Abstract
Quality of work(ing) life (QWL), as a concept and set of intervention activities, involves itself with planned organisational change aimed at improving both work system productivity and employee satisfaction. QWL is affected by cross-cultural factors as soon as multinational corporations engage in business beyond their national boundaries. This paper identifies and discusses the cultural factors which emerge in both parent nations and nations foreign to the parent organisation when considering QWL. In making reference to the interface between culture and QWL, the paper applies Hofstede's (1980) four theoretical cultural dimensions. Special attention is drawn to QWL considerations in the Southeast Asian region.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cherns, A. (1978), "Perspectives on the Quality of Working Life,"International Studies of Management and Organization, (Spring-Summer), pp. 38–58.
Cherns, A. (1983), "QWL - The State of The Art," in H. Kolodny and H. Van Beinum (Eds.),The Quality of Working Life and the 1980s pp. 87–96, New York: Praeger.
Chong, Li Choy (1987), "History and Managerial Culture in Singapore": “Pragmatism” “Openness” and “Paternalism”,Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 4 pp. 133–143.
Davis, L. (1983), "Learnings from the Design of New Organisations", in H. Kolodny and N. Van Beinum (Eds.),The Quality of Working Life and the 1980's pp. 65–86. New York: Praeger.
Delamottee, Y. and Takezawa, S. (1984),Quality of Working Life in International Perspective Geneva: International Labour Office.
Etzioni, A. (1975),A Comparative Analysis of Complex Organisations: On Power, Involvement and Their Correlates, New York: Free Press.
Hofstede, G. (1980),Culture's Consequences, Beverly Hills: Sage.
Hofstede, G., and Kassem, M. (Eds.) (1976),European Contributions to Organisation Theory, Assen, Neth: Van Gorcum.
Kolodny H., and Van Beinum, H. (1983),The Quality of Working Life and the 1980's New York: Praeger.
Ledford, G., and Lawler, E. (1983), "Quality of Work Life Programs, Coordination and Productivity,"Journal of Contemporary Business, 11 pp. 93–106.
Low, P. (1984), "Singapore-based Subsidiaries of U.S. Multinationals and Singaporean Firms: A Comparative Management Study,"Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 2 pp. 29–39.
Sorge, A. (1983), Review: Culture's Consequences,Administrative Science Quarterly, 28, pp. 625–629.
Stacey, N., and Wise, R. (1983),The Educational Implications of QWL, in D. Skrovan (Ed.),Quality of Work Life, Reading, Mass: Addison-Wesley. pp. 137–145.
Trist, E. (1983), "QWL and the 1980's," in H. Kolodnyd and N. Van Beinum (Eds.),The Quality of Working Life and the 1980s. New York: Praeger. pp. 43–54.
Walton, R. (1973), "Quality of Working Life: What is it?"Sloan Management Review, (Fall), pp. 11–21.
Westwood, R., and Everett, J. (1987), "Culture's Consequences: A Methodology for Comparative Management Studies in Southeast Asia?"Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 4 pp. 187–202.
Wilkinson, B. (1986), "Technology and Quality of Working Life,Singapore Management Review, 8 pp. 21–28.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wyatt, T.A. Quality of working life: Cross-cultural considerations. Asia Pacific J Manage 6, 129–140 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01732254
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01732254