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Never the Twain Shall Meet? Integrating Chinese and Western Management Research

Part of: Cross Cultural Collection

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Kwok Leung
Kwok Leung*
Affiliation:
City University of Hong Kong
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Abstract

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This commentary offers several directions for the development of Chinese management research based on the penetrating analyses provided by Barney and Zhang (2009) and Whetten (2009). First and foremost, Chinese management researchers can develop novel, seminal ideas and theories that are not necessarily tied to the Chinese cultural context but are applicable in diverse cultural contexts. The success of this approach depends on the merit of the ideas and theories proposed. A fusion, or combined emic–etic approach, can also be attempted, which integrates elements from Western and indigenous theories. Finally, the synergistic approach involves a dynamic interplay of Chinese and Western management research, which will eventually lead to innovative, culture-general theories. This article argues that all three approaches should be emphasized in Chinese management research.

Keywords

Chinese managementcombined emic–etic approachindigenous researchsynergistic approach混合 “主位–客位” 方法本土研究协同方法华人管理
Type
Commentaries
Information
Management and Organization Review , Volume 5 , Issue 1 , March 2009 , pp. 121 - 129
Copyright
Copyright © International Association for Chinese Management Research 2009

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