Journal of International Education in Business

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide international business students with a deeper appreciation of cross-culture issues that might impact their future management practice. Specifically, it considers the use of action research as a driver of the learning dynamics of a course in cross-cultural management.

Design/methodology/approach – The course was designed around core readings and assignments that suggested action research as a way of coming to a more authentic appreciation of cross-cultural management scenarios. Action research was not, however, formally discussed or introduced. In this initial study, participant reflections were collected and analyzed from a phenomenological perspective.

Findings – Results suggest that students, when forced into situations that required them to explore a new cultural dimension, were able to implicitly use action research models. This led participants to a deeper appreciation of their own national culture (predominantly Russian) and a more nuanced approach to considering novel cross-cultural contexts.

Research limitations/implications – Lack of experimental controls, pre- and post-testing, and limited sample size all tend to limit the generalizability of the findings. Initial findings, however, do suggest that deeper explorations of national culture might reduce stereotyping.

Practical implications – Limited engagement and stereotyping are often associated with teaching cross-cultural management. Action research, as a course drive, potentially increases engagement, forces deeper consideration, and allows participants to reflect on their own cross-cultural experiences. The use of action research may be useful in college-level programs, study abroad situations, and vocational or institutional cross-cultural training.

Originality/value – This study argues for more dynamic ways of teaching cross-cultural competencies. It seeks to move students beyond stereotyping to a more authentic consideration of dealing across national culture boundaries.