International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85

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International Journal of Hospitality Management

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijhosman

National culture, leadership and citizenship: Implications for cross-cultural

management
Mark R. Testa *
HTM Program, PSFA 443, San Diego State University, 5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego, CA 92182, United States

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Continued globalization is raising the level of diversity within hospitality organizations as well as the
National culture likelihood that leaders will manage those from varying national cultures. Previous research has found
Leader–member exchange (LMX) that cultural congruence between leaders and stakeholders (i.e., from the same or different national
Leadership behavior
cultures) impacts a variety of variables including perceived leadership style, satisfaction and trust. This
Organizational citizenship
study extends this line of research by investigating the relationship between cultural congruence,
Cross-cultural management
perceived leadership style, leader–member exchange (LMX) and employee citizenship behaviors. Using a
highly diverse sample of 520 members of congruent and incongruent dyads from 66 countries working
for 2 large cruise lines and 2 subsidiaries, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to test
the relationships. It was determined that cultural similarity impacted employee perceptions of LMX
relations and organization citizenship behaviors, but not leadership style. The results of the study provide
strategies for cross-cultural management in the hospitality industry.
ß 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Among challenges in the hospitality industry is the need to
provide the best service quality possible with fewer and fewer
resources. Increasingly, the primary method leaders have for
improving service performance is developing a quality relationship
with service employees. Given the increase in globalization and
diversity over the past decade, it is likely that managers will
supervise groups of employees which maintain very different
cultural backgrounds, beliefs and attitudes than themselves
(Maxwell et al., 2000). This may pose some difficulty for line
managers seeking to build such relationships and improve
employee performance and ultimately customer satisfaction. A
key component in the relationship between leaders and sub-
ordinates is the perception subordinates maintain regarding their
supervisor and their leadership style (Shaw, 1990). To what extent
do differences in national culture in such a multi-cultural
environment impact the relationship between leaders and
subordinates, and subsequent subordinate outcomes?
Cross-cultural leadership has been largely investigated in mana-
gement studies looking at national culture and managerial practices.
Perhaps the most heavily cited work has been conducted by Hofstede
(1991) who set out to determine if American management theories
* Tel.: +1 619 594 6642.
E-mail address: mtesta@mail.sdsu.edu.
applied abroad. Hofstede’s seminal work has provided the foundation
for many cross-cultural studies, most often seeking to determine how
differences on cultural dimensions (i.e., power distance, individual-
ism, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity) impacted work related
outcomes. From a leadership standpoint several empirical
approaches have been taken such as evaluating the effects of
leadership style on subordinates with different cultural character-
istics (Jung and Avolio, 1999), comparing actual leadership behaviors
to cultural characteristics (Offermann and Hellmann, 1997), and
identifying leadership differences and preferences between work-
groups from different nations (Kuchinke, 1999). In spite of these in-
depth investigations, a dearth exists looking at the extent to which
cultural differences exist between a leader and subordinate, and the
subordinate’s perception of, and response to their leader.
While much has been done on leadership at the dyadic level (i.e.,
leader–member exchange (LMX), see Graen and Uhl-Bien, 1995;
Gerstner and Day, 1997; Borchgrevink and Boster, 1997 for reviews),
and how differences between supervisors and subordinates might
impact the relationship (Allinson et al., 2001), little has looked at
how cultural congruence (leaders and subordinates originating from
the same national culture) impacts subsequent employee outcomes.
A notable exception is a study conducted by Pillai et al. (1999), which
looked at the relationship between transformational leadership and
LMX to organizational justice and job satisfaction in five different
cultures. Using a varied sample of 755 MBA students and working
professionals from the US, Australia, India, Columbia and the Middle
East (Saudi Arabia and Jordan), the researchers determined that

0278-4319/$ – see front matter ß 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.ijhm.2008.04.002
 M.R. Testa / International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85
differences existed between western and non-western cultures. The
samples in the US and Australia reported that transformational
leadership and LMX influenced organizational justice and job
satisfaction where the relationship was more complicated for the
non-western sample. The study suggests that work-related values
based on national culture impacted the relationship between LMX
and employee outcomes.
Another area in need of further study of cross-cultural
leadership is the hospitality environment. While some work has
been done, we know little about how the dynamics of the industry
impact the relationship between leaders and stakeholders in the
multi-cultural environment. Pizam et al. (1997) study provided
some insight as to the impact of national culture versus the hotel
industry’s culture on managerial behavior. In addition, the
researchers attempted to identify the impact of personal work
values on managerial behavior. Using a sample of 192 hotel
managers from Hong Kong, Japan and Korea, the researchers found
significant differences between the three groups. The results
indicated that national culture had a greater impact on 22 of 29
managerial practices than the hotel industry culture.
