Abstract
