Appraising Performance Across Borders: An Empirical Examination of the Purposes and Practices of Performance Appraisal in a Multi-Country Context

Flora F. T. Chiang

Thomas A. Birtch

Keywords: Performance appraisal, Culture, International management, Institutions, Human Resources

The Study: This article empirically examines how cultural factors influence the main purposes and practices of performance appraisal in multinational organizations. Drawing on a sample of 1,749 employees from the banking sector across seven countries in Europe, Asia, and North America, the study investigates whether cultural dimensions — such as assertiveness, uncertainty avoidance, in-group collectivism, and power distance — determine systematic differences in how appraisal systems are designed and used. The authors also discuss how organizational, institutional, and economic factors interact with culture, suggesting that performance appraisal, historically grounded in U.S.-based values of equity, expectancy, and procedural justice, may undergo substantial adaptation in diverse cultural contexts.

Main Findings: The findings reveal that the impact of cultural dimensions should neither be overestimated nor interpreted linearly. Dimensions such as assertiveness, uncertainty avoidance, and power distance show less consistent effects than predicted by traditional cultural models. Rather than uniform cultural responses, variations emerge that are shaped by institutional arrangements, organizational practices, and national economic conditions. In addition, the results point to the emergence of hybrid appraisal architectures, in which traditional Western practices are adjusted or combined with local expectations, resulting in more contextualized and complex appraisal systems.

Practical Implications: Multinational organizations should avoid the direct transfer of standardized performance appraisal models developed in the United States, recognizing that their effectiveness depends on careful adaptation to each country’s cultural and institutional norms. Appraisal systems must incorporate greater flexibility, allowing adjustments that reflect local practices, national values, and regulatory frameworks. At the same time, managers should be attentive to the emergence of hybrid models that combine global practices with local adaptations, enabling greater legitimacy, acceptance, and effectiveness in international human resource management.

Reference: Flora F. T. Chiang & Thomas A. Birtch (2010). Appraising performance across borders: An empirical examination of the purposes and practices of performance appraisal in a multi-country context. Journal of Management Studies, 47(7), 1365–1393.

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