Testa (2002) conducted as study of cultural congruence and
employee outcomes in the cruise industry. The study investigated
the impact cultural congruence of leaders and subordinates (i.e.,
coming from the same or different culture) had on perceived
leadership style, trust, commitment and satisfaction with super-
visor. Using a sample of 367 members of congruent and incongruent
leadership dyads from a large cruise organization, the researcher
found that subordinates within congruent dyads reported higher
levels of consideration behaviors, where subordinates within
incongruent dyads reported higher levels of initiating structure
behaviors on the part of their supervisor. Further, members of
congruent dyads reported greater levels of trust and satisfaction
with their supervisor than their incongruent counter parts.
More recently Testa (in press) administered open-ended ques-
tionnaires and in-depth interviews with service workers in a multi-
cultural environment. The goal was to assess how perceptions of
leadership behavior impacted the relationship between leader and
follower as well as any subsequent behavioral outcomes. The results
suggest that subordinates do not consciously differentiate between
leaders who are similar or dissimilar from a cultural standpoint.
Conversely, most agreed that differences can impact the relation-
ship. Some suggest that comfort level and clearer expectations result
when the supervisor comes from the same country due to common
language and customs. Unexpectedly, it was determined that
cultural similarly can actually cause negative consequences for some
subordinates. For example, if a manger is concerned about ‘‘playing
favorites,’’ with a fellow countrymen, he or she may actually manage
more sternly and be less supportive. This is clearly a complex issue
that requires further study.
To address the complexity of cultural relationships, the current
study seeks to take a quantitative approach. While it seems clear
that cultural congruence impacts subordinate perceptions of their
leaders, little is known about the effect on the relationship
between the two and subsequent employee behavioral outcomes.
Does this varying perception of leadership style impact employee
perceptions of their relationship with their supervisor (i.e., LMX)
and their subsequent helping behavior in the service environment
(i.e., organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs))?
2. Theoretical foundation
2.1. Cultural congruence and leadership evaluation
Why should similarities in national culture impact the relation-
ship between leaders and subordinates? Several theoretical
79
frameworks provide support for this interesting relationship and
provide direction for hypothesis development. First, ‘‘fit’’ between
national cultural values and managerial practices is an area that
supports this investigation (Newman and Nollen, 1996). National
culture is important in the workplace because of the common
beliefs, ideas and attitudes that develop among groups. When an
individual with a strong ethnic culture enters the workplace, his or
her past experiences impacts his or her perception of the
environment (Hofstede, 1991). Newman and Nollen (1996)
suggest that appraisals of the work environment counter to the
deeply held beliefs developed by cultural background can result in
negative outcomes. Conversely, a more positive appraisal of the
work environment may result when managerial practices are
consistent with cultural preferences. A significant component in
the work environment is the employee’s immediate supervisor and
the subsequent assessment of the supervisor’s leadership.
The process of identifying leaders from non-leaders is referred
to as leadership categorization (Shaw, 1990). According to Shaw
(1990), subordinates develop leadership schemas or prototypes
which form the foundation of leadership evaluation. That is,
employees create an image of what a leader is, and then compare
this image to the actual leadership behaviors they witness. The
result is a categorization of leader or non-leader status. Such status
is important because both social power and influence should result
when a positive appraisal occurs (Cronshaw and Lord, 1987),
thereby impacting employee performance.
The categorization process is relevant to the multi-cultural
work environment due to the assumptions an employee may make
about their leader in relation to their leadership schema. When the
supervisor’s attributes are similar to those identified by the
subordinate, ‘‘automatic’’ categorization is likely to occur (Shaw,
1990). The closer the leader is to the image developed by the
subordinate, the more rapidly categorization occurs. When both
the leader and subordinate originate from the same national
culture, this automatic process is likely. Similarity in language,
work values and beliefs should facilitate an automatic categoriza-
tion process compared to a dyad where both members originate
from different cultures. When little is known about the leader and
the subordinate is unable to readily categorize his or her leader, a
‘‘controlled’’ process is possible. That is, subordinates will evaluate
their leader over time until either leader or non-leader status is
confirmed. It is conceivable that in a multi-cultural environment,
cultural incongruence could facilitate the controlled process due to
differences in language, work values and beliefs (Shaw, 1990). The
result of such congruence or incongruence is likely to impact
subordinate perceptions of his or her leaders’ style as well.
3. Outcomes of cultural congruence
3.1. Leadership behavior
A foundation model used to identify leadership behaviors was
developed by researchers at the Ohio State University (Fleishman,
1953; Hemphill and Coons, 1957). Both consideration and
initiating structure behaviors have been well researched in past
studies (Bass, 1990; Fisher and Edwards, 1988; Yukl, 2002).
