Research on asian cultures and management: Some epistemological issues

This paper highlights the major issues raised in the conference Culture and Management Styles in Southeast Asian countries and discusses the espistomological and methodological problems of doing comparative management research in general as well as in the region.The paper identifies the themes which emerged from the conference discussions as (1) the fundamental rationale for research and the apparent weakness in making it explicit, (2) the questions of epistomology as regards causation, and the (3) more mundane issues faced in conforming to standard research paradigms. These issues are discussed under the following headings: What is to be included, subjects' espoused theory or theory in use, idiographic versus nomothetic approaches, more universal variables, problems of defining culture. The implications and significance of different approaches and disciplines concerning these issues are considered, and guidelines for future research in the area are suggested.Professor Gordon S. Redding is with the Department of Management Studies, University of Hong Kong.     

History and managerial culture in Singapore: “Pragmatism”, “openness” and “paternalism”

This paper examines the historical evolution of culture and management in Singapore, the existence of cultural fluidity in the society and the openness of Singapore to foreign management in relation to the changes in the environment resulting from modernization and development. Management in Singapore has always been multinational in origin. It has also been influenced considerably by the Chinese family system. It is in a state of flux; new and foreign practices are continually assimilated and adapted. Inspite of the wide variations in management practices, Singapore management remained characteristically pragmatic and open as well as paternalistic.Dr. Chong Li Choy is Senior Lecturer in the School of Management, National University of Singapore.     

Social categorisation in Philippine organisations: Values toward collective identity and management through intergroup relations

The popularity of American-style management techniques in the Philippines implies an inevitable transition from the traditional values rooted in interdependent collectivism to the modern values of independent individualism. It is argued that an indigenous style of Filipino management is viable and imperative, which recognises the salience of collective identities in organisations. Based on a theory of social categorisation, a conceptual model of management through intergroup relations is presented. The main contention is that, in place of a dysfunctional conflict between Americanised management tactics and contemporary Filipino values, organisational effectiveness could ensue from a synchronic synergy between Filipino-style management tactics and the social categorisation effects of intragroup convergence and intergroup divergence.     

The NCAA Cartel and Competitive Balance in College Football

The NCAA regulates college football player recruiting, eligibility, and compensation. The economic theory of cartels suggests that one consequence may be reduced competitive balance. The enforced restrictions inhibit weak teams from improving, and protect strong teams from competition. A stratification is implied which should be evident over time as less churning in national rankings and conference standings, and fewer schools achieving national prominence. I test this general hypothesis by comparing various competitive balance measures for about 25 years before and after NCAA enforcement began in 1952. The hypothesis is supported by all measures at both the national and conference levels.     

The relationship between technology and science: Some historical and philosophical reflections. Part I

This essay offers a detailed review of the literature on the relationship between technology and science. It is in two parts. Part I begins by describing science and technology, and the differences between them. It then discusses the commonly-held technology-as-applied-science (TAS) view; the origins of this view, the support for it, and the strong historical and philosophical challenges to it, beginning more than half a century ago, are explored. The development of the steam engine is then offered as a brief case study to illustrate that science-technology relations are more complex than implied by the TAS view. Part I concludes with a consideration of ontological arguments supporting the reverse view, namely that technology is often a necessary precursor to science.Part II, to be published in a following issue, explores some of the consequences of the TAS view. One consequence is that it has generated a story-line in which scientific ideas are emphasised and other factors necessary for technological innovation have been down-played. Another consequence is that, even in cases where technology does apply scientific knowledge, the process of application is often considered obvious; the difficulties of translating ideas into artefacts may not be appreciated. The essay argues for the telling of a more complex story of science-technology relations, one which recognises their historical independence in the past, and their mutual, two-way interaction in many modern fields of endeavour. It concludes with a consideration of some economic and educational implications.     

Science,technology and engineering: Building lifelong bridges

In response to what is envisaged as a crisis in scientific and technological literacy, various organizations and governmental agencies have put forward recommendations for enriching students' science and technology experiences in formal and informal learning environments. This paper examines one such organization — the Professional Engineers Ontario — and their Innovators in the School initiative. Through this student outreach programme, engineers, scientists and technologists volunteer their time to visit elementary and secondary level students, encouraging them to pursue science, technology and engineering careers. In particular, this research identifies issues that the Innovators (interestingly, over half are women) consider to be important for promoting a positive image of science to young people. First, the paper considers what an image of science might potentially be. Second, it addresses the question of how Innovators and other educators (teachers, policy-makers, curriculum planning teams) might promote this positive image in the classroom and school.     

The state of East Asian banking structure and activities in the United States

This paper examines the structure and activities of East Asian banks in the USA in terms of their institutional components, legal environment, asset size and market structure, loan activities, geographical distribution and area of specialization. The discussion includes 10 Asia Pacific countries. The final section presents prognoses on the domination of Japanese banks as well as those of the two Chinas.Faramarz Damanpour is a Professor of Finance and International Business at James Madison University, U.S.A.     

