Exploring the impact of cultural values on project performance: the effects of cultural values, age and gender on the perceived importance of project success/failure factors
Exploring the impact of cultural values on project performance: the effects of cultural values, age and gender on the perceived importance of project success/failure factors
Purpose– This study explores the impact of cultural values on the importance individuals assign to project success/failure factors.
Design/methodology/approach–Themes emerging from 40 interviews of project practitioners based in Brazil, China, Greece, Nigeria, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States are integrated with literature evidence to design a survey instrument. 1313 practitioner survey responses from the eight countries are analysed using multi-group, structural equation modelling.
Findings– Ten project success/failure indicators (PSFIs) are found to reduce to two main project success/failure factors (PSFFs): (1) project control and extra-organisational goals, and (2) project team management/development and intra-organisational goals. It is found that the levels of importance individuals assign to both factors are dependent, not only on age and gender, but also on cultural values measured as constructs based on Hofstede’s individualism, masculinity, power distance and uncertainty avoidance dimensions.
Research limitations – The snowballing method used to gather survey data and analysis of relationships at individual level reduce generalisability.
Practical implications – The results reveal insights on how best to match the cultural values of project participants to project characteristics. They also increase knowledge on the likely perceptual differences among culturally-diverse individuals within projects.
Originality/value – This research contributes to the literature on culture in project environments by defining a factor structure of multiple-dependent project success/failure indicators and increases insight on how specific cultural values may impact on the perception of the so-defined project success/failure factors.
364-389
Chipulu, M.
12545803-0d1f-4a37-b2d2-f0d21165205e
Ojiako, U.
aaf46aee-2d90-4446-a689-84bc963c69aa
Gardiner, P.
60cb4b3a-657d-4529-8ebb-e07af801f1f2
Williams, T.M.
fb409365-0027-4db3-b401-58a8c8992639
Mota, C.
459805d8-a30e-47f0-b0a1-a70eefb49405
Maguire, S.
c1a8e243-bca2-408e-bee5-2147adc7107c
Shou, Y.
399a5cbf-1163-4d4a-88e2-d368b30e5a16
Stemati, T.
99e2164a-973f-414b-aafb-fcf6b64f3f85
Marshall, A.
93aa95a2-c707-4807-8eaa-1de3b994b616
25 February 2014
Chipulu, M.
12545803-0d1f-4a37-b2d2-f0d21165205e
Ojiako, U.
aaf46aee-2d90-4446-a689-84bc963c69aa
Gardiner, P.
60cb4b3a-657d-4529-8ebb-e07af801f1f2
Williams, T.M.
fb409365-0027-4db3-b401-58a8c8992639
Mota, C.
459805d8-a30e-47f0-b0a1-a70eefb49405
Maguire, S.
c1a8e243-bca2-408e-bee5-2147adc7107c
Shou, Y.
399a5cbf-1163-4d4a-88e2-d368b30e5a16
Stemati, T.
99e2164a-973f-414b-aafb-fcf6b64f3f85
Marshall, A.
93aa95a2-c707-4807-8eaa-1de3b994b616
Chipulu, M., Ojiako, U., Gardiner, P., Williams, T.M., Mota, C., Maguire, S., Shou, Y., Stemati, T. and Marshall, A.
(2014)
Exploring the impact of cultural values on project performance: the effects of cultural values, age and gender on the perceived importance of project success/failure factors.
International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 34 (3), .
(doi:10.1108/IJOPM-04-2012-0156).
Abstract
Purpose– This study explores the impact of cultural values on the importance individuals assign to project success/failure factors.
Design/methodology/approach–Themes emerging from 40 interviews of project practitioners based in Brazil, China, Greece, Nigeria, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States are integrated with literature evidence to design a survey instrument. 1313 practitioner survey responses from the eight countries are analysed using multi-group, structural equation modelling.
Findings– Ten project success/failure indicators (PSFIs) are found to reduce to two main project success/failure factors (PSFFs): (1) project control and extra-organisational goals, and (2) project team management/development and intra-organisational goals. It is found that the levels of importance individuals assign to both factors are dependent, not only on age and gender, but also on cultural values measured as constructs based on Hofstede’s individualism, masculinity, power distance and uncertainty avoidance dimensions.
Research limitations – The snowballing method used to gather survey data and analysis of relationships at individual level reduce generalisability.
Practical implications – The results reveal insights on how best to match the cultural values of project participants to project characteristics. They also increase knowledge on the likely perceptual differences among culturally-diverse individuals within projects.
Originality/value – This research contributes to the literature on culture in project environments by defining a factor structure of multiple-dependent project success/failure indicators and increases insight on how specific cultural values may impact on the perception of the so-defined project success/failure factors.
Text
Chipulu et al IJOPM Accepted Manuscript.pdf
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 11 December 2012
e-pub ahead of print date: 25 February 2014
Published date: 25 February 2014
Organisations:
Southampton Business School
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 345918
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/345918
ISSN: 0144-3577
PURE UUID: 3f893552-5fc2-4da1-8ab2-db75b38555fb
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Date deposited: 06 Dec 2012 11:11
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:33
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Contributors
Author:
M. Chipulu
Author:
U. Ojiako
Author:
P. Gardiner
Author:
T.M. Williams
Author:
C. Mota
Author:
S. Maguire
Author:
Y. Shou
Author:
T. Stemati
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