Consideration behaviors relate to those people-related dimen-
sions, which illustrate a focus on follower needs and developing
relationships. Such behaviors might include doing personal favors
for employees, showing concern for employees, and listening to
employee concerns. Alternatively, initiating structure behaviors
relate to those, which focus on task completion and the
organization of work. Such behaviors might include scheduling,
setting clear expectations and criticizing work performance. The
80 M.R. Testa / International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85
actual behaviors used by the leader as well as subordinate
perceptions of these behaviors may result from cultural similarity.
It is reasonable to assume that positive affect will develop
among leaders and followers when cultures are similar. This may
be facilitated by similarity between leaders and subordinates,
which has been found to greatly impact positive reactions to
leaders (Engle and Lord, 1997). Following the Similarity–Attrac-
tion Paradigm (Byrne, 1971), positive outcomes should emerge
when both demographic and attitudinal similarity between
leaders and subordinates exists (Graen and Cashman, 1975;
Harrison et al., 1998). Such outcomes may include greater
compatibility, communication and rapport between leaders and
subordinates which helps to clarify perceptions of leader
performance, in turn impacting subordinate performance
(Deluga, 1998). Such attraction also increases the tendency to
‘‘like’’ those who are more similar compared to those who are
different (Engle and Lord, 1997). In the highly multi-cultural
environment, it is likely that the emergence of a leader from the
same country will promote positive affect towards the leader,
which could manifest itself in the form of perceived consideration
behaviors. Conversely, cultural dissimilarity may yield less affect
and a greater perception of task-related leadership behaviors (i.e.,
initiating structure).
It is also possible that the automatic categorization process will
facilitate a perception of consideration behaviors when cultures
are similar. The automatic process tends to be less critical than the
controlled process. That is, a more positive appraisal (leading to
greater affect) may result when ‘‘leader’’ status is determined in
the mind of the subordinate. In opposition, the controlled
categorization process, which results when the leader does not
match the subordinate’s schema (i.e., ‘‘non-leader’’ status), may
result in a more critical appraisal of the leader’s behavior and
subsequently, less affect. The absence of such affect may result in
the subordinate’s reliance on readily visible task-related behaviors
when evaluating the leader.
Empirical support for these outcomes is provided in the study
conducted by Testa (2002), where subordinates within congruent
dyads reported a greater amount of consideration (Yukl, 2002) or
people-related leadership behaviors. Past research on considera-
tion support a more favorable appraisal of leader behavior as
illustrated by the consistent finding that employees report higher
levels of job satisfaction when consideration behaviors are present,
either alone or in conjunction with initiating structure behaviors
(Yukl, 2002). This process may be compounded by the fact that
leaders may actually treat subordinates differently when cultures
are congruent.
The previously mentioned categorization process may be
applied to the process leaders use to evaluate subordinates as
well (Lord, 1985; Shaw, 1990). Just as differences between leaders
and subordinates impact how subordinates view leaders, the
reverse may also be true. Leaders may observe more positive
subordinate behaviors when similarity is greater and treat the
employee differently. This could result from automatic categor-
ization and the prototypical behaviors of a ‘‘good’’ employee that
the leader associates with subordinates who match their schema.
In practice, this may simply be a manager who makes automatic
assumptions about an employee because they come from the same
country. In turn, the manager witnesses the positive behaviors he
or she associates with that type of employee (i.e., prototypical
behavior), which impacts the treatment of the subordinate. This
process is supported by an early study conducted by Gioia and Sims
(1986) who found that the attributional and categorization process
directly impacted how managers behaved toward subordinates.
Based on the above theoretical rationale and the findings of the
previous research, the following is hypothesized:
H1. Followers within the congruent group will systematically
perceive their leaders to be higher on consideration behaviors
than initiating structure behaviors.
H2. Followers within incongruent group will systematically per-
ceive their leaders to be higher on initiating structure behaviors
than consideration behaviors.
3.2. Leader–member exchange (LMX)
Given the process of leadership categorization, and past
research on ‘‘fit’’ between national culture and managerial
practices, it is fair to conclude that the relationship between
leaders and subordinates will be impacted by differences in
national culture (Hofstede, 1991; Newman and Nollen, 1996). The
dyadic view of leadership further supports this conclusion.
Leader–member exchange theory illustrates the importance of
leadership relationships and provides some explanation for the
effects of cultural congruence (Dansereau et al., 1973; Graen and
Cashman, 1975). Rather than looking at leadership from a group
standpoint, LMX takes a dyadic view. That is, leadership is looked
at as a relationship between the leader and the individual follower.
