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Social and cultural rules define the expectations and behaviors as dictated by shared beliefs of a special social group. Although sometimes these rules are not spoken, they present social standards that support appropriate behaviors and determine acceptable actions and interactions of people. This implies that they are influential in diverse content such as decision-making, perception, and attitudes. Change leaders need to work within the social and cultural rules in specific contexts to avoid conflicting with the expectations of the people as well as what they consider acceptable (Bolman & Deal, 2017). These people explain why change leaders must operate within the social and cultural rules in specific contexts to realize success in their work.
The USA expatriate developer did not understand the cultural values of the Arab people when attempting to obtain hospital approval from the Arab officials. The cultural baggage failed to work in the region since the decision-making process was not based on linear thinking and time schedules. Change leaders are more likely to achieve a desirable outcome when they work within the cultural and social expectations since it becomes easy for them to win the trust and confidence of the people.
They influence the realization of a positive outcome if members of the society develop a positive attitude towards them and the intended changes (Bolman & Deal, 2017). Following these rules place change leaders in a better position to encourage cultural and social heads to accept the suggested changes. For instance, people tend to respect individuals who appreciate their culture and usually pay attention to their ideas.
Unlike in the USA, where changes promote decision-making, people from the Arabic culture have varying perceptions and understanding. While the expatriate believed in strict deadlines, Arab officials were more concerned with religious events ahead of them. Failure to work within the cultural and social rules in specific content brought frustrations to the expatriate since he could not understand why the officials denied him an opportunity to start his work immediately.
According to the developer, the opening of a hospital was more important than celebrations, but Arabic officials turned him down, stating they have survived without the facility for many years, meaning that it was far from being a priority to them. He needed to note that cultural and social rules expected these officials to prepare for religious events in the best way possible, and nothing should disrupt them. This implies that the developer should wait for the right time to present his approval to avoid being frustrated.
Cultural norms and values influence emotions, motivation, desires, interests, and cognition. A similar behavior tends to have varying meanings when applied in diverse cultural contexts since divergent normative responses occur. Understanding cultural beliefs requires one to acquire information regarding the cultural context and use relevant methods to determine perception and attitudes. Lack of the necessary information hindered the USA expatriate from drawing accurate conclusions regarding the psychological processes since his interpretive power was affected (Bolman & Deal, 2017). Poor cultural knowledge can result in the development of misguided or incomplete theories causing misunderstandings and subsequent hindrances.
Failure to work within a social and cultural context can influence the development of many problems, including loss of investment opportunity and business failure. It is important to acknowledge that culture determines the psychological processes and ability to make certain decisions and priorities. The developer must understand the social and cultural context and bring in the idea at the most appropriate time when they are likely to be accepted. It could be the worst idea to push Arab officials to approve a project when they are busy preparing for an important religious activity that they value more. Since they have lived for many years without a hospital, they could not understand why the developer was pushing for the approval to be done immediately, yet it was not an urgent plan.
Operating within the context of cultural and social rules promotes positive interactions and avoids unnecessary confrontations. Change leaders need to consider these rules when setting their priorities to ensure that they are compatible and acceptable within the social and cultural framework. What the USA developer needs to understand is that every social group is governed by certain rules, which must be followed if success is to be realized. It is difficult to inflict values from another place since they would be rejected, resulting in the loss of time and resources.
Reference
Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations. Jossey-Bass.
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