THE INFLUENCE OF NATIONAL CULTURE ON INDIVIDUAL READINESS TO CHANGE AND CONSEQUENTLY COMMITMENT TO ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE

Purpose - This paper aims to investigate the relationship between Hofstede five dimensions of national culture (Power Distance, Individualism-Collectivism, Uncertainty Avoidance, Masculinity-Femininity, and Long-Term Orientation) on one side and two factor - model of individual readiness for organizational change (appropriateness and self - efficacy) and commitment to organizational change on the other side. Design/methodology/approach - No empirical research on culture dimensions and organizational change based on Hofstede's dataset of culture was conducted. Structural equation model employed in particular confirmatory factor analysis and path analysis procedures was used to test the hypothesized model. Findings - The results provide empirical support for the influence of Power Distance, Individualism-Collectivism, Masculinity-Femininity, and Long-Term Orientation on the individual readiness and commitment to change, which, in turn, adds to the efforts to build a general theory of the culture perspective of organizational change. Research limitations/implications - The findings offer valuable insights on why cultural values should be differentiated as they relate to different individual readiness and commitment to change. Practical implications - The findings of this study will be useful to the policy makers and organizations that plan to accomplish change initiatives, particularly those in the Arabic region. Managers at international corporations can also benefit from the this study if they have business dealings with the people from this region. Originality/value - The study is among the first that investigates the issue of change implementation from the perspective of national cultural values.