LMX focus on social exchange relationships between leaders and
followers which results in ‘‘in’’ and ‘‘out’’ groups of employees
(Graen, 1976). Those in the ‘‘in’’ group tend to have more positive
exchanges and yield higher quality relationships with leaders
compared to those in the ‘‘out’’ group (Sparrowe, 1994). Shaw’s
(1990) discussion of leader categorization of subordinates
reinforces this process, noting that managers may treat employees
differently depending on assignment of their place as ‘‘in’’ or ‘‘out.’’
Citing a study by Dansereau et al. (1975), which found that leaders
responded more positively to subordinates within the ‘‘in’’ group
and vice versa. Shaw (1990) states that managerial behavior is
dependent upon how the employee is categorized. Subsequently,
employees may respond differently to their leaders, thus impact-
ing the LMX relationship.
In the hospitality arena, Borchgrevink and Boster (1997) found
that intradyadic communication, expert power positively predicted
LMX, while coercive power negatively predicted LMX. Indeed the
authors suggest that LMX was based on relational variables rather
than based on organizational factors. In a sample of 236 hospitality
employees at two large universities, the researchers found that LMX,
while related to relational variables was also distinct in the
hospitality setting providing support for further investigation.
Given the labor intensity as well as customer contact intensity of
such organizations, it is reasonable to investigate traditional LMX
suppositions in the hospitality sector (Borchgrevink, 2004).
A well-studied precursor to effective LMX relationships is how
subordinates feel about their supervisor (Engle and Lord, 1997).
The previously mentioned Similarity–Attraction Paradigm also
provides support for positive LMX relationships when cultural
similarity exists with the ‘‘liking’’ acting as a mediator. Conse-
quently, cultural congruence may result in a more positive
appraisal of one’s leader and perceptions of LMX quality. As such,
the following is hypothesized:
H3. Followers within congruent dyads will report higher quality
LMX relationships than those within incongruent dyads.
3.3. Organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs)
To the extent that leadership behaviors are congruent with
subordinate schemas and positive affect develops, work-related
outcomes should be impacted. Such outcomes may include higher
performance ratings (Liden et al., 1993), better objective perfor-
 M.R. Testa / International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85 81

mance (Vecchio and Gobdel, 1984), overall satisfaction and Table 1

Country of origin for congruent and incongruent samples
commitment (Graen et al., 1982; Nystrom, 1990) and satisfaction
with supervisor (Duchon et al., 1986). Similarly, increased Country of origin Congruent sample Incongruent sample
organizational citizenship behaviors on the part of the subordinate
Subordinate Leader Subordinate Leader
could result as well (Podsakoff et al., 1993).
Organizational citizenship behaviors refer to those work- Argentina 1
Australia 3 1
related behaviors which may not be formally required within a
Austria 3 3 2 7
particular job, but are highly desired by an organization (Schnake, Bahamas 2
1991). Examples of OCB behaviors include volunteering for extra Bangladesh 1
task, providing suggestions for improvement, or maximizing the Belize 1
Brazil 1
time need for completing tasks. OCB also refers to behaviors, which
Bulgaria 1
employees refrain from exhibiting such as complaining, wasting Canada 13 13
time, arguing with coworkers and slacking on work (Organ, 1990). China 1
Perhaps the most commonly referenced model of OCB behaviors is Colombia 5 5
that proposed by Organ (1988) which includes five factors of OCB, Costa Rica 1 6
Croatia 6 1
namely; conscientiousness, courtesy, altruism, sportsmanship and
Cuba 5 5 4 17
civic virtue. Conscientiousness is described as the extent to which Denmark 1
employees carry out work-related tasks beyond the minimum Dominica 1
requirements of the job. Courtesy refers to respectful interactions Ecuador 2
Egypt 1
with others, which help to prevent difficulties with work
England 16 16 22 42
associates. Altruism suggests that employees provide help and Estonia 2
assistance to others. Sportsmanship is defined as a willingness to France 2 4
accept personal inconveniences in an effort to accomplish work- Germany 4 5
related tasks and civic virtue refers to constructive involvement in Greece 2
Grenada 1
issues relating to the political life of the organization.
Guyana 4 1
In the service environment, such behaviors may be vital for Haiti 2 2
satisfying guests (Castro, 2004; Stamper and Van Dyne, 2003). For Holland 1 4
example, in a study of restaurant employees Walz and Niehoff Honduras 2 5
Hong Kong 1
(2000) found that OCBs were related to indicators of organizational
Hungary 4
effectiveness. The authors found that OCBs were associated with India 22 22 35 32
lower food cost percentages, perceived company quality, effi- Ireland 2 1
ciency, customer satisfaction and reduced customer complaints. It Israel 2
is likely that leaders and their interactions with employees will Italy 26 26 4 10
Jamaica 2 2 10 26
impact such behavior and may be influenced by cultural similarity.
