Abstract Background: In the context of increasing globalization, more and more software engineers/managers work in foreign companies, and they are exposed to the culture of different countries. According to Hofstede's five cultural dimensions, culture can be divided into Individualism and Collectivism, Power Distance, Masculinity, Uncertainty avoidance, and Long-term orientation and short-term orientation. From extensive empirical research performed by Hofstede and his colleagues, we found that the cultural dimension scores of different countries are different, which shows that different countries have different cultures. Through study related papers, we find that cultural differences can affect the behavior of software engineers/managers, causing differences in the behavior of software engineers/managers, and some behavioral differences can make influences/misunderstandings between software engineers/managers. These influences/misunderstandings may have an impact on project progress and personal work during software development. Objectives: In this thesis, we want to understand the concrete behavioral differences in how software engineers/managers work caused by cultural differences. After getting these behavioral differences, we want to understand which influence or misunderstandings arise from the software engineers/managers' behavioral differences. Finally, we want to get some suggestions from software engineers/managers on how to prevent/solve these misunderstandings or influences, we summarized these suggestions to help them face people from Chinese or Scandinavian culture.   Methods: In this research, we used qualitative research. We chose a systematic literature review (SLR) to helped us answer which behavioral differences will be caused by cultural differences. Then we used questionnaire and interview the two survey methods to collect which influence or misunderstandings arise from the software engineers/managers' behavioral differences and some suggestions to help software engineers/managers to solve/prevent negative influence or misunderstandings. Results: Through systematic literature review, we have collected 26 papers, and classified the results from these 26 papers according to five cultural dimensions, summarizing and analyzing the behavioral differences between Chinese and Scandinavian software engineers/managers. Through questionnaires and interviews, we got 37 responses. For these responses, we use coding to classify the data, finally, we analyzed and list the influences/misunderstandings and suggestions. Finally we have collected 64 behavioral differences, 7 influences or misunderstandings, 15 preventive measures and 8 solutions to prevent or resolve these influence/misunderstanding. Conclusions: Our research has achieved research goals and answered research questions. Comparing the behavioral differences collected by SLR and survey, we found that survey responses can confirm that most of the behavioral differences in SLR studies experienced by Chinese and Scandinavian software engineers/managers. But there are some behavioral differences that don't appear in both the Survey and SLR data, this should be caused by the sample of our research is not large enough. For these behavioral differences, we found that respondents knew that there were cultural differences between Chinese and Scandinavian software engineers/managers. But not all respondents have been exposed to these behavioral differences. There are also individual differences in the impact of behavioral differences on software engineers/managers. We also found that the best way to solve/prevent these effects is to communicate more.

Problem: Even though many types of research were conducted on generic brands, literature about Swedish and Lithuanian students on this perspective is almost nonexistent. Research questions: Which essential factors that shape the intention to purchase or not to purchase generic store brands differ between Lithuanian and Swedish students? What are the differences in the shopping behavior and perceptions of Swedish and Lithuanian students as consumers of generic brands? Does the packaging design highlight any differences between Lithuanian and Swedish students as consumers of generic brands? Methodology: We conducted an anonymous quantitative study. Lithuanian and Swedish students were the only respondents who were applicable for this research. All other respondents were filtered out. Conclusions: Lithuanians and Swedish students are somewhat similar in their intention to purchase generics. We noticed minor differences in their preferences for packaging. Furthermore, students differ in some aspects of shopping behavior and generic products preferences.

A gestão de equipes virtuais de projetos globais passa pelas áreas de conhecimento da gestão de projetos tradicional e, por outro lado, demanda maior atenção em alguns aspectos, como a comunicação, Em equipes virtuais, o processo de comunicação torna-se bastante crítico, à medida que alguns dos recursos tradicionais de comunicação em projetos (reuniões face-aface, comunicação não-verbal, visualização do trabalho in loco, dentre outros) passam a ser limitados e substituídos por outros baseados em tecnologia (teleconferências, e-mails, chats, etc.), Além disso, é freqüente que em projetos globais a composição das equipes não seja homogênea e contemple membros provenientes de diferentes culturas. Esse trabalho estuda o processo de comunicação como uma variável crítica de sucesso em equipes virtuais de projetos globais, analisando como esse processo é afetado por diferenças culturais entre os membros das equipes. Um survey sobre percepção de ferramentas de comunicação virtual e suas características é respondido por um grupo de americanos e um grupo de brasileiros e as diferenças encontradas são analisado à luz das diferenças de cultura nacional. Constata-se através dos resultados do survey que diferenças significativas estão presentes na percepção que os dois grupos apresentam quanto às ferramentas de comunicação virtual, de forma coerente com seus traços culturais. / The management of global projects\' virtual teams comprehends the knowledge areas of the traditional project management but, on the other hand, demands closer attention to some aspects like communication. In virtual teams, the communication process becomes even more critical as some of the traditional resources of communication in projects such as face-theface meetings , non-verbal communication, visualization of the work in place and others, become limited and need to be replaced by other methods based on technology (teleconference, e-mail, chat, etc.), Moreover, it is frequent that in global projects the composition of the teams is not homogeneous and encompasses members from different cultures. This research studies the communication process as a critical success factor in global projects virtual teams, analyzing how this process is affected by cultural differences between the members of the teams. One survey about the perception of virtual communication tools and its characteristics is answered by a group of Americans and a group of Brazilians and the differences found are analyzed from the point of view of differences in the national cultures. From the surveys results it can be seen that there are significant differences between the perceptions of the groups about the virtual communication tools, according to

