The Impact of Diversity Factors on the Scope of Information SearchRoblyn Simeon
San Francisco State University
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The Impact of Diversity Factors on the Scope of Information Search
Roblyn Simeon
San Francisco State University
ABSTRACT
Hofstede's value orientation measures served as a guideline for this investigation of social and demographic diversity in the American environment. Specifically, the paper evaluated the influence of cultural values and social orientations on the extent of information search often needed for innovative outcomes. There was a comparison of American-born and Asia-born participants living in the U.S.. The author used regression analysis to test a number of hypotheses and results showed that rather than ethnic diversity, it was the differences in cultural value orientation and social interaction behavior which had the greatest impact on the scope of information search.
Introduction
As corporations, workers, and consumers deal with more complex environments, decision-making is requiring more involved information-search strategies. With the rapid growth in databases, e-mail usage, intra-nets, and the internet, there has been an explosion in the amount of available information. Newspapers, magazines, and television add to the universe of potential sources. However, there is great variation in the quality of information. The gathering and use of strategic information is at the core of organizational competitiveness today. Many articles have been written on the importance of high involvement information search activities for corporations, managers and groups (Zaichkowsky 1985; Grossman 1992; Kettinger and Grover 1997; Haas 1998) . Comprehensive and accurate information is needed to establish business policies, negotiation approaches, and corporate strategies. For corporations, constant environmental scanning provides them with information on the nature and extent of threats and opportunities in their sectors. Strategic information plays an important role in effective competitor intelligence activities, benchmarking, and product innovative processes (Fahey 1989; Haserot 1993; Vogl 1993; Lozada and Calantone 1996) .
Effective managers often depend on extensive information gathering strategies. Whether they are dealing with performance assessment, conflict resolution, cross-functional team management, worker training, or employee motivation, they need comprehensive and timely information (Hussein 1990; Larson and Callahan 1990) . The nature of information search and communication activities within an organization can determine its ability to act quickly to accomplish its strategic goals (Culnan 1983; Robinson 1986) .
A number of studies have described the characteristics of organizations that are effective users of strategic information (Benito, Solberg et al. 1993; Haserot 1993; VanderWerf 1993) . Many of these organizations operate in information intensive environments where speed and rapid decision-making are key competitive qualities. However, except for consumer behavior studies, not as much has been written on the characteristics of employees and individuals who engage in extensive information searches in order to make decisions and solve problems. (Zaichkowsky 1985; Russell and Kamakura 1994; Klobas and McGill 1995; Yale and Gilly 1995) .
Any investigation of the characteristics of high-involvement information seekers in the American environment needs to take into account important aspects of the social and demographic diversity of the American population. Despite the pressures of globalization, diversity of cultural values, social practices and demographic distributions characterize both the domestic and international environments (Larkey, 1996).
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The purpose of this paper is to clarify the social characteristics of high involvement information seekers. More specifically, there will be an investigation of the impact of social and demographic diversity factors on the scope of information search inside and outside the work environment. On the level of human resources management, this diversity has implications for recruitment, training, promotion, and team management strategies. On the level of business strategy, diversity impacts approaches to decision-making, negotiations, inter-firm learning and trust, and general organizational effectiveness.
Research on Factors Affecting Individual and Group Search Behaviors
Most of the research on factors affecting individual and group search behaviors and the link to problem solving has occurred in the marketing and communication areas. The focus of these studies has been mainly on consumer choice and media usage. Kettinger & Grove (1997) examined how the characteristics of inter-organizational e-mail users affected information search strategies. Work-related information sharing was the main use of e-mail activities. Sridhar (1987) looked at gender differences in information and communication behavior of technologists. The main difference was in the use of external interpersonal contacts to gather information. Heischmidt & Coscarelli (1995) analyzed the decision-making styles of individuals when choosing lawyers and accountants. The internal-external information dimensions were the most pertinent. In a similar fashion, the role of advice-support leaders (gatekeepers) in informal communication channels was shown to have an effect on important business processes (Zaichkowsky 1985; Klobas and McGill 1995) .