Paths to Common Ground? A Rejoinder to Dewey's Response

While subsequent discussion in this Review has failed to reconcile the merger policies proposed by Dewey and Keyes, it has suggested that they are not as far apart as they seemed at first reading. It now appears that both writers advocate a serious critical consideration of the efficiencies claims advanced by proponents of otherwise unacceptable mergers. Moreover, there may be a possibility that Dewey's special large-firm merger control could be defended on grounds which would not conflict with Keyes' proposal but would simply complement it.     

Transcending Paradox: The Chinese “Middle Way” Perspective

Western thought is noted for its strengths in categorization and analysis; Eastern, or Chinese thought, is noted for its integrative and encompassing nature. This article seeks to bridge the two. Specifically, it aims to enrich Western thinking and the existing body of paradox literature by proposing the idea of paradoxical integration, a concept derived from the Chinese middle way philosophy. Paradoxical integration, the notion that two opposites (such as self and other) may be interdependent in nature and together constitute a totality (integration), is introduced as one means of transcending paradox and the conventional Western conceptualization of exclusive opposites. It suggests how we can apply the concept of interdependent opposites in a both/and framework to foster reconciliation of the apparent polarities of such dichotomies as competition and cooperation. The article concludes with a discussion of the broad implications of the concept of paradoxical integration upon both academic research and business practice.An erratum to this article can be found at     

Long-term covered interest parity and the international swap market

This paper examines the pricing of long-term forward exchange contracts. It is established empirically that the traditional covered interest arbitrage pricing relationship is often violated, and that the behaviour of long- and short-term forward exchange rates is substantively different. It is argued that activity in the international currency and interest rate swap markets provides a potential explanation for the observed mispricing. In particular, fixed-to-fixed currency swaps provide another form of arbitrage which can affect long-term forward exchange pricing.The author is currently a visiting Senior Fellow at the National University of Singapore. The research assistance of Barry Halwas contributed to the paper.     

Testing for Competitiveness of Markets for Long Distance Telephone Services: Competition Finally?

Telecommunications regulatory policy is driven by rhetoric and myth concerning the competitiveness of long-distance service. Relying on behavioral tests for competitiveness, this review brings up to date analytical work establishing the pattern of competition or the lack of competition since the 1984 AT & T divestiture. Through mid 1997, the three large long-distance carriers in setting their price-cost margins have managed to carry through on a previously established strategy of tacit collusion in both message toll services and WATS-type business services. The remarkable results have been that price-cost margins increased while sales concentration declined. This general pattern is not contradicted by the most recent offering of 15-cent per minute one price on new discount plans since that too implies an increase in carriers' price cost margins as concentration continued to decline.     

Location and Implementation Issues in Support Function FDI: The Globalisation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

This research looks at foreign direct investment in support functions such as R&D and employee training facilities, through a study of the globalisation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Linkages among investments are highlighted. Centripetal forces are identified which pull later-stage FDI to the sites of initial investments, resulting in the creation of integrated, self-contained value chains overseas. Specific examples of R&D and employee training FDI suggest that while the purpose of support function FDI is to gain cost or differentiation benefits, successful implementation requires effective knowledge creation and transfer capabilities.     

Cultural dimensions in management and planning

The nature of management skills is such that they are culturally specific: a management technique or philosophy that is appropriate in one national culture is not necessarily appropriate in another. The paper describes the scope of (work-related) cultural differences as they were revealed by research in more than 50 countries around the world and discusses how these differences affect the validity of management techniques and philosophies in various countries within the functioning and meaning of planning.The author is with the Institute for Research on Intercultural Cooperation, the Netherlands. This paper is a shorter version of the first part of a report MAN DEV/28. Culture and Management Development, written on behalf of the UNDP/ILO Interregional Project Co-operation among Management Development Institutions and published by the International Labour Office, Management Development Branch, Training Department, Geneva 1983.     

“Excellent” systems analysis: The Singapore context

Within the broad context of Singapore's IT2000 Project, an exploratory research project was conducted as part of an on-going program to identify the perceptions of what constitutes the qualities of an excellent systems analyst. A grounded theory approach (theory building) was adopted using Kelly's RepGrid technique to conduct interviews with stakeholders in the systems analyst's performance in a large organization based in Singapore. In reviewing the constructs which emerged from the stakeholder interviews, 12 universal Themes were identified, such as Attitude, Knowledge, Communicate, including a number of sub-Themes. Each stakeholder group had its own interpretation of the relative importance of each Theme. These results have implications for the selection, training and development of systems analysts. Suggestions are made for further research to compare the cross-cultural perceptions of excellent systems analysts, as well as the testing of specific hypotheses derived from the results of this research project.Dr M. Gordon Hunter is with the Faculty of Management, The University of Lethbridge, 4401 University Drive, Lethbridge, Alberta, T1K 3M4 CANADA, tel: (403) 329-2672; fax: (403) 329-2038; e-mail: HUNTMG@CETUS.MNGT.ULETH.CA. Dr John Beck is with the Division of Human Resource and Quality Management, School of Accountancy and Business, Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 2263.     