Latvia 1
Past research by Erez (1993) and Erez and Earley (1993) Lithuania 3
suggests that leadership practices are processed by employees in Morocco 1 1 2
light of cultural values. Such practices are then evaluated in terms The Netherlands 1
of how they might contribute to the employee’s sense of well- New Zealand 1
Nicaragua 3
being and self-worth. To the extent that these practices match the Norway 1 1 1
needs of the employee (i.e., cultural fit), positive results should Panama 2
emerge such as motivation, satisfaction and extra-role behaviors Peru 1 1 1 1
(Gibson, 1994). It is conceivable that as subordinates evaluate their Philippines 2 2 24 6
Poland 1 3
leaders more positively (as a result of cultural congruence), OCB
Portugal 1 3
behaviors will result. This is due primarily to the norm of Puerto Ricoa 2 1
reciprocity (Gouldner, 1960). As supervisors help and support Romania 10
subordinates, subordinates may reply in kind and do more than is Scotland 2 14
required on the job. This sequence is supported by an early study Slovakia 4
South Africa 25
by Smith et al. (1983) who found that leader supportive behaviors Spain 1 1 2
had indirect effects on altruism through job satisfaction, and direct Sri Lanka 3
effects on conscientiousness. Subsequently, the following is St. Lucia 1 1
hypothesized: Suriname 1 1
Sweden 2
H4. Followers within congruent dyads will report higher levels of Switzerland 1
Taiwan 1
OCB behaviors than those within incongruent dyads. Trinidad 2
Tunisia 3
Turkey 3 2
USA 64 64 24 35
4. Methodology Uruguay 2
Venezuela 2
4.1. Sample and data collection Yugoslavia 1

Total 144 144 267 267

To investigate cultural similarity, LMX and OCB, a total of 640
a
shipboard and shoreside service managers, supervisors and staff The respondents reported Puerto Rico as their country of origin rather than the
United States but none had a supervisor or subordinate from the US.
members from 2 large US cruise lines and 2 subsidiaries from 14
ships were surveyed. The cruise environment was selected because
it is truly multi-cultural with workers originating from 50 or more
82 M.R. Testa / International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85
different countries (Wood, 2000). This was the ideal environment
to explore differences between groups of employees who have
supervisors from the same culture versus a different culture.
Data were collected during a major training initiative con-
ducted by the host company. Participation was voluntary and all
responses were kept confidential. The final number of usable
surveys collected was 520 or an 81.25% response rate. The sample
had a mean age of 32 with an average of 3.19 years with the
organization. In addition the sample was predominantly male
(54.6%) and from the shipboard environment (64%). The respon-
dents originated from 66 different countries with large groups
from India, Jamaica, U.K, US and the Philippines. Table 1 shows a
breakdown of the various cultures represented.
As part of the data collection procedure, respondents were also
asked to report their supervisor’s national origin. In the current
study, ‘‘congruence’’ is defined as a leader and subordinate sharing
the same country of origin. This presupposes that the leaders and
followers were raised in the same country as well, which was
assessed in the data collection process. In cross-cultural research
using country of origin or citizenship as a measure of national
culture is not uncommon as long as some controls are in place to
address changes in culture during childhood (Offermann and
Hellmann, 1997). In cases where the employee did not know their
supervisor’s national culture or if the supervisor had been raised in
another country, responses were left blank. To help ensure that
accurate responses were included, respondents were asked to
report how familiar they were with their supervisor’s cultural
background, ethnicity, native tongue and country he or she was
raised in. A single item was used with a 4-point Likert-type scale
ranging from ‘‘Not at all,’’ ‘‘Moderately,’’ ‘‘Very,’’ and ‘‘Extensively’’
to assess cultural familiarity. Only those cases where the
participant reported at least ‘‘moderate’’ knowledge and famil-
iarity of their supervisor’s cultural origin were included in the
analysis. In addition, based on the focus toward services, only those
participants who were in contact with customers ‘‘often’’ were
included in the analysis. The sample resulted in 77 (30%) members
in the congruent group and 185 (70%) members in the incongruent
group.
4.2. Measures
4.2.1. Leadership behavior
To measure leadership behavior the 10-item consideration
scale (a = .82) utilized by Teas (1981) and the 6-item initiating
structure scale (a = .52) utilized by Teas (1980) were used. Both
scales were based on the well-researched Leader Behavior
Description Questionnaire (LBDQ) (Stogdill, 1963). The scales
assessed agreement with statements regarding their supervisor’s
leadership behaviors. Each set of questions used a 5-point Likert-
type scale with responses ranging from (1) Strongly Disagree to (5)
Strongly Agree.