In this paper, we propose a framework (figure 1) for examining the information search and problem solving strategies of individual and groups characterized by diverse social and cultural traits. This diversity can occur within or across national boundaries. Support for this framework can be found in the literature on cross-cultural values, communication styles, diversity management and organizational learning (Granner, 1980; Osland, 1990; Cox, 1991; Francis, 1991; Koike, 1994; Beamer, 1995; Clarke & Hammer, 1995; Bush & Ingram, 1996; Zorn & Violanti, 1996; Heath & Gay, 1997; Lee, 1997; Shuter & Turner, 1997; Karamuftuoglu, 1998; Askenova, 1999).
A number of researchers have developed similar frameworks to explain the impact of social and cultural factors on communication style, information management and marketing. Bush and Ingram (1996) as well as Verner (2000) presented a framework for understanding and incorporating intercultural communications in cross-border marketing activities. Moorthy et al (1997) developed a framework for understanding consumers' information search behavior. Bolisiani & Scarso (1999) also explained why problem solving, information management and knowledge creation are the primary source of firm's competitiveness. Using our more comprehensive framework (figure 1), we can directly examine the impact of diversity factors on information gathering and problem solving strategies. Our view is that information gathering and sharing (search) is as a crucial activity for both individuals and organizations.
We have used the approach taken by Geert Hofstede to examine cultural differences (Hofstede, 1980, 1985, 1987). The key demographic diversity factors would be age, sex, and national origin. These factors have been shown to impact information search behavior (Hofstede, 1985; Hayes & Allinson, 1988; Hussein, 1990; Hermon, 1996; Wanguri, 1996; Heischmidt & Coscarelli, 1998). Interpersonal networks refer to the size and/or social support aspects of one's friendship networks. Individuals with large or
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cohesive friendship networks are expected to more actively gather and share information (Hsieh & Liu, 1992; Adelman & Ahuvia, 1995; Dawar et al, 1996; McMurdo, 1996). The extent of information gathering is crucial for effective individual or organizational problem solving. These problems can include consumer decisions, negotiation strategy, product development processes, quality control activities and team building (Moore & Whinston, 1986; Habermeier, 1990; McDonald, 1995; Cliffe, 1998; Phillips, 1999). Corporate culture and information gathering behaviors indirectly influence each other. However, the nature of corporate culture is indirectly linked to the way the diversity factors are handled within the organization (Figure 1).
The impact of intra-cultural social and demographic diversity on information gathering strategies has been relatively unexplored. Richardson (1983) did explain the importance of extensive information gathering in the management of corporate culture and Geletkanycz (1997) looked at the effect of cultural values on executives' support for organizational change (Richardson 1983; Geletkanycz 1997) . However, most of the studies using social and demographic diversity factors have focused on the ways in which cross-cultural differences impact work practices and management styles in different national environments. We argue that the same strategies used to rigorously research cross-country differences should be used to evaluate the impact of differences in cultural and social orientations in the domestic environment.
Although there are many ways of evaluating cultural and social differences, the approach taken by Geert Hofstede appears to have been the most widely adopted. In a well-known study of national value systems in 53 countries and regions, Hofstede explained how four dimensions of national culture helped to explain the differences in work-related behavior patterns across nations. The four dimensions were power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, and masculinity. Power distance is the degree to which hierarchy and the unequal distribution of power is socially accepted in a
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society. Uncertainty avoidance refers to the extent to which people and a society feel threatened by and tend to avoid unpredictable and ambiguous situations. Individualism is the degree to which members of a society are expected to be socially responsible to the community and others. Masculinity indicates the degree to which society values achievement, material success, and assertiveness over relationships, quality of life and modesty (Hofstede 1980; Hofstede 1985) . Since then, numerous studies have examined how variations in these national cultural value orientations help to predict differences in management style, organizational structure, negotiation approaches, and learning orientation across national environments (Lebas and Weigenstein 1986; Hayes and Allinson 1988; Bollinger 1994; McDermott 1994; Wong and Birnbaum-More 1994) . The key assumption in this paper is that Hofstede's approach can also be used effectively to research within-country variations.
