Culture as the Context of Environmental Uncertainty, Structural Decentralization, and Strategic Significance of Information: A Three Country Comparison

Abstract

With the rapid rate of globalization, the volume and complexity of the information that managers use has increased exponentially. However, there is little research to understand the characteristics of information considered important by managers. This study empirically investigated the impact of culture, environmental uncertainty and decentralization on the usefulness of information in three countries. We found that the contextual variables had an impact on the perception of information usefulness. Future studies should consider the preexisting epistemological differences among different countries. Expected national cultural differences were not significant. The tentative results support global management systems to deal with contemporary global business issues.

Keywords: Environmental Uncertainty, Decentralization, Information Usefulness, Cultural Context, Globalization

JEL Classification: D80, L20, M10, M19