The purpose of the study was to investigate process and stability issues in intermarried families utilizing data from a group of American Indian intermarried families and a group of endogamous European American families. Stability issues such as marital satisfaction and overall problem solving were investigated by comparing scores between the two groups. Process issues such as the participation and the coalition practices related to intermarriage were investigated by comparing scores between the two groups and analyzing in more depth the gender and ethnic data of the parents in the American Indian intermarried group. Supplementary qualitative analysis was also supplied by focus groups of American Indian college students discussing the subject of American Indian intermarried families. Significant distinctions were identified by both analyses which indicate a complex relationship between intermarriage status, American Indian culture, family problem solving, and marital satisfaction. / Graduation date: 1996

Thesis (M.A. (Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 1983. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 171-179).

Prior research has shown that differences in human resource management (HRM) perception/practices do exist between nations. These differences have been attributed to variations in culture. The fundamental purpose of this study was to determine whether subcultures differing in location, religion, and ethnicity significantly affect perception/ practices of human resource management within a common national context (Indonesia). A secondary purpose of the current study was to compare with those found within Indonesia by the Best International Practices Consortium or Best Practices Project (BPP). Participants in the present study were 762 agri-business employees who were members of three distinctly separate subcultures within Indonesia; Sundanese/ Javanese, Balinese, and Minahasan. Data are obtained through the distribution of written questionnaires modeled after those employed by the BPP. Within each subculture, there were numerous disparities between current perceived practices and those desired by employees. This study also revealed several significant differences in HRM practices and perceptions across the three observed subcultures in the areas of hiring, training, performance appraisal, leadership, and communications. Participants reported differences in current and desired managerial styles across subcultures. However, within these groups, current management practices matched employee preferences. The overall findings of the present study differed from those of the BPP. These differences may be attributable to dissimilarities in the samples for the two studies’ samples. This study indicates that employee attitudes and perceptions of HRM practices do differ across cultural boundaries within a common national context. This discovery has wide implications for international companies which may be looking to establish overseas enterprises in countries with diverse cultural populations.

The purpose of this study is to examine the perceptions that the expatriates have on what personal characteristics a good expatriate should possess as well as their view on cross-cultural training (CCT). The study was conducted on two groups of expatriates from European companies – those who took part in some form of CCT when preparing for the assignment abroad and those who did not. The results show that some of the views are shared by both groups of the respondents. However, there are some difference in the way both groups think, which might depend on the fact that the two companies focus on different factors regarding the view on what features are important for an expatriate to have and how s/he should be prepared for the job. The three main conclusions of this study is that expatriates need to be motivated, willing and able to adjust and flexible to better acclimate themselves to new situations and environments; the family should be incorporated in the training to improve the chances of success; finally, CCT is perceived by the respondents as a good tool for expatriates going on assignment. This study can be seen as an introduction to more detailed studies on the effectiveness of CCT and decrease of expatriate failure.

This thesis was an exploration of the relationship between the host cultural knowledge of newcomers and their behavioural and psychological adaptation to the host culture. Utilizing a theoretical and applied approach to this research, 160 international and landed immigrant students at the University of Saskatchewan completed a questionnaire examining their perceptions of Canadian values and social axioms. Values and social axioms are guiding principles and mediating beliefs, respectively, that individuals use to organize, understand and facilitate physical and social functionality within a culture (Schwartz, 1994; Leung et al., 2002). Despite the complexity of the research task, there was marginal support for the main hypothesis that the participants understanding of Canadian cultural knowledge was related to adaptation to a host culture, specifically psychological adaptation. Furthermore, the results indicate that the participants knowledge of Canadian values and social axioms was differentially related to psychological and behavioural adaption to Canada.