In this study of intra-culture diversity and information-gathering strategies, we will not be examining all of Hofstede's four dimensions. However, our concepts of uncertainty and conflict avoidance owe much to his conceptualizations. In management and organizational literature, uncertainty avoidance has been shown to be an important influence in corporate strategy formation, career choices, entrepreneurial orientation and marketing communication (Kale 1991; McGrath, MacMillan et al. 1992; Ueno and Sekaran 1992) . Yet, this cultural concept has rarely been linked with studies on information gathering behavior. We argue that this cultural orientation will have an impact on the extent to which individuals gather information before reaching certain decisions. The assumption is that individuals who try to avoid uncertainty will take the necessary steps to reduce ambiguity. This will be especially pertinent when information is needed to make decisions.
Hypothesis One (H 1): The higher the level of uncertainty avoidance, the greater will be the scope of information search preceding decisions.
In this study, we also include a related cultural orientation which was not directly studied by Hofstede but implied in his masculinity value orientation and evident in many studies on cross-national differences in negotiation strategies. It is the concept of conflict avoidance. The conflict avoidance concept refers to the degree to which individuals will try to avoid direct confrontation in social interaction. The preference of certain individuals or groups for reaching general consensus before acting also applies to this concept (Hofstede 1987; Weiner 1989; Gatley and Lessem 1995; Weider-Hatfield & Hatfield, 1996; Volkema et al, 1996; Kozan 1997) .
Tung (1984) showed how conflict avoidance behavior affected international negotiation strategies. Our view is that this cultural orientation will also affect an individual's information-gathering behavior. The assertion here is that in situations where individuals interact, those wishing to avoid conflicts would prefer to know as much about the other individuals as possible. Information gathering would thus help to point out potential areas of conflict before difficult situations arise. However, this cultural orientation will probably be more salient in situations where interaction is unavoidable and crucial for successful task completion.
Hypothesis Two (H 2): The higher the level of conflict avoidance, the more the individual will engage in information gathering before making decisions.
A social orientation concept not directly mentioned by Hofstede but related to his collectivism measure is interpersonal orientation. Since previous studies have shown that friendship networks and high interaction activities help to speed communication in
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organizations, a measure of interpersonal orientation should capture such behavior (Czepiel 1975; Lewis 1986; Haythornthwaite and Wellman 1998) . Friends or acquaintances serve as bridges to various areas of experience and information. When there is a need to make decisions, these interpersonal ties can serve as information-gathering links.
Hypothesis Three (H 3): The greater the interpersonal orientation, the more likely it will be that individuals gather more information before making decisions.
Empirical Context
In comparisons of Asian and American work practices and negotiation strategies, the difference in national cultural values explained a significant amount of the variation (Tung 1984; Hofstede 1987; Ueno and Sekaran 1992) . In contrast to the typical studies which use cultural value measures to compare groups in different national environments, we used similar measures to examine differences in behavior within the same environment.
In order to examine the cultural and social orientation aspects of diversity , we combined two different groups of participants. One group consisted of working students and executives who were born and raised in the United States. The other group consisted of working students and executives from a number of countries in Asia. Although these participants came from an Asian background, most of them had lived in the United States for over a year and had been significantly exposed to the American culture and environment. In total, two hundred and fifty participants were surveyed at a West Cost university. After eliminating incomplete responses, the final sample consisted of 140 Asia-born and 98 American-born respondents. About 80% of the American-born respondents were Asian-American.
This type of sampling reduced the potential extensive diversity of the American respondents. However, despite both groups having long-term exposure to the American environment and a substantial similarity in ethnic backgrounds, we expect a significant variation in cultural values and social behaviors. In a similar research project, Alkhazraji et al (1997) found that Muslim immigrants to the U.S. accepted American organizational cultures (work environment) but retained much of their national culture. This paper helps to clarify whether diversity hinges on ethnic background or whether it is more instructive to focus on individually held values and social practices. In a sense, we expect more explanatory power from these hidden diversity factors.