This thesis presents a quantitative research that was conducted as a minor field studywith a comparison of Swedish and Indonesian undergraduates. The purpose of this study wasto compare cultural disparities concerning health, stress and coping strategies between the two countries. A questionnaire was carried out, both online and by paper in Sweden, and by paper in Indonesia. 156 Swedish and 172 Indonesian students participated. The survey consisted offive different instrument scales of time perspective, satisfaction with life, perceived stress, coping, and individualism versus collectivism. Swedish students reported higher levels of health, life satisfaction and stress than Indonesian students. It was also found that Swedishstudents were more future oriented while Indonesian students were more present hedonistic. Swedish students used less active coping than Indonesian students and male students used more active coping than female students. It was also found that Indonesian students did not ask others for help as much as Swedish students. Finally, it was also shown that health predicted satisfaction with life. / Program: Organisations- och personalutvecklare i samhället

The aim of this thesis is to define basic theoretical background of employee job satisfaction with regard to cultural diversity, carry out an employee satisfaction survey and then compare the level of satisfaction between local and foreign employees. Based on survey results I will suggest corrective actions, which should increase the level of satisfaction of all employees in the company.

A gestão de equipes virtuais de projetos globais passa pelas áreas de conhecimento da gestão de projetos tradicional e, por outro lado, demanda maior atenção em alguns aspectos, como a comunicação, Em equipes virtuais, o processo de comunicação torna-se bastante crítico, à medida que alguns dos recursos tradicionais de comunicação em projetos (reuniões face-aface, comunicação não-verbal, visualização do trabalho in loco, dentre outros) passam a ser limitados e substituídos por outros baseados em tecnologia (teleconferências, e-mails, chats, etc.), Além disso, é freqüente que em projetos globais a composição das equipes não seja homogênea e contemple membros provenientes de diferentes culturas. Esse trabalho estuda o processo de comunicação como uma variável crítica de sucesso em equipes virtuais de projetos globais, analisando como esse processo é afetado por diferenças culturais entre os membros das equipes. Um survey sobre percepção de ferramentas de comunicação virtual e suas características é respondido por um grupo de americanos e um grupo de brasileiros e as diferenças encontradas são analisado à luz das diferenças de cultura nacional. Constata-se através dos resultados do survey que diferenças significativas estão presentes na percepção que os dois grupos apresentam quanto às ferramentas de comunicação virtual, de forma coerente com seus traços culturais. / The management of global projects\' virtual teams comprehends the knowledge areas of the traditional project management but, on the other hand, demands closer attention to some aspects like communication. In virtual teams, the communication process becomes even more critical as some of the traditional resources of communication in projects such as face-theface meetings , non-verbal communication, visualization of the work in place and others, become limited and need to be replaced by other methods based on technology (teleconference, e-mail, chat, etc.), Moreover, it is frequent that in global projects the composition of the teams is not homogeneous and encompasses members from different cultures. This research studies the communication process as a critical success factor in global projects virtual teams, analyzing how this process is affected by cultural differences between the members of the teams. One survey about the perception of virtual communication tools and its characteristics is answered by a group of Americans and a group of Brazilians and the differences found are analyzed from the point of view of differences in the national cultures. From the surveys results it can be seen that there are significant differences between the perceptions of the groups about the virtual communication tools, according to

