipisfoundbetweentheextenttowhichthemanagershaveexperiencedculture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsandtheirperceptionsofnationalandcorporateculturedifferences.AnexpectednegativerelationshipisfoundbetweentheextenttowhichtheChinesepartnerfirmshaveadoptedculturalmanagementpoliciesandtheperceptionofnationalculturedifference,butisnotfoundfortheperceptionofcorporateculturedifference.Theauthorsfindnosupportfortheexpectednegativerelationshipbetweenculturalsensitivityandtheperceptionofnationalandcorporateculturedifferences.Adoptionofculturalmanagementpoliciesmoderatestherelationshipbetweentheextenttowhichmanagershaveexperiencedculture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsandtheirperceptionofcorporateculturedifference,butnottheirperceptionofnationalculturedifference.ItwasalsofoundthatthedegreeofculturalsensitivitymoderatestherelationshipbetweentheextenttowhichtheChinesemanagershaveexperiencedculture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsandtheirperceptionsofnationalandcorporateculturedifferences.Keywords:antecedents;China;internationalstrategicalliances;nationalandcorporateculturedifferencesIntroductionInternationalstrategicalliances(ISAs)arecapableofcreatinganarrayofcompetitiveadvantages(GlaisterandBuckley1996),ifnationalandcorporateculturedifferencesbetweenalliancepartnersareeffectivelymanaged(SirmonandLane2004).NationalculturedifferencesbetweenISApartnersmaybeinterpretedindifferentpatternsofbehavingandbelieving,anddifferentcognitiveblueprintsforinterpretingtheworld(Parkhe1991,p.583).Incontrast,corporateculturedifferencesbetweenISApartnersmayrefertothedistinctassumptions,sharedattitudesandnormsofbehaviourwhicharedevelopedandreinforcedintheirorganisations(ChildandFaulkner1998).Asnationalandcorporateculturedifferencesarerelatedbutdifferentfromeachother,inthisstudyweincorporatebothculturalconstructsandexaminethemseparately,inresponsetoPothukuchietal.’s(2002)callforsuchefforts.Thefocusofthispaperistohighlighttheimportanceofactualinteractionsbetweenalliancepartnersindeterminingmanagers’perceptionsofculturedifferences.WithrespecttoculturaldifferencesbetweenISApartners,wearguethatmanagers’perceptionsISSN1360-2381print/ISSN1743-792Xonlineq2009Taylor&FrancisDOI:10.1080/13602380802361304*Correspondingauthor.Email:[e-mail]ficBusinessReviewVol.15,No.2,April2009,217–241arehuman-specific,experience-based,flexibleandprobablymoredynamiccomparedtoaformula-determined,context-ignorant,close-endedandfundamentallystaticmeasureofculturaldistance,ofwhichscholarshavebecomemorecritical(seeShenkar2001).Inourview,whatreallymattersintheperceptionofculturedifferencesisnottheobjectivedistancebetweenalliancepartnersasgivenbyanaggregatemeasureofculturaldistance,forexamplebyusingKogutandSingh’s(1988)culturalindexorculturaldistancealongindividualculturaldimensionsusingHofstede’s(1980)culturalindices,butratherthenatureofactualinteractionsbetweenalliancepartners.Ourstudyaddstotheexistingliteraturebyexaminingthedeterminantsofmanagers’perceptionsofnationalandcorporateculturedifferences.Managerialperceptionofnationalandcorporateculturedifferencesmatters,notleastbecausemanagersareoftenkeydecision-makers,whoseviewpointsimpactonstrategicchoicesofthefirms.Wearguethattheseperceptualdifferencesarelikelytodependonawiderangeoffactorscharacterisingtheinteractionsbetweenalliancepartners.Theseweidentifyasculture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsexperiencedbyalliancemanagers,culturalmanage-mentpoliciesadoptedbyparentfirmsandculturalsensitivityofparentfirmstowardstheircounterparts.TheconceptualframeworkisprovidedinFigure1.Specifically,culture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsrefertopotentialcross-culturalinteractionproblemsasexperiencedbyISAmanagers.Suchproblemsmayarisefromdifferencesinpartners’nationalandcorporateculture,partners’objectivesandHumanResourceManagement(HRM)systems,alliancemanagers’attitudes,behaviourandpracticesandlanguagebarriers(Lockett1988,VonGlinowandTeagarden1988,Child1994,Tsang1994,Hoon-Halbauer1999,Walshetal.1999).However,thequestionofwhetherculture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsimpactonthemanagers’perceptionsofnationalandcorporateculturedifferencesissomewhatunder-researched.Itislikely,wecontend,thatmanagers’perceptionswilltakeintoaccounttheirexperienceofcross-culturalinteractionsbetweenalliancepartners,sothatgreaterculture-relatedmanagementimpedimentsarelikelytoresultinperceptionsofgreaternationalandcorporateculturedifferences.IntheISAcontext,culturemanagementreferstopolicies,proceduresandpracticesthatseekto‘harvestfromthediversityofpartners’cultureswhileatthesametimebuildingeffectivebridgesbetweenthem’(Ch