Data and Measures
The actual survey distributed is the appendix of this paper. Regression analysis was used to examine the three hypotheses. We focused on some of the components of Hofstede's original uncertainty avoidance scale (Hofstede 1980) . Over the years, a number of studies have modified the original scales to get at more specific issues (Dodd 1987; Dorfman 1988; Mendenhall 1995) . The original scale was linked to three workplace related factors: rule orientation, employment stability and general stress. Since the realistic expectations of employment stability now vary widely across national environments, we disaggregated the scale to focus on the work-related and general uncertainty measures (table 1). The first variable of the scale is linked to rule orientation in the workplace. The second variable is a reflection of a rule orientation preference in non-work situations.
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For conflict avoidance, a two-item scale was created which measured the extent of cooperation and good relations expected among co-workers. The cronbach alpha for this scale was .74 (table 1). Although there are other conflict avoidance scales available, we used this scale because we wanted to focus on interactions in the work environment. Two different scales were used to capture the measures of interpersonal orientation. There was a two-item multiple-friendship network measure which looked at general and work-related friendships (table 1).
The advice-support leader scale consisted of two items related to advice-giving behavior for friends and co-workers (table 1). This particular social support scale was used because we wanted to emphasize the active helping behaviors of the participants themselves. We see these behaviors as important characteristics of opinion leaders. Interpersonal networks and opinion leaders have often been linked to the amount and speed of information gathering and diffusion (Czepiel 1975; Lewis 1986; Klobas and McGill 1995) . The cultural values and social orientation measures represent the social diversity factors which will be investigated.
To represent the demographic diversity factors, we included measures age and sex of the respondents. There was also a dummy variable comparing Asia-born to American-born respondents.
Dependent Variables
The dependent variables were all related to information search activities. The respondents were asked to what extent they consulted a variety of information sources in order to take action on (1) job related work/tasks execution, (2) general product purchases, and (3) general non-work decisions.
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To capture the scope of information gathering, respondents were asked to indicate the extent to which (1-5 point scale) they consulted magazines, newspapers, books, the internet, television, co-workers, classmates, friends, and family before taking action in the three areas mentioned above (see appendix). The responses for all information sources were then combined to create a general information search measure for each decision area. Work-task related decisions were refer to clients and job task problems. Product purchase decisions varied over a range of information sources (appendix). General non-work decisions were concerned with decisions about schools, travels, and finding employment. This focus on information sources and extent of search highlights the actions of high involvement information seekers who have been shown to have an impact in many areas of consumer marketing, corporate culture, and other business processes (Culnan 1983; Richardson 1983; Hussein 1990; Haythornthwaite and Wellman 1998) .
Analysis
Work-Related Task Execution
In the examination of cultural factors impacting the scope of information search for work-related task execution decisions, there are some interesting results. The work-related and general uncertainty avoidance measures had no significant impact on the scope of search for work-related tasks. However, the conflict avoidance variable was highly significant ( p < .01). This indicates that those individuals who dislike direct confrontation in the work environment, tend to gather more information before making work-task related decisions. As for interpersonal orientation, both multiple friendship networks and advice/support leader measures had a significant effect on work-task related information search (p<.001 and p< .05 respectively).
Younger respondents also appear to carry out more extensive search in this area. There was no significant difference between Asia-born and American-born respondents for this dependent variable. The results provide partial support for Hypotheses 2 and 3.
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General Product Purchase
As for the scope of information search for product purchase decisions, the general uncertainty avoidance measure had a significant impact (p<.05, table 2). Interpersonal orientation factors again boosted the scope of information search. Both multiple friendships and advice/support leader factors also had a significant impact on this aspect of the consumer decision-making process ( p<.01 & p<.05 respectively). Younger respondents again carried out more extensive searchers and there were again no significant differences between Asia-born and American-born respondents. There was thus partial support for hypotheses 1 and 2.
General Non-Work Decisions
In the area of general non-work decisions, the general uncertainty avoidance measure again significantly boosted information search activities (p<.05). On the other hand, conflict avoidance and work-related uncertainty had no effect. We also see that multiple friendships and advice/support leaders were again factors boosting the scope of information search (p<.001 and p<.01). Younger respondents were again more high involvement information seekers. There was partial support for hypotheses 1 and 3.
