There is growing evidence that the use and management of language have important implications in international organizations. However, still only few empirical studies have been conducted in this theoretical field. Especially there has been a lack of quantitative insights into how language affects group processes and group performance in multicultural organizations. This paper outlines the results from a questionnaire directed electronically towards members of academic multicultural departments in Denmark. Results showed that consistency in English management communication was the dominating factor with strong relationships with all of the three investigated group cohesiveness variables: group involvement, group conflict and group trust. Communication frequency and English personal communication had an association with some of the group cohesiveness variables but not with all of them. The number of languages spoken did not have a relationship with any of the group cohesiveness variables. Since there are no similar large-scale studies on international language management, the findings may be of considerable theoretical and practical importance. Implications of these findings are discussed in detail.
Organisations multiculturelles : langage commun et cohésion de groupe
Jakob Lauring & Jan Selmer
Il y a de plus en plus de preuves comme quoi l’utilisation et la gestion du langage ont des implications importantes pour les organisations internationales. Cependant, seules quelques études empiriques ont été menées sur ce champ théorique. Plus particulièrement, il y a un manque de points de vue quantitatifs sur les façons dont le langage a des effets sur la performance de groupe dans des organisations multiculturelles. Cet article dresse les conclusions d’un questionnaire électronique adressé aux membres de départements universitaires multiculturels au Danemark. Les résultats montrent que la constance de la communication en anglais, lorsqu’il s’agit de management, est le facteur dominant et qu’il y a des relations fortes entre les trois variables de cohésion de groupe sujettes de l’étude : implication du groupe, conflit au sein du groupe, confiance au sein du groupe. La fréquence de la communication personnelle en anglais est associée à certaines des variables de cohésion de groupe, mais pas toutes. Le nombre de langues parlées n’a aucune relation avec ces variables. Etant donné qu’il n’y a aucune étude à grande échelle sur la gestion du langage dans un contexte international, ces conclusions peuvent revêtir une importance considérable, tant du point de vue de la théorie que de la pratique. Les implications de ces conclusions sont étudiées dans le détail.
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