Since the alpha level for the initiating structure scale was less
than acceptable, a factor analysis was conducted on the six items to
test the construct validity. Two factors emerged, both consisting of
three items (a = .78) and (a = .59), respectively. Subsequently, the
low-alpha items were dropped from the study.
4.2.2. Leader–member exchange (LMX)
Leader–member exchange was measured with the well-used,
seven-item (a = .90) LMX 7 scale as recommended by Graen and
Uhl-Bien (1995). The seven items measure subordinate percep-
tions of their leader and the relationship between the two on
various dimensions. Although each item uses a 5-point Likert-type
scale, the descriptor for each item is different (except items 4 and 5
which use the same one). For example, question 1 asks ‘‘Do you
know where you stand with your leader . . . do you usually know
how satisfied your leader is with what you do?’’ This item uses
responses ranging from (1) Rarely to (5) Very Often. Conversely,
question 5 uses a scale ranging from (1) None to (5) Very High in
response to the following: ‘‘Again, regardless of the amount of
formal authority your leader has, what are the chances that he/she
would use his/her power to help you solve problems in your
work?’’ Graen and Uhl-Bien (1995) describe the various uses of the
LMX 7 scale and its suitability for measuring LMX.
4.2.3. Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)
Organizational citizenship behaviors were measured with 17
items (a = .70), of the 24-item scale created by Organ (1988). Given
the multi-cultural nature of the study, items with American slang
or jargon such as ‘‘squeaky wheel’’ and terms like ‘‘mindful’’ were
not used in an effort to reduce confusion and misunderstandings.
Respondents were asked to indicate their level of agreement with
each statement using a 7-point Likert-type scale ranging from (1)
Strongly Disagree to (7) Strongly Agree. The scale assessed five
dimensions of OCB behaviors including conscientiousness (e.g., I do
not take unnecessary time off work); courtesy (e.g., I do not abuse the
rights of others); altruism (e.g., I help others who have a lot of work);
sportsmanship (e.g., I consume a lot of time complaining about small
things—reverse coded); and civic virtue (e.g., I attend and participate
in meetings regarding the company). While Organ (1988) suggested
that OCB is a multi-dimensional construct, others disagree. A meta-
analytic investigation of 113 studies conducted by LePine et al.
(2002) concluded that these dimensions have yet to be distin-
guished from each other beyond factor analysis. The authors found
that the dimensions were highly related to one another calling into
question a multi-dimensional analysis of the variables. Subse-
quently, the items were treated as one construct for the current
study.
It should be noted that OCB measures are highly susceptible to
social desirability bias (O’Reilly and Chatman, 1986), particularly
when the data are self-reported. Such bias occurs when individuals
feel pressured to respond in a way that makes them appear more
positively. The result may be skewed responses and/or spurious
correlations (Ganster et al., 1983). While a supervisor’s evaluation
of OCB may seem preferable, it is not without bias either.
Supervisor evaluations may be biased due to halo effect, memory
distortion, selective memory or failure to witness OCB behaviors
(Schnake, 1991). The ideal situation is to solicit data from both,
assuming such data collection is possible. Supervisor evaluations
were not available in the current study, so to counter potential
social desirability bias, the OCB items were administered at a
different time than the independent measures as suggested by
Podsakoff and Organ (1986). Half the sample was administered the
OCB items before the other measures used in the study and the
remaining half completed the items afterwards. Administration of
the OCB items was counter balanced to ensure that the completion
of the other measures did not bias the responses. An independent
sample t-test on the OCB items found no significant differences
between the two groups.
4.3. Analysis
To determine if systematic differences existed between the
congruent and incongruent groups, multivariate analysis of
variance (MANOVA) was conducted with cultural congruence as
the independent variable and leadership behavior, LMX and OCB as
the dependent variables. Before conducting the MANOVA, a test for
common method variance was conducted. As suggested by
Harman (1967), all the items used in the analysis were forced to
single factor analysis to determine if the majority of the variance
 M.R. Testa / International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85
Table 2
MANOVA table of dependent variables by group congruence
Mean F Sig.
Congruent group Incongruent group
1. Consideration 3.62 3.53 5.27
2. Initiating structure 3.85 3.87 .339
3. LMX 3.91 3.60 12.22
4. Citizenship behaviors 5.30 5.09 4.39
was accounted for. Only 23.25% of the variance was accounted
based on 10 factors with eigenvalues greater than 1. This provides
some support that common method variance was not an issue.
Next, the minimum assumptions for the use of MANOVA were
tested. The distributions of the dependent variables were analyzed
to check significant correlations and the homogeneity of variance.
