Cultural Paradoxes: How Cross-Cultural Teams Reconcile Contradictory Leadership Signals

Tabassi et al. (2024) show cultural background moderates relational leadership’s impact, and Yammarino et al. (2015) highlight Mars mission leadership complexities, yet no study synthesizes how teams navigate incompatible leadership norms simultaneously. This idea merges Pearce et al.’s (2023) vertical/shared leadership paradox with a cultural lens and Liu et al.’s (2024) finding that ethical leadership suppresses constructive task conflict. Using case studies (e.g., global IT teams), it aims to identify "cultural translation" tactics—such as how Japanese and US members jointly interpret a leader’s autocratic deadline push as "care for quality" versus "micromanagement." This moves beyond moderation focus to propose team-driven sensemaking as a coordination mechanism, addressing a gap in cross-cultural leadership theory.

References:

1. Leadership Models for Team Dynamics and Cohesion: The Mars Mission. F. Yammarino, M. Mumford, M. Connelly, E. Day, Carter Gibson, Tristan J. McIntosh, Tyler J. Mulhearn (2015).
2. The Trouble with Teams… and Team Leadership: Toward a Research Agenda on the Paradoxical Nature and Reciprocal Dynamics of Vertical and Shared Leadership. Craig L. Pearce, D. van Knippenberg, Wendy P. van Ginkel (2023). Academy of Management Collections.
3. Leaders, conflict, and team coordination: a relational leadership approach in temporary organisations. Amin Akhavan Tabassi, D. Bryde, R. Michaelides, David Bamford, M. Argyropoulou (2024). Production Planning & Control.
4. The double‐edged sword of ethical leadership: Investigating when and why ethical leadership promotes versus inhibits team performance. Ye Liu, Yan Shao, Jin Yan (2024). Applied Psychology.