For this qualitative research a single case study was conducted of a faith-based non-profit organization, Health Education and Literacy Providers (H.E.L.P.), which operates simultaneously in the United States and Nigeria. The purpose of this study was to explore the cross-cultural leadership phenomena occurring within H.E.L.P. and to provide evaluation services and research data to the American members of H.E.L.P. Participants included a sample of the American board members, Nigerian board members, and Nigerian employees. Three data collection methods were used to achieve triangulation including participant observations, interviews, and analysis of documents. The first research objective was to investigate the cross-cultural leadership context by analyzing the organizational culture of H.E.L.P. in Nigeria. Results revealed H.E.L.P. was designed by American board members to operate as a bureaucratic culture with an emphasis on a business-like structure, centralized authority, compartmentalization, and efficiency. The Nigerian board members and employees, however, expressed a desire for a supportive culture that focused on love and harmony uncovering a discrepancy between American and Nigerian preferences in organizational culture typology. The results from the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) study were referenced to provide a cultural explanation for variations in organizational culture preferences. According to GLOBE study findings, the United States ranked higher on performance orientation meaning Americans are more likely to value results above people, ambition, and competitiveness, and explains the American?s desire for a bureaucratic organizational culture. Nigeria ranked behind the United States as a lower performance oriented society meaning individuals place high value on relationships and harmony, explaining their desire for a supportive culture. The second and third research objectives were to determine how H.E.L.P.'s Nigerian members perceive effective leadership within their culture, and determine how the Nigerians? definition of effective leadership supports or refutes the literature on prevalent Westernized leadership theories. Results indicated the overarching leadership theme perceived to be effective by the Nigerian members of H.E.L.P. was love. Several aspects of a loving leader were evident in the data and divided into five categories each with one subcategory. These findings supported both Transformational and Authentic leadership theories.

This thesis was an exploration of the relationship between the host cultural knowledge of newcomers and their behavioural and psychological adaptation to the host culture. Utilizing a theoretical and applied approach to this research, 160 international and landed immigrant students at the University of Saskatchewan completed a questionnaire examining their perceptions of Canadian values and social axioms. Values and social axioms are guiding principles and mediating beliefs, respectively, that individuals use to organize, understand and facilitate physical and social functionality within a culture (Schwartz, 1994; Leung et al., 2002). Despite the complexity of the research task, there was marginal support for the main hypothesis that the participants understanding of Canadian cultural knowledge was related to adaptation to a host culture, specifically psychological adaptation. Furthermore, the results indicate that the participants knowledge of Canadian values and social axioms was differentially related to psychological and behavioural adaption to Canada.

Prior research has shown that differences in human resource management (HRM) perception/practices do exist between nations. These differences have been attributed to variations in culture. The fundamental purpose of this study was to determine whether subcultures differing in location, religion, and ethnicity significantly affect perception/ practices of human resource management within a common national context (Indonesia). A secondary purpose of the current study was to compare with those found within Indonesia by the Best International Practices Consortium or Best Practices Project (BPP). Participants in the present study were 762 agri-business employees who were members of three distinctly separate subcultures within Indonesia; Sundanese/ Javanese, Balinese, and Minahasan. Data are obtained through the distribution of written questionnaires modeled after those employed by the BPP. Within each subculture, there were numerous disparities between current perceived practices and those desired by employees. This study also revealed several significant differences in HRM practices and perceptions across the three observed subcultures in the areas of hiring, training, performance appraisal, leadership, and communications. Participants reported differences in current and desired managerial styles across subcultures. However, within these groups, current management practices matched employee preferences. The overall findings of the present study differed from those of the BPP. These differences may be attributable to dissimilarities in the samples for the two studies’ samples. This study indicates that employee attitudes and perceptions of HRM practices do differ across cultural boundaries within a common national context. This discovery has wide implications for international companies which may be looking to establish overseas enterprises in countries with diverse cultural populations.

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of a Spanish version of the Bulimia Test-Revised (BULIT-R). The goal was to test the factorstructure equivalence of the BULIT-R across two samples of college students from two different cultures, Spain and the U.S. Researchers using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) have reported different model solutions for the factor structure of the BULIT-R: a one-factor model (McCarthy et al., 2002); a four-factor model (Vincent et al., 2002), a five-factor model (Thelen et al., 1991) and a six factor model (Santos, 1996). For any of the two samples, CFA did not support any of the models previously reported in the literature. EFA supported a six and a four factor models for the US and Spanish samples, respectively.