Ethnocentric Attitude in International Management
What is an Ethnocentric Attitude?
Bob is from the United States. Bob takes a transfer within his company to manage a manufacturing facility in India. While in his new assignment, Bob tells others back in the United States that the management practices in India are faulty and not near as effective as those in the United States. Bob is exhibiting a(n) _____.
A. geocentric attitude
B. polycentric attitude
C. power distance
D. individualism-collectivism
E. ethnocentric attitude
Answer:
The correct answer is option E. ethnocentric attitude.
An ethnocentric attitude is a fundamental attitude known as ethnocentrism that expresses the conviction that one's own ethnic group or culture is superior to that of other ethnic groups or civilizations, and that one's cultural norms may be universally applied.
In international management, an ethnocentric approach involves filling positions around the world with people from the parent country. For example, relocating one of the current workers who is a citizen or permanent resident of the parent country to fill an executive position in another nation.
In this strategy, the company's national headquarters serves as the location of leadership, with decision-making and control centralized there instead of at the local operational level where there is limited autonomy.
Therefore, Bob's behavior in considering the management practices in India as inferior to those in the United States reflects an ethnocentric attitude.