An empirical analysis of price discrimination among countries

This article examines empirically the proposition that in recent years many less developed countries (LDCs) have been consistently overcharged for products exported to them from OECD countries. For a wide group of both developed and developing countries importing from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) members, unit export values expressed in SUS per metric ton are statistically analysed and, in the case of the selected (homogeneous) agricultural products, the proposition doesnot receive conclusive support. The overall implications are presented along with suggestions for further research.The authors are from the College of Business Administration, San Diego State University.     

The planning of technology education for South African schools

One of the recommendations made in the discussion document,A Curriculum Model for Education in South Africa (CUMSA), which was released by the Department of National Education in 1991, is that technology education should be offered for the first nine years of pre-tertiary education as a compulsory subject and for the last three years as an optional subject. This paper aims to locate technology education in the context of the sociopolitical and economic background to education in South Africa and to assess to what extent it meets the emerging aims and needs of education. Further aims are to propose a rationale for the teaching of technology at school level in South Africa, to suggest possible broad aims for the teaching of technology, to outline the nature and character of technology education relevant to the South African situation and to propose a possible methodology for technology education in South Africa. The conclusion is reached that technology education can make an important contribution to South African education if the so-called technological process is the major emphasis as this can be transformative and promote quality education.Dr Piet Ankiewicz (M Sc, D Ed, HED) is a Senior Lecturer in Education at the Rand Afrikaans University. He is responsible for teacher education programmes in the field of Science, and for an M Ed course in technology education. His areas of research include education policy and curriculum development for technology education.     

Qualified audit reports and costly contracting

This paper investigates the financial characteristics of the population of listed Singaporean companies receiving first-time qualified audit reports. It develops and tests hypotheses which take into account the costly contracting implications of a qualification for both the auditor and client. A matched pair design is used as a control. Results show that firms receiving qualified reports are significantly less profitable and liquid and have significantly more debt than the control in the year of qualification. Profitability and liquidity are shown to have declined in the four-year period up to the qualification, while debt levels have increased. These results may partially explain why the general (overseas) no-effect result from share market announcement date studies exists; the qualification per se is a dated signal of financial deterioration that has existed for at least the previous four years. Qualification is also significantly associated with auditor type and ownership of the firm, and is also dependent upon whether or not the firm has revalued its assets or changed accounting methods. It is more likely that a qualified report will be issued by a non Big 8 auditor in Singapore to a firm which has a higher proportion of the equity owned by the management. Qualified firms are more likely to have revalued assets and changed accounting methods to increase income than the control group. The strength of the results is also shown to depend on the nature of the qualification. Companies receiving severe qualifications (ie going concern, not true and fair, and unable to form an opinion) have far more significant differences than their pairs compared with those firms receiving moderate or other qualifications.The authors are Senior Lecturer, School of Accountancy and Business, Nanyang Technological University and Professor, Department of Accounting, University of Sydney, respectively. All correspondence should be addressed to Yoke-Kai Chan, School of Accountancy and Business, Nayang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798.This paper has benefited from the comments of an anonymous referee, participants at the Australasian Banking and Finance Conference, the 15th Annual Congress of the European Accounting Association, and at workshops at the Australian Graduate School of Management, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, the Nanyang Technological University and the University of Southern Queensland, and in particular those of Greg Whittred, Steve Taylor, Roger Simnett, Kim Sawyer and Don Stokes. Financial support from the National University of Singapore is gratefully acknowledge. The usual caveats apply.     

China's Labour-Management System Reforms: Breaking the ‘Three Old Irons’ (1978–1999)

This article systematically examines the fundamental changes that have taken place in China's labour-management system since China embarked on its economic reforms in 1978. The system was, from the 1950s onwards, characterized by what were called the three old irons, i.e. life-time employment (the iron rice bowl), centrally administered wages (the iron wage), and state-controlled appointment and promotion of managerial staff (the iron chair). This study reviews the degree to which the reform process is breaking these three old irons and is arguably replacing them with a hybrid human resource management model, albeit with Chinese characteristics, that reflects the influence of foreign multinational corporations (MNCs) that have invested in China.     

Information sources used to select different types of management consultancy services

Understanding how professional services are purchased is vital to the success of the firms that provide such services. Although recent research has provided some insights into how consumers purchase professional services, little is known about how organisations buy these services. Our study, using data collected from 253 Australian organisations, describes an important part of the organisational buying process, namely pre-purchase information search. More specifically, we examine the influence of a range of information sources on the choice of a management consultant in the following areas: strategic and economic planning; marketing; human resource management; information technology; production planning and logistics. The results show that information sources related to an organisation's internal network (ie, discussions inside the company, and past dealings with a consulting firm) were by far the most influential information sources in choosing a consultant. Further, the least influential sources were impersonal advertising (ie, advertising in the business press, corporate brochures and professional directories). Only minor differences in the influence of the information sources were found across the various types of consulting assignment.(The authors' names are in alphabetical order.)     

Industry Update: Airlines

Recent developments in the airline industry are notable in three respects. A rising tide of concentration, which is accelerating and expanding through a proliferation of alliances among major carriers at home and abroad; a recurring resort to predatory pricing by the majors which continues to subvert competition by low-cost independents; and an intensification of the tacitly collusive, noncompetitive pricing behavior expected to emerge in such a highly concentrated structural milieu.