Enculturation Trajectories: Language, Cultural Adaptation, and Individual Outcomes in Organizations

43 Pages Posted: 9 Dec 2015 Last revised: 13 Nov 2016

See all articles by Sameer B. Srivastava

Sameer B. Srivastava

University of California, Berkeley

Amir Goldberg

Stanford Graduate School of Business

V. Manian

Stanford University

Christopher Potts

Stanford University - Department of Linguistics

Date Written: December 8, 2015

Abstract

How do people adapt to organizational culture and what are the consequences for their outcomes in the organization? These fundamental questions about culture have previously been examined using self-report measures, which are subject to reporting bias, rely on coarse cultural categories defined by researchers, and provide only static snapshots of cultural fit. In contrast, we develop an interactional language use model that overcomes these limitations and opens new avenues for theoretical development about the dynamics of organizational culture. We trace the enculturation trajectories of employees in a mid-sized technology firm based on analyses of 10.24 million internal emails. Our language-based model of changing cultural fit: (1) predicts individual attainment; (2) reveals distinct patterns of adaptation for employees who exit voluntarily, exit involuntarily, and remain employed; (3) demonstrates that rapid early cultural adaptation reduces the risk of involuntary, but not voluntary, exit; and (4) finds that a decline in cultural fit for individuals who had successfully enculturated portends voluntary departure.

Suggested Citation

Srivastava, Sameer B. and Goldberg, Amir and Manian, V. and Potts, Christopher, Enculturation Trajectories: Language, Cultural Adaptation, and Individual Outcomes in Organizations (December 8, 2015). Stanford University Graduate School of Business Research Paper No. 16-3, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2701097 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2701097

Sameer B. Srivastava

University of California, Berkeley ( email )

2220 Piedmont Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94720
United States
6178958707 (Phone)

Amir Goldberg (Contact Author)

Stanford Graduate School of Business ( email )

655 Knight Way
Stanford, CA 94305-5015
United States

V. Manian

Stanford University ( email )

Stanford, CA 94305
United States

Christopher Potts

Stanford University - Department of Linguistics ( email )

Margaret Jacks Hall
Building 460 Rm. 127
Stanford, CA 94305-2150
United States

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