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Symbolic Leadership in a Transnational Context: An Investigation on Leaders’ Adjustment and Acceptance

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The Palgrave Handbook of Leadership in Transforming Asia

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Abstract

Every leader’s symbolic action creates meaning. However, it is especially the symbols which leaders in a cross-cultural context use that are always reconstructed based on experience, culture, and generally accepted and practised values from a different cultural background. Accordingly, this chapter analyses the adjustment process of expatriate managers abroad; special emphasis is put on the degree to which the willingness to adjust the symbolic actions to the local cultural environment is rewarded with a higher acceptance as leader. Results show that, especially, the adjustment of language and behaviour results in a higher acceptance rate. Thus, it is argued in this chapter that leaders should carefully regard how their symbolic interactions are interpreted or comprehended by the host country workforce since the acceptance as a leader is one important aspect in order to achieve success in an international assignment.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy

    Christian Linder

Authors
  1. Christian Linder
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Correspondence to Christian Linder .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Management, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Nuttawuth Muenjohn

  2. School of Management, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Adela McMurray

Appendix

Appendix

Measures

I used the following indicators for the constructs. Factor loadings range between 0.584 and 0.940 and were significant at least at a p < 0.05 level.

Verbal symbolic leadership: Cronbach’s α (α) = 0.928, composite reliability (CR) = 0.949, average variance extracted (AVE) = 0.823.

(i) Adjustment of speech, (ii) mindfulness with wording, (iii) try to apply the foreign phrase, and (iv) choose metaphors I hear from my staff.

Enacted symbolic leadership: α = 0.940, CR = 0.958, AVE = 0.850

(i) Underplay dominance, (ii) back words with actions, (iii) reaction of their behaviour, and (iv) discuss their behaviour.

Material symbolic leadership: α = 0.801 0.839 0.662

(i) Technical device, (ii) status symbols, (iii) cloth, and (iv) artefacts.

Acceptance as leader: α = 0.949 CR = 0.964 AVE = 0.870

(i) Respect form respect Host Country National (HCN) workforce, (ii) recognition as leader, (iii) acceptance as leader, and (vi) HCN workforce response

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Linder, C. (2017). Symbolic Leadership in a Transnational Context: An Investigation on Leaders’ Adjustment and Acceptance. In: Muenjohn, N., McMurray, A. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Leadership in Transforming Asia. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-57940-9_17

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