Abstract

This study explores the relationship between societal values and societal practices across various cultures, drawing on the data from the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness study. It investigates the asymmetry between societal values and societal practices and the factors contributing to potential symmetry. Findings reveal that societies with traditional and individualist practices show a strong inclination toward transitioning to nontraditional and collectivist values, while those with nontraditional and collectivist practices exhibit a weaker tendency toward traditional and individualist values. The research conceptualizes the causation guiding these correlations to account for the following phenomena: Societies in the eastern geography with certain characteristics, like hot equatorial climates and high corruption, have values aligned with their practices, as their nontraditional and collectivist practices lower the cultural asymmetry facilitated by factors like religious diversity. Additionally, cultural asymmetry limits the strengthening of civil society infrastructure by impeding socioeconomic development and governance quality even when the nations have a strong socio-cultural dimension. This research contributes to understanding of the appropriate measure of cultural asymmetry, and the dynamics of cultural asymmetry, cultural exchange, and cultural change.