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Gestão da Inovação · Dimensões da Criatividade, do Comportamento e Cultura Organizacional para Inovação

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Título

“HEY YOU! TAKE A LOOK AT HOW COMPATIBLE NATIONAL CULTURES AND INNOVATION PERCEPTIONS MIGHT BE! IS IT A COINCIDENCE?”: A cross-cultural comparison between Brazilians and Americans

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Palavras-chave

Innovation Culture Cross-cultural research
Agradecimento: The authors would like to thank the Minas Gerais State Research Support Foundation (FAPEMIG) for the financial support for the development of this study.

Autores

  • ANDRÉ LUIZ MENDES ATHAYDE
    UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE MINAS GERAIS (UFMG)
  • SAMUEL SILVA
    UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE MINAS GERAIS (UFMG)
  • Edimilson Eduardo da Silva
    UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DOS VALES DO JEQUITINHONHA E MUCURI (UFVJM)
  • Simarly Maria Soares
    UNIVERSIDADE ESTADUAL DE MONTES CLAROS (UNIMONTES)
  • Ernani Mendes Botelho
    UNIVERSIDADE DO ESTADO DE MINAS GERAIS (UEMG)

Resumo

Introdução

Innovation does not happen on its own. It passes through the hands of individuals who are inclined toward innovation and who have positive perceptions about it (Schumpeter, 1934). The literature highlights the importance of innovation as a driver for economic and social development, being widely explored in organizational and macroeconomic contexts. However, comparative analyses of individuals’ perceptions about innovation in different countries that discuss the possible influence of national culture on these perceptions do not occur with the same frequency (Athayde & Coutinho, 2023).

Problema de Pesquisa e Objetivo

Taking citizens of a developing country and a developed country as the research locus for this investigation, the guiding question of this research was: What are the perceptions about innovation among Brazilians and Americans? Are the differences between the national cultures of Brazil and the United States compatible with their citizens’ perceptions about innovation? Based on theoretical and empirical evidence, this study aimed to explore the perceptions about innovation among Brazilians and Americans.

Fundamentação Teórica

Regarding innovation, theoretical-empirical studies on the main attributes of people prone to innovation were retrieved. With respect to culture, the Hofstede’s Cultural Model (Hofstede, 2011) was the main theoretical framework adopted. To characterize Brazilian and American cultures, we used his six cultural dimensions, considered the most widely adopted in cross-cultural studies (e.g., Vignoles et al., 2016): (a) Power Distance, (b) Individualism, (c) Masculinity, (d) Uncertainty Avoidance, (e) Long-Term Orientation, and (f) Indulgence.

Metodologia

To represent Brazilian and American perceptions about innovation, we used five variables from the World Values Survey (WVS) database. The survey sample consisted of 1,762 Brazilians and 2,596 Americans. To support data statistical analysis, IBM® SPSS® 20.0 software was used. Correlations between perceptions about innovation and sociodemographic characteristics were identified through Chi-square, Spearman, and Mann-Whitney tests. Differences between Brazilians and Americans were identified with Chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests, depending on the variable characteristics.

Análise dos Resultados

Education level and sex emerged as the sociodemographic characteristics most strongly associated with innovation in both countries, indicating that male individuals with higher levels of education tend to have more positive perceptions about innovation. National culture characteristics proved to be compatible with perceptions about innovation: this study suggests more positive perceptions about innovation are associated with lower levels of Power Distance and Uncertainty Avoidance and higher levels of Long-Term Orientation, Masculinity, Individualism, and Indulgence.

Conclusão

Since innovation is such an important topic, and considering that the literature has demonstrated that national culture influences values, attitudes, and behaviors, hence, cultural variables cannot be neglected as possible predictors of innovative values, attitudes, and behaviors. Revisiting the title of this paper, which is an invitation, “Hey you! Take a look at how compatible national cultures and innovation perceptions might be! Is it a coincidence?”, we, the authors, conclude it is not a coincidence. We hope this paper has enabled you to answer this question with greater confidence.

Contribuição / Impacto

Besides theoretical benefits, the results of this research also have practical implications for business leaders, public officials, human resources professionals, and psychologists. Human resources management policies and practices can benefit from considering the cultural particularities of innovation in the countries where they are developed. Organizations, especially multinational companies, can benefit from understanding the relationship between culture and innovation. It also provides insights for formulating or adjusting public policies in a contextualized and culturally adapted manner.

Referências Bibliográficas

Athayde, A. L. M. & Coutinho, H. I. S. (2023). Innovation Individual Characteristics: A Cross-Cultural Comparison Between Brazilians and Americans. Revista de Administração, Sociedade e Inovação, 9(1), 11-24.
Hofstede, G. (2011). Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1), 1-26.
Schumpeter, J. A. (1934). The Theory of Economic Development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Vignoles, V. L. et al. (2016). Beyond the “East-West” Dichotomy. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 145(8), 966-1000.

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