Ethnocentrism. A key determinant in international corporate strategy formulation?

In sociology and psychology the concept of "ethnocentrism" is widely used to explain human behavior in and between different cultural entities. Since international management can be characterized by high levels of interaction between individuals from diverse cultures, we think ethnocentrism is worth being considered a determinant in this field. Especially, individual ethnocentrism might shape and influence the relation between international companies, their strategy formulation and different stakeholder groups. This workshop paper targets the conceptual identification of different areas of corporate strategy formulation which are assumed to be influenced by varying levels of ethnocentrism. A brief review focuses on the theoretical underpinnings of ethnocentrism and possibilities for measuring the construct. Finally, a research design is developed which will be used to determine the influence of manager ethnocentrism on corporate strategy formulation. (authors' abstract)