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Article by Judith A. Starkey

Individualism vs. Group Orientation in the Workplace

The historical Anglo-American culture (primarily a male norm) is based on the freedom of individuals to develop themselves to their fullest potential.  Indeed, our traditional classroom seating arrangements, teaching procedures and grading systems encourage competition among students to be the "first with the correct answer," write the "best" essay and, generally, be the "winner."

Compare this perspective to that of most other world cultures which value the group over the individual.  In Japanese schools, for example, the classroom is arranged with circular seating.  When the teacher asks a question, students within each group confer with each other, reach a consensus, and then raise their hands in unison with the answer they jointly think is best; teams are rewarded for the quality of their answers and their cooperative efforts.

Translated into the working environment, the Anglo-American mindset can put employees into competition with one another for financial incentives and promotions.  A by-product of such a system can be a lack of cooperation and absence of true team spirit if not managed correctly.  The  group orientation of the Japanese has helped them to build effective teams and work together for the common good of the company and the country.

Another aspect of the individualistic outlook is to prize the imagination and creativity of each person.  American ingenuity has been responsible for much of the nation's success.  Brainstorming, a popular American method of gleaning ideas from groups, requires that the individual offer ideas for group consideration as they occur, without evaluation or judgment.  Such offerings require courage, sometimes, because the ideas may at first appear to be foolish, particularly in the eyes of others.  As a result, some cultural groups (such as Asians, American Indians, and some Hispanics) may be reluctant to join into the process, fearing to lose face in the eyes of the group members.  This caution also explains their reluctance to respond negatively when asked questions--to them such a response would be construed as being rude and disrespectful.  People who honor others before themselves need to be encouraged to excel as individuals and to be assured that they will not be ridiculed for their views.

Self-reliance is another American value, considered a virtue by many Americans.  A popular saying of early Anglican settlers was, "The Lord helps those who help themselves."  Although many cultures encourage self-development, it is usually toward the advancement of the common good rather than for self-promotion.  In America, land of the entrepreneur, "self-made" success stories are often considered to be the highest accolade a person could receive.  In societies where "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down," such a notion is tantamount to blasphemy.  In the American-style performance appraisal process, it is unlikely that an Asian, Hispanic, American Indian, some Blacks and even some Anglo-American women will praise themselves for their own performance.  It is assumed that the authority figure will already know their level of performance and will make the appropriate evaluation.  In addition, their respect for authority figures may impede their inclination to speak on behalf of themselves.  If appraisers do not understand this assumption and, consequently, appraise the individual as lacking self-confidence, they can severely devalue the true contributions of the person as well as create a demoralizing work environment.  Understanding the values of the individual being appraised are critical to accurate assessment.

On the other hand, many western North Europeans who have emigrated to the United States in recent years  have become accustomed in their homeland to a work setting where the views of employees carry almost as much weight with management as those of the supervisors.  If the appraiser happens to have an autocratic style of management, he or she may be dismayed by the candor of the employee.  Adjustments to this level of honesty and self-worth may be needed by the supervisor.

The issue of "feeling," or approaching situations in a caring manner, is important to many African Americans.  The Anglo-American norm is primarily task-oriented and, as such, tends to focus on "getting the job done" over the concerns of the people who are doing the job.  Indeed the Anglo-American norm is often distrustful of emotions, assuming that emotions interfere with efficiency.  In a relationship-oriented culture, this absence of personal involvement and lack of consideration regarding how people are affected by the job can result in frustration and anger, interfering with achievement of common goals.  The ultimate task objectives on both sides are the same, but the parties involved differ on how to approach accomplishing the task.  This is why many African Americans may show loyalty to their friends and family units over the task to be accomplished for the organization, because they believe the employer is not committed to their personal best interests, and their close personal group members are.

African Americans often value the interpersonal aspect of relationships highly, and may feel ignored and uncomfortable in a work setting with little interpersonal contact.  Some Anglo-Americans, on the other hand, prefer to work alone, concentrating on the facts associated with task achievement.  Supervisors need to become sensitive to the needs of individuals in making work assignments so that the way a task is accomplished is congruent with the personal style and needs of the people.

These are just a few of the contradictions and challenges we, at The Starkey Group, Inc., encounter in helping organizations to manage the changing workforce. 

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Author Judith A. Starkey is President of The Starkey Group, Inc., a Chicago consulting and training firm providing multicultural strategies.  For more information see www.StarkeyGrp.com.

For permission to reproduce this article contact StarkeyGrp@aol.com or the address below.

Contact Us:
Judith A. Starkey, President
The Starkey Group, Inc.
3180 N. Lake Shore Drive, Suite 17G
Chicago, Illinois 60657-4867 USA
Phone:  773 348 0421
Fax:  773 348 3683
E-Mail:  jas@StarkeyGrp.com or StarkeyGrp@aol.com
Website:  www.StarkeyGrp.com
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