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Научни трудове на Съюза на учените в България-Пловдив, Серия A. Обществени науки, изкуство и култура том III, ISSN 1311-9400 (Print) ; ISSN 2534-9368 (On-line), 2017, Scientific works of the Union of Scientists in Bulgaria-Plovdiv, seriesA. Public sciences, art and culture, Vol. III, ISSN 1311-9400 (Print); ISSN 2534-9368 (On-line), 2017.
ДЕТЕРМИНАНТИ НА КОПИНГ СТРАТЕГИИТЕ В УСЛОВИЯТА НА КУЛТУРНО МНОГООБРАЗИЕ Стоянка Христова СУ „Св. Климент Охридски"
DETERMINANTS OF COPING STRATEGIES IN TERMS OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY Stoyanka Hristova SU "St. Kliment Ohridski"
Abstract: This paper presents empirical study of the causal relations among coping strategies, and their determining by organizational acculturation, perceived stress, organizational support and values, in terms of cultural diversity. The multivariate regression analysis indicated that each coping strategy was both predicting and predicted by at least one of the other strategies, and also that all but one of them were determined either by organizational acculturation, or perceived work stress, or organizational support, or values.
Keywords: Coping, Stress, Organizational support, Acculturation,Values, Cultural diversity
In recent years of dynamic cross-cultural communication and interaction in every aspect worldwide, there were new characteristics and dimensions added to the models of stress due to its reviewing in multicultural context. As one of the main components in these models, coping strategies are also influenced by culture (Aldwin, 2007). That raises the need of reconsidering this phenomenon through the prism of values, acculturation, and other cultural specifics, especially in terms of culturally diverse work setting. In this regard, Hofstede (Hofstede, 2001) considered values as the main component of culture influencing the overall organizational processes and performance, and identified four key dimensions: Individualism/Collectivism; Masculinity/ Femininity; High/Low power distance; Avoiding/Tolerating uncertainty. Cultural diversity, in turn, puts employees on the need to constantly adapt to different cultural values, beliefs and norms on individual, group and organizational level, defined as a process of acculturation (Berry, 2006). Besides the impact of these cultural factors, it would be interesting to take into account the influence of the usual phenomena associated with stress, in the light of the new conditions of multicultural working environment, namely: perceptions of stress experiences and organizational support defined by Eisenberger (Eisenberger et al., 2002) as satisfying the social-emotional needs and reducing the tension of negative psychological and psychosomatic effects of stressors when individuals have to deal with the high demands of the workplace.
On these theoretical views were based the hypotheses of this study assuming that:
1. Each coping strategy is both predicting and predicted by at least one of the other strategies.
2. Each coping strategy is determined either by organizational acculturation, or perceived work stress, or organizational support, or value orientations.
The main empirical study tasks were to find statistically significant two-way causal relations among coping strategies and one-way causality of them by organizational acculturation, perceived
work stress, organizational support and value dimensions.
The research tools included: Latack's Coping Strategies Scale standardized for Bulgarian conditions and measuring the strategies of Increasing efforts, Escape from situation, Confidence in success, Seeking social support, Change of situation, Time management, Reconciliation with situation (Ilieva, 2008); Organizational Acculturation Scale (Gailliard, et al., 2010); Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale adapted for Bulgarian conditions (Karastoyanov & Roussinova-Hristova, 2000); Survey of Perceived Organizational Support (Eisenberger, et al., 1986); Hofstede's Values Survey Module applied to Bulgarian samples (Davidkov, 2009) where the lowest scores indicated individualism, masculinity, large power distance and strong uncertainty avoidance, and the highest scores indicated collectivism, femininity, low power distance and strong uncertainty tolerance.
The sample consisted of 219 respondents: women (73.5%; N=161) and men (26.5%; N=58), aged between 18 and 67 years (M=34.32), working in monocultural (50.7%; N=111) and multicultural (49.3%; N=108) setting, collected at random.
