Is a Leader's Character Culture-Bound or Culture-Free? An Empirical Comparison of the Character Traits of American and Taiwanese CEOs

Executive Summary Most experts agree that our character is influenced by our distinctive national culture, but the world is becoming more "boundaryless" as international trade, transportation and communication systems become more efficient. As a result, it is unclear whether the global marketplace has begun to homogenize the character traits of business leaders. This research hypothesizes that character traits of business leaders will be one of the last aspects to be homogenized in our global marketplace. To explore this hypothesis, we compare and contrast three dimensions of leadership character (i.e., personality, values, and spirituality) for American and Taiwanese CEOs in small- and medium-sized firms. In general, we found robust differences between these two sets of CEOs offering support for the "culture-bound" nature of leadership character. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic examination of the inner character of CEOs in a cross-cultural study. ********** Strategic leadership effectiveness is increasingly seen as a function of the competence and character of those in executive positions (Bennis, 1998). While there is extensive research on the skills and competencies required of effective leaders, there is relatively little scholarly exploration of leaders' inner character (Renshon, 1998) and only anecdotal evidence from a cross-cultural perspective (Usinier, 1998). Despite the fact that leadership always comes down to a question of character (Bennis, 1998), there is remarkably little systematic research on this topic. Character is defined as "the complex of mental and ethical traits marking and often individualizing a person." (1) Given this general definition, leadership character can be conceptualized as the highly individualized inner landscape which guides a leader's perceptions and behaviors. In this paper, we operationalize leadership character along three dimensions -- personality, values, and spirituality (Judge, 1999). Personality may be thought of as the inner social system that determines how we relate to ourself and to others (Jung, 1923). Values represent the inner belief system about desirable end states or modes of behavior (Rokeach, 1975). Spirituality is the inner meaning system that helps us and others to makes sense of life (Conger, 1994). Together, these three character traits can and do interact to influence the perceptions and behaviors of the leader. The character of a leader is important and relevant because of its strong link with the leader's credibility; and its impact on organizational trust, organizational culture, and organizational longevity. Leadership character generates trustworthiness within an organization, which is theorized to provide a valuable and rare resource that is not easily imitated by competitors. By exploring the "essence" of leadership (i.e., the leader's character), we may begin to understand why the research and theories on leadership behavior is so equivocal, especially in cross-cultural settings (e.g., Ricks, Toyne & Martinez, 1990). Is Leadership Character Culture-Bound or Culture-Free? Numerous studies have provided evidence for the notion of leadership being a "culture-bound" phenomena (e.g., Hofstede, 1999; Usinier, 1998). Some theorists argue that the study of international management and leadership should be rooted in the cultural context of the individual executives being studied. For example, Inkeles and Levinson (1969) developed the concept of "modal personality" within cultures which would indicate that national character is more influential than occupational character or level of industrial development, in explaining a leader's perceptions and behavior. Since national cultures are strikingly different and change very slowly (Hofstede, 1999; Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 1998), this suggests that leadership character may be culture-bound. Griffeth, Hom, DeNisi and Kirchner (1980) found that 52 percent of the variance in manager's behavior could be attributed by their nationality within a single multinational firm. …