The effects of culture and life stage on workplace strategies of upward influence: A comparison of Thailand and the United States

Abstract

A comparison of the influence style ethics in Thailand and the U.S. for managers in two life stage (age) groups, early adulthood and middle adulthood is presented. Our findings confirm that Eastern and Western cultures emphasize different influence styles. Our findings also indicate that life stage is as important as culture, and possibly more important than culture, in explaining the ethical perceptions of upward influence behavior. An implication is that cross-cultural comparison studies should take into consideration key non-culture factors, such as life stage, to fully explore the set of issues that determine influence behaviors in organizations. © 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.