Submitted by Alisson Mota (alisson.davidbeckam@gmail.com) on 2015-06-18T20:51:57Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Fábio Alves Gomes.pdf: 942664 bytes, checksum: 1d25a06691c4262c5e87aad1f0e3d07d (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Divisão de Documentação/BC Biblioteca Central (ddbc@ufam.edu.br) on 2015-07-06T17:57:26Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Fábio Alves Gomes.pdf: 942664 bytes, checksum: 1d25a06691c4262c5e87aad1f0e3d07d (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Divisão de Documentação/BC Biblioteca Central (ddbc@ufam.edu.br) on 2015-07-06T18:00:56Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Fábio Alves Gomes.pdf: 942664 bytes, checksum: 1d25a06691c4262c5e87aad1f0e3d07d (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-07-06T18:00:56Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Fábio Alves Gomes.pdf: 942664 bytes, checksum: 1d25a06691c4262c5e87aad1f0e3d07d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-01-04 / CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The present study aimed to investigate the construction of meanings for an urban school teachers about the cultural differences. There is also the meanings attributed by teachers to cultural differences, identifying how the meanings attributed to cultural differences or not interfere in the organization of educational work and analyzing the reflections of intercultural relations at school studied considering the cultural dimension as a fundamental aspect human development. It proposes a reflection of this phenomenon contextualized searching through a critical analysis, theoretical-methodological approaches committed to the empowerment and inclusion of minorities, pointing ideological and historical aspects surrounding the topic of cultural differences. Methodologically, we chose to search for inspiration ethnographic literature and qualitative approach. However, not exhausted the discussion on this research, however, revealed by empirical data convince us of the importance of research into the topic of diversity in schools to guide public policies effectively inclusive. Therefore, this study lifted their goals by considering the construction of meanings of teachers on the topic as an important starting point for understanding the dynamics of intercultural processes in school. We conclude that the challenge to be achieved by minorities is the experience in the daily life of schools, a curriculum that encourages the strengthening of respect for differences and identities. / A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo investigar a construção dos significados atribuídos por docentes de uma escola urbana acerca das diferenças culturais. Verificaram-se também os sentidos atribuídos pelos docentes às diferenças culturais, identificando de que maneira os significados atribuído interferem ou não, na organização do trabalho pedagógico e, analisando os reflexos das relações interculturais na escola pesquisada, considerando a dimensão cultural como aspecto fundamental do desenvolvimento humano. Propõe uma reflexão contextualizada desse fenômeno, buscando, através de uma análise crítica, aproximações teórico-metodológicas comprometidas com a emancipação e inserção das minorias, apontando aspectos históricos e ideológicos que envolvem o tema diferenças culturais. Metodologicamente, optou-se pela pesquisa de inspiração etnográfica e bibliográfica de abordagem qualitativa. Contudo, não se esgotou a discussão nesta pesquisa, pelo contrário, os dados revelados pela empiria, convencem-nos da relevância de pesquisas dentro da temática da diversidade em escolas para orientar políticas públicas efetivamente inclusivas. Portanto, o presente estudo alçou seus objetivos ao considerar a construção dos significados dos docentes sobre o tema, como um ponto de partida importante para compreensão da dinâmica dos processos interculturais na escola. Conclui-se que o desafio a ser alcançado pelas minorias é a vivência, no cotidiano das escolas, de um currículo que favoreça o fortalecimento das identidades e o respeito às diferenças.

This research investigates the moderating effect of cultural differences between countries on the relationship between tenure and analyst accuracy. To investigate this research looks at the expected earnings per shares and the realised earnings per share from the shares included into the AEX, CAC, DAX and FTSE. The dataset consists of 466 analysts and 3.040 observations. The time period observed is 2015, 2016 and 2017. This research shows that there is no significant relationship between tenure and analyst accuracy. The results show that masculinity, individualism and long term orientation have a moderating effect on analyst accuracy. A practical implication is that managers could employ methods to change the work culture to increase analyst accuracy. An academic implication of this research is that culture should be included as a moderating factor in future analyst accuracy research.

Self-assessment as a placement measure or accurate assessment of skill has been scrutinized in previous research. Findings have shown a general human tendency towards overconfidence in performance (Kruger & Dunning, 1999). This study looks at performance self-appraisals in an ESL population, with participants from varying cultural backgrounds. Performance self-appraisal calibration is a measure of the relationship between an examinee's perceived skill (or confidence) and their actual skill (or ability) on a given exam item (Phakiti, 2016). Being well-calibrated is an indication that test takers know their strengths and weaknesses and thus the difference between confidence and ability is minimal, whereas poorly calibrated examinees may be oblivious to their weaknesses. While some research has explored self-appraisal calibration in first language (Hassmén & Hunt, 1994; Gutierrez & Schraw, 2015; Stankov & Lee, 2014) and foreign language contexts (Bastola, 2016; Phakiti, 2016), the language research has been limited to the performance of native language speakers on norm-referenced tests. It still needs to be determined how test takers would perform on a criterion-referenced exam with items of differing difficulty parameters administered to examinees from different language backgrounds. To that end, a proficiency-based criterion-referenced reading comprehension test was administered to 96 ESL students with 8 different language backgrounds. To measure confidence, a pre- and post-test questionnaire was administered in addition to a confidence slider bar that was embedded into each test item. We investigated correlations between cultural background and item difficulty on the students' self-appraisal calibrations. Our results showed that ESL students were overconfident in their self-calibrations, and their overconfidence was more pronounced as item difficulty increased. There were significant differences based on native language background. Implications will be discussed.

The purpose and aim of this study are to examine how quality control and assurance is performed and how it varies in different regions around the world and strive towards international standardization of quality assurance. The foundation to the idea of this study is a Swedish company, called Runway Safe, working with international affairs regarding a safety solution for airport runways. To complete the study, cultural differences and structural differences in organizations comes to consideration.