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Appraising Performance across Borders: An Empirical Examination of the Purposes and Practices of Performance Appraisal in a Multi‐Country Context
Author(s) -
Chiang Flora F. T.,
Birtch Thomas A.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of management studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.398
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1467-6486
pISSN - 0022-2380
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00937.x
Subject(s) - performance appraisal , operationalization , uncertainty avoidance , expectancy theory , context (archaeology) , collectivism , predictive power , critical appraisal , sample (material) , equity (law) , procedural justice , psychology , openness to experience , social psychology , sociology , public relations , economics , political science , management , individualism , epistemology , philosophy , alternative medicine , law , chemistry , pathology , biology , paleontology , market economy , medicine , chromatography , perception , neuroscience
This study empirically investigated culture's consequences on the major purposes and practices of performance appraisal using a sample (n = 1749) drawn from the banking industry in seven countries across Europe, Asia, and North America. We found that the effects and predictive capability of assertiveness, uncertainty avoidance, in‐group collectivism, and power distance should not be overstated nor are they straightforward. Organizations must be cognizant of the potential influence that a range of other organizational, institutional, and economic factors may wield on appraisal. These findings hold significant implications for the theoretical underpinnings of appraisal, a management tool largely rooted in US equity, expectancy, and procedural justice values and traditions. They also offer important lessons for practice. Not only is the transferability of appraisal and its operationalization affected by interactions with divergent cultures and contextual settings, but new hybrid appraisal architectures are emerging that necessitate further research.