Bartlett’s test of sphericity examines the correlations among all the
dependent variables and assesses if collectively a significant
intercorrelation exists. Results indicated significant correlations
among the dependent variables (X2 = 1356.3, p < .001). Next, Box’s
test of equality of covariance matrices revealed significant
differences in covariance (F = 1.65, p = .004) and suggesting that
MANOVA was appropriate. The Wilks’ lambda multivariate value
was .93 (F = 3.424, p < .001) indicating that the differences
between the two groups are statistically significant. Table 2 shows
the results of the MANOVA.
4.4. Results
The results of the MANOVA show that subordinates within
congruent dyads reported higher levels of consideration leadership
behaviors (p = .022), LMX quality (p  .001) and OCB (p = .037).
This supports H1 which suggest that followers in congruent dyads
will perceive their leaders to be higher on consideration behaviors.
This also supports H3 and H4 which propose that followers in
congruent dyads will report higher levels of LMX relationships
with their supervisors and higher levels of OCBs than their
incongruent dyads. Conversely, H2 was not supported as the
greater perception of initiating structure behavior reported by
those within incongruent dyads was not statistically significant
(p = .56). The incongruent group did report lower quality LMX
relationships and less OCB however. These findings support the
conclusions of previous study, specifically that subordinates
within congruent dyads perceive and react differently to their
leaders than their incongruent counterparts. The results also
reinforce the complexity of the role national culture plays in leader
evaluation as shown by the absence of a significant difference on
the initiating structure dimension.
5. Discussion
The goal of this investigation was to determine how cultural
congruence impacted leadership perceptions, the relationship
between supervisors and subordinates (i.e., LMX), and employee
behavior (i.e., OCB) in the hospitality environment. Several of the
hypotheses were supported, and conclusions may be drawn for
leadership evaluation, LMX, and cross-cultural leadership within
the hospitality environment.
5.1. Leadership evaluation
Following the conceptual model discussed by Shaw (1990), the
results found here suggest that cultural congruence impacted
follower reactions to their leaders. This was evidenced by a greater
perception of consideration behaviors, LMX relationships and OCB
83
on the part of the congruent group. In addition, the lower LMX and
OCB scores found within the incongruent group provide some
support for this conclusion. From a practical standpoint, this
suggests that hospitality leaders within incongruent dyads may
have greater difficulty in the initial stages of relationship
.022 development with followers than those in congruent dyads.
.56
Managers may have to actively manage the initial impression
.001
.037 they make, particularly when subordinates are from different
national cultures. Based on the ‘‘controlled’’ categorization process,
subordinates will seek out information about the leader lending
itself to critical evaluation. It is conceivable that employee
perceptions will change over time, either positively or negatively.
This notion is supported by a correlation coefficient of r = .10
(p  .05) between the length of time subordinates worked with
their supervisor and their perceptions of initiating structure
behaviors.
To facilitate a positive relationship with subordinates, man-
agers in a multi-cultural environment would do well to identify
and clarify their own work-related values and priorities. For
example, managers must be clear about their view of customers
and the level of priority customers’ needs plays in day-to-day
operations. If in fact customers’ needs are paramount, subsequent
management behavior must be in sync with this philosophy.
Further, managers must clarify their perspective on employees and
their needs. Do employees’ needs come before their own needs?
Are service employees seen as tools for delivering food and
checking in guests, or are they the most important asset in the
organization? Managers who do not have their own clear sense of
direction may find difficulty in developing work-related relation-
ships. Indeed, such managers may pay the price for their lack of
clarity long after the initial meeting takes place. This may be even
more vital in the hospitality environment where service orienta-
tion on the part of the supervisor can have a serious impact on
employee behaviors and customer perceptions of service quality
(Hartline et al., 2000).
The failure to find a significant difference between the groups
on the initiating structure dimension may be the result of the
sample used in the study. Although the first study (Testa, 2002) did
identify the relationship, this sample consisted of greater numbers
of shipboard personnel. Given the highly structured and safety
focused environment, it is conceivable that initiating structure
behaviors may be the norm, and that greater consideration
behaviors in tandem become the differentiator for leaders. Results
of Testa (in press) reinforce the complexity of leadership
evaluation in this environment. Clearly further study is needed
to examine this process more closely.
5.2. Leader–member exchange
It was determined that subordinates evaluated their relation-
ship (i.e., LMX) with their supervisor more positively when the
leader and subordinate shared the same national culture. This
finding may be explained by both the Similarity–Attraction
Paradigm and the general preference for homogeneity. In addition,
this follows the more current approach in LMX which looks at
leadership dyads as partnerships where individual follower needs
are facilitated (Graen and Uhl-Bien, 1995). The implication from
these findings is that national culture may moderate the extent to
which followers are willing to join in such partnerships. Where
perceived differences exist, followers may be more cautious about
engaging in exchange relationships. This could pose a dilemma for
hospitality leaders attempting to develop close working relation-
ships with diverse employees.
