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Acting professional: An exploration of culturally bounded norms against nonwork role referencing

Author

Listed:
  • Eric Luis Uhlmann

    (GREGH - Groupement de Recherche et d'Etudes en Gestion à HEC - HEC Paris - Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

Abstract

This article presents three studies examining how cross-cultural variation in assumptions about the appropriateness of referencing nonwork roles while in work settings creates consequential impressions that affect professional outcomes. Study 1 reveals a perceived norm limiting the referencing of nonwork roles at work and provides evidence that it is a U.S. norm by showing that awareness of it varies as a function of tenure living in the United States. Studies 2 and 3 examine the implications of the norm for evaluations of job candidates. Study 2 finds that U.S. but not Indian participants negatively evaluate job candidates who endorse nonwork role referencing as a strategy to create rapport and shows that this cultural difference is largest among participants most familiar with norms of professionalism, those with prior recruiting experience. Study 3 finds that corporate job recruiters from the United States negatively evaluate candidates who endorse nonwork role referencing as a means of building rapport with a potential business partner. This research underlines the importance of navigating initial interactions in culturally appropriate ways to facilitate the development of longer-term collaborations and negotiation success.

Suggested Citation

  • Eric Luis Uhlmann, 2013. "Acting professional: An exploration of culturally bounded norms against nonwork role referencing," Post-Print hal-00863398, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-00863398
    DOI: 10.1002/job.1874
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Gibson, Kerry Roberts & Harari, Dana & Marr, Jennifer Carson, 2018. "When sharing hurts: How and why self-disclosing weakness undermines the task-oriented relationships of higher status disclosers," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 25-43.
    2. Chandler, Jeffrey A. & Anglin, Aaron H. & Kanwal, Fizza & Short, Jeremy C., 2024. "No politics in funding pitches: An expectancy violations theory perspective of entrepreneurs' political expressions in crowdfunding," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 39(1).
    3. Liu, Yipeng & Almor, Tamar, 2016. "How culture influences the way entrepreneurs deal with uncertainty in inter-organizational relationships: The case of returnee versus local entrepreneurs in China," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 4-14.
    4. Hardin, Ashley E. & Bauman, Christopher W. & Mayer, David M., 2020. "Show me the … family: How photos of meaningful relationships reduce unethical behavior at work," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 93-108.
    5. Erin Reid, 2015. "Embracing, Passing, Revealing, and the Ideal Worker Image: How People Navigate Expected and Experienced Professional Identities," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 26(4), pages 997-1017, August.
    6. Maryam Dilmaghani, 2021. "Deep-Level Religious Diversity and Work-Life Balance Satisfaction in Canada," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 16(1), pages 315-350, February.
    7. Sulakshana De Alwis & Patrik Hernwall, 2021. "A Review of Methodological Choices Relating to Work-Life Boundary Research," Managing Global Transitions, University of Primorska, Faculty of Management Koper, vol. 19(1 (Spring), pages 73-101.
    8. Gobena, Lemessa Bayissa & Van Dijke, Marius, 2017. "Fear and caring: Procedural justice, trust, and collective identification as antecedents of voluntary tax compliance," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1-16.
    9. Yu Yang & David De Cremer & Chao Wang, 2017. "How Ethically Would Americans and Chinese Negotiate? The Effect of Intra-cultural Versus Inter-cultural Negotiations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 145(3), pages 659-670, October.

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