Overall we see that for each of the dependent variables, there was at least one of the cultural value orientation factors which had a significant impact on the scope of information gathering. By focusing on different components of the original scale, we see that it was the general uncertainty avoidance measure which had the most predictive power for consumer purchasing and general non-work decisions.
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The conflict avoidance measure, on the other had, had predictive power only for information-search behavior in the work environment. However, interpersonal orientation factors appear to play a important role in increasing the tendency for individuals to gather information in both work and non-work environments. The adjusted R-squares for work related tasks, general product purchases, and general non-work decisions were .14, .11, and .18 (Table 2).
Table 3 shows that although the Asia-born respondents had higher means for all the information-gathering activities, the differences were not statistically significant. However, there was a greater variance in the responses of the American-born participants. The tests for interaction effects of nationality, interpersonal networks, and cultural value orientations on the scope of information gathering were also not significant. Table four (appendix) shows the results of the comparison of independent variable means for the American-born and Asia-born respondents. Except for age, the Asia-born respondents had the same or higher means. Although most of the differences were not statistically significant, Asia-born respondents had significantly greater multiple friendship networks and recorded higher levels of general uncertainty avoidance. However, for all the variables, the Asia-born sample had the same or smaller standard deviations. There was thus a greater diversity of responses for the American-born respondents. An examination of the bi-variate correlations showed no collinearity problems among the variables.
Conclusion
This research is an extension of the various studies on the effect of cultural value and social orientations on worker behavior, firm organization, business practices and corporate strategy in different national environments. Researchers have examined uncertainty avoidance factors and demonstrated their impact on structural organization, management control systems, competitor intelligence approaches, and learning styles (Lebas and Weigenstein 1986; McDermott 1994) . Conflict avoidance factors have been linked to negotiation strategy, group management and leadership style preference (Ueno and Sekaran 1992; Geletkanycz 1997; Kozan 1997) . This study looked at the uncertainty and conflict avoidance cultural orientation concepts as well as social orientation and found that they had an impact on the scope of information gathering within the same national environment.
The variance in the responses point to a high level of intra-cultural diversity. An interesting result of the study was that it was not ethnic diversity but differences in cultural values and social orientations which had the biggest impact on individual information-gathering behaviors. Since intra-culture diversity can be both a source of
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innovation as well as conflict, it is crucial for researchers and managers to identify the cultural values and social orientations which have a significant impact on worker behavior and business practices. Using ethnic categories does not capture the more complex and more potent hidden diversity factors (Gatley & Lessem, 1995; Weiner, 1989).
This study therefore highlights the need to move beyond a simplistic focus on ethnic diversity to a deeper understanding of cultural values and social practices which impact innovative behaviors within and across national boundaries. As globalization trends intensify, there will be a greater need, on the part of organizations, to focus on how cultural values and social orientations can lead to a competitive advantage instead of emphasizing how they separate national groups.
The main limitation of the study is the modest sample size. A larger sample from a greater variety of regions in the U.S. would be more representative. It is also possible to separate the information sources into personal and impersonal factors. Despite these drawbacks, this study has important managerial implications and can serve as the basis for more extensive investigations.
Appendix
1. Survey on Information Exchange Behavior
I. General Questions
Please indicate the extent to which you agree with the statements below. Please choose a number between 1 and 5. [ 1. Strongly disagree 2. Disagree 3. Neutral 4. Agree 5. Strongly agree]
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2. Gathering Work-Related Information
Please indicate the extent to which (1-5 scale) you use (or would use) the sources in the left column to get information or support for work-related decisions (the top row):
1=Do not use (would not use) 5= Use extensively (would use extensively)
3. General Information Gathering
If you were about to make important decisions on the following topics (work, school, classes, commercial products, traveling), to what extent would you consult the sources below? Please choose on a scale of 1-5 (1=would not consult and 5 = would consult extensively).
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