Managers might want to consciously invest time and energy in
building one-on-one relationships with subordinates. Past work on
84 M.R. Testa / International Journal of Hospitality Management 28 (2009) 78–85
Social Capital (Prusak and Cohen, 2001) and LMX suggests that
individual performance can improve as relationships develop. In
the multi-cultural environment, this may be as simple as taking an
active interest in the subordinate’s professional and personal
situations. This may be even more critical in the high-customer
contact areas where leader role modeling is crucial to influencing
employees.
5.3. Cross-cultural leadership in the service environment
The findings here support the notion that management
practices greatly impact employee perceptions and attitudes. In
the hospitality industry, this may be extremely important given
the role of front line personnel in meeting and exceeding guest
expectations. Consequently, managers in service organizations
need to identify the greatest drivers of employee attitudes within
their particular organization. While much has been written about
managing in a multi-cultural environment (e.g., Hofstede, 1991),
such activities must take place within the organization’s corporate
culture. Subsequently, each service organization must look at
multi-cultural management and leadership within its own specific
context. By involving employees as well as managers in the process
of identifying a leadership style that is organization specific,
maximized outcomes should result. While it is clear that cultural
congruence in leadership is a complex topic with important
outcomes for practitioners, it is also clear that one size certainly
does not fit all. Subsequently, both organizational and national
cultures must be looked at simultaneously to truly leverage
cultural diversity.
Finally, the finding that organizational citizenship behaviors
were significantly higher in the congruent group suggests that
cultural similarity has some impact on employee behavior. Given the
self-report nature of the data, it is conceivable that the perception of
OCB behavior is simply inflated within the congruent group.
Conversely, it may be that the members of the congruent group
maintain higher levels of confidence or self-efficacy. In either case,
an opportunity exists for hospitality managers. This positive
reaction seems to result, to the extent that leaders meet employee
expectations of their leaders. By identifying employee expectations,
the likelihood of meeting them is greatly enhanced. Rather than
doing what a manager ‘‘thinks’’ positively impacts employees,
communication of such expectations would be mutually beneficial.
Managers would maximize their ability to meet employee needs,
which in turn would impact service behavior, and employees would
enjoy more effective leadership. Managers could ask direct
questions about employee expectations or attempt to draw
conclusions by talking to the employee about past jobs and things
that were either positive or negative. Active solicitation of employee
leadership expectations could be a useful tool in improving service
quality in the multi-cultural environment.
5.4. Future research
The findings of this study contribute to the literature by
illustrating that cultural congruence influences subordinate
perceptions of leadership, relationship development and beha-
vioral outcomes. Where much of cross-cultural management
research illustrates the ways in which cultures differ in the work
place (Hofstede, 1980; Hofstede, 1991) and subsequent outcomes
(Jung and Avolio, 1999), the focus of this inquiry was on cultural
differences and the reaction on employee service-related behavior.
In spite of such efforts to contribute to the literature, several
limitations exist.
First, having the data come from more and different types of
organizations would contribute to the generalizability of the
findings. In addition, adding manager reports of both national
culture and employee OCB would strengthen the conclusions.
Perhaps using Hofstede’s (1991) cultural dimensions to measure
both the supervisor and subordinates national culture would be
more revealing than using citizenship and country of origin. In this
way, comparisons or matching of specific aspects of national
culture (i.e., power distance, uncertainty avoidance, etc.) could
take place. Further, looking at specific pairs of cultural dyads would
add to the literature. That is, investigating the interactions among
specific cultures. For example, in the current study, there were a
number of dyads consisting of a supervisor from Jamaica and a
subordinate from India. The next line of research may include
culture specific analyses, which would reveal compatibility issues
of varying cultural groups. In addition, this would allow a further
investigation of the leader categorization process. How are
schemas amongst such groups different and to what extent does
this impact the subordinate? How is leadership categorization
moderated by organizational culture? Does the presence of highly
formalized policies and procedures impact the process? Are there
specific attributes within the hospitality environment which add
or detract from automatic categorization? Such questions provide
fertile ground for cross-cultural hospitality research.
Another enhancement to the current study would be the
inclusion of more current leadership behavioral models such as
transformational and transactional leadership (Bass, 1990) or a
customized multi-dimensional service leadership assessment. The
use of the consideration and initiating structure scales seemed
appropriate for continuing this line of research, however the two-
factor model of leadership is not without its critics (Bass, 1990;
Yukl, 2002). The complexity we face into today’s business climate
calls for more current conceptualizations of leadership behaviors.
It is clear that cultural congruence is a complex topic in
organizational research. This investigation helps to provide some
explanation for cultural congruence in the hospitality environ-
ment, however, further study is required to counter these
limitations and expand our understanding of effective leadership.
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