PSYCHOLOGY MASTER'S THESIS ABSTRACT

Ignacio Carrillo

Industrial/Organizational
August 1993
 

Acculturation, Work Values and Participation: Application of Hofstede’s Model
to Mexican American Engineering Students

    Hofstede’s cultural dimensions of Power Distance (PDI), which involves sharing power and centralization, and Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI), which comprises need for formalization in organizations, were investigated at different levels of acculturation.  Also, the relationship between acculturation and preference for participation in decision making was investigated.  A negative relation was hypothesized for acculturation and both PDI and UAI, and a positive relation for acculturation and participation.
    Seventy Mexican American and 72 Caucasian engineering students answered the Values Survey Module, the Participation in Decision Making questionnaire, and a demographic survey.  Only Mexican Americans completed the Acculturation Scale.  Although Hofstede’s indexes varied in relation to acculturation, analyses of PDI and UAI scores failed to confirm the hypotheses.  Acculturation showed no significant relation with Participation.  Mexican Americans reported an unexpected higher preference for participation than Caucasians.  Results are discussed in light of the limitations of the sensitivity of the instruments for detecting the predicted relationships.

Psychology Department * CSULB * 1250 Bellflower Blvd. * Long Beach, CA  90840-0901 * 562-985-5001