Acting professional: An exploration of culturally bounded norms against nonwork role referencing

Eric Luis Uhlmann ()
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Eric Luis Uhlmann: GREGH - Groupement de Recherche et d'Etudes en Gestion à HEC - HEC Paris - Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

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Abstract: This article presents three studies examining how cross-cultural variation in assumptions about the appropriateness of referencing nonwork roles while in work settings creates consequential impressions that affect professional outcomes. Study 1 reveals a perceived norm limiting the referencing of nonwork roles at work and provides evidence that it is a U.S. norm by showing that awareness of it varies as a function of tenure living in the United States. Studies 2 and 3 examine the implications of the norm for evaluations of job candidates. Study 2 finds that U.S. but not Indian participants negatively evaluate job candidates who endorse nonwork role referencing as a strategy to create rapport and shows that this cultural difference is largest among participants most familiar with norms of professionalism, those with prior recruiting experience. Study 3 finds that corporate job recruiters from the United States negatively evaluate candidates who endorse nonwork role referencing as a means of building rapport with a potential business partner. This research underlines the importance of navigating initial interactions in culturally appropriate ways to facilitate the development of longer-term collaborations and negotiation success.

Keywords: multicultural environments; professional norms; U.S. culture; role referencing; hiring evaluations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013-08-01
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

Published in Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2013, 34 (6), pp.866-886. ⟨10.1002/job.1874⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-00863398

DOI: 10.1002/job.1874

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