The hypotheses raised, were verified through multivariate regression analysis of empirical data providing the following results:
1. The Increase of efforts for overcoming stress at work was determined primarily by the following coping strategies: Time Management (P=0.271; p=0.000), where conditionality was directly proportional and Escape from situation (P=-0.249; p=0.000), where the dependency was inversely proportional. Third by degree of influence was the independent variable Organizational acculturation (P=0.221; p=0.001), followed by coping strategies of Reconciliation with situation (P=0.191; p=0.003) and Change of situation (P=0.162; p=0.017) as all the three causalities were with a positive sign. Two of the value dimensions, namely: Avoiding/Tolerating uncertainty (P=-0.150; p=0.032) and Individualism/Collectivism (P=-0.110; p=0.048), appeared as the weakest predictors in this model, as here the determination by them was inversely proportional. Therefore, the drive towards time management, and change of stressful situations or reconciliation with them, along with the rare application of the escape from problem situations as coping strategies, lead to greater activity and use of more energy and efforts by the individual to deal with tension. Important role in this regard has also the high utilization of standards and practices in the workplace, as well as value orientations to uncertainty avoidance and individualism associated with the desire to achieve security through compliance with rules, independent dealing with difficulties and achieving personal success. The analysis results showed that this model explained a 38.3% of the variance of the Increasing efforts coping strategy (AR2=0.383).
2. The Escape from situation as a means of coping with work stress, was determined to a greater extent by the coping strategies of Reconciliation with situation (P = 0.444; p = 0.000), where conditionality was directly proportional, and Increasing efforts (P = -0.281 ; p = 0.000), where the dependency was inversely proportional, and to a lesser degree by the perceived organizational support (P = -0.193; p = 0.006), where causality was again inverse. It follows that the common choice to reconcile with problematic situations without making efforts to solve them, combined with the lack of assistance and support from the organization, lead ultimately to passive and avoidant behavior in case of difficult situations, which is probably dictated by negative emotions, dissatisfaction and frustration accompanying such coping strategies. Conversely, the more effort people make to solve the problem, and the more support they receive from colleagues and/or managers, the more rarely they choose to deny problems or not to engage with them. This model explained 29.6% of the variance of the Escape from situation coping strategy (AR2 = 0.296).
3. The Confidence in success was determined mostly by the coping strategy aimed at Changing the stress situations (P=0.335; p=0.000), as the dependency here was directly proportional, followed by the Perceived work stress (P=-0.253; p=0.000), as conditionality was inversely proportional, and the strategy of Time management (P=0.219; p=0.001), where causation had a positive sign. Based on these results, it can be assumed that a strong orientation to problematic situations change and effective time management, together with low levels of work stress, lead to greater confidence in successful resolution of difficult situations. By contrast, higher
levels of stress and tension at work, especially when combined with the rare application of the two coping strategies predetermine lower confidence in success and pessimistic attitudes about the outcome of the problematic situation in the workplace. This predicative model explained 36.1% of the variance of the Confidence in success coping strategy (AR2 = 0.361), which again was a relatively good result.
4. Regarding the Seeking social support strategy were outlined two strongly determining it independent variables with positive correlations: the Perceived organizational support (P=0.305; p=0.003) and Time management (P=0.239; p=0.009). The weaker predictors in this model were: the Change of situation coping strategy (P=0.176; p=0.040), where the relationship was directly proportional, and Individualism/Collectivism value orientation (P=-0.162; p=0.042), where con-ditionality was inversly proportional. Expected result, particularly with regard to proportional increase in the seeking assistance and support from friends, colleagues and managers as a result of the positive perceptions of organizational support, especially when combined with effective time management. Logical is also the relation between the pursuit of change of stressful situations and the tendency of employees to seek social support in such type of situations, especially when there is a value orientation towards collectivism and group identity. These four variables together determined a relatively large proportion (36.7%) of the variance of the Seeking social support coping strategy (AR2 = 0.367).
5. The predictors of the Change of situation coping strategy included five independent variables. With greater degree of influence among them stood out the Confidence in success coping strategy (P=0.360; p=0.000), and with less effect were characterized the coping strategies of Increasing efforts (P=0.184; p=0.013) and Seeking social support (P=0.163; p=0.015), as well as the values of Avoiding/Tolerating uncertainty (P=-0.135; p=0.041), followed by Organizational acculturation (P=0.201; p=0.037). In this model the only inversely proportional determination was implemented by the Avoiding/Tolerating uncertainty variable. All other causal relations were positive meaning that the tendency to active attempts to control stressful events was determined both by high levels of confidence in success, together with great efforts for problem resolving and seeking social support, and the high value orientation to uncertainty tolerance and adjustment to organizational culture. This model explained 31.3% of the variance of the Change of situation coping strategy (AR2 = 0.313).
6. The strongest determinants of Time management were the coping strategies of Increasing efforts (P=0.331; p=0.000) and Confidence in success (P=0.248; p=0.001), as conditionality was directly proportional. In contrast, the third and weakest predictor in this model, namely the values of Uncertainty avoiding/tolerating (P=-0.151; p=0.025), formed inverse causality. Therefore, the increase of efforts for overcoming stressful situations and confidence in successful outcome of them predict more frequent use of time management as a means of coping with stress at work and are a prerequisite for maintaining good organization qualities necessary for compliance with timetables. The strong value orientation to avoiding uncertainty because of its perception as dangerous, according to this model also leads to a greater tendency towards making and observing schedules and planning of work. The displayed model here again explained a relatively high percentage (27.5%) of the variance of this coping strategy (A R2 = 0.275).
7. Unlike predictive models of the previous six coping strategies, the Reconciliation with situation was determined solely by two coping strategies that explained 26.4% of the variance of this variable (AR2 = 0.264). The stronger predictor in this model was the Escape from situation (P=0.464; p=0.000), and the weaker one was the Increase of efforts (P=0.224; p=0.003), as both causal relations were positive. A possible reason for this result can be the feelings of hopelessness, helplessness and pessimism that often accompany attempts to avoid stressful events, and failures of doing that lead to the choice of conciliatory behavior in situations of difficulties and problems. The positive correlation between the increase of efforts for resolving stressful situations and reconciling with them was unexpected. A possible explanation for this result may be sought again in the emotional states of frustration, fatigue and apathy, when, despite the repeated efforts and attempts to deal with problem, it remains unresolved and continues generating tension and stress. 236
In summary, each of the coping strategies was determined by at least two other strategies, as all derived causalities were two-directional, which indicated mutual conditionality between coping strategies and fully confirmed the first hypothesis formulated. As the most prevalent predictor among them was outlined the Increasing efforts coping strategy that was both determining and determined by strategies related to Time management, Escape from difficult situations, Changing them or Reconciling with them. Besides with the Increase of efforts, the Change of situation coping strategy was in a mutual causality with Confidence in success and Seeking social support. Confidence in success, in turn, was in the same relation with Time management. Similarly, besides with Increasing efforts, the strategies of Escaping situations and Reconciling with them correlated each other in a two-way causality.
The second hypothesis was partially supported because not every coping strategy was predicted by at least one of the other independent variables, namely: perceived stress and organizational support, organizational acculturation and value orientations. The most frequent predictor among them was the value orientation towards Avoiding/tolerating uncertainty (which determined the increasing efforts, time management and reconciliation with situation), followed by the values of Individualism/Collectivism (determining the efforts increase and seeking social support), organizational acculturation (the reason for choosing the strategies of increasing efforts and/or changing situation) and perceptions of organizational support (leading to escape from situation and/or seeking social support). Perceived work stress was outlined as a predictor only to the confidence in success. Moreover, value orientations toward Masculinity/Femininity and Large/Low power distance did not appear as determinants in any of the displayed predicative models of coping strategies, which raises the need of more detailed future studies in that direction.
In conclusion, as empirical findings implied, the coping strategies were determined either by perceptions of stress or organizational support, or by cultural factors such as organizational acculturation or, to some extent, values. Therefore, effective coping with stress in culturally diverse work setting will be provided by both maintaining positive perceptions of organizational support and acculturation to organizational culture along with applying additional management techniques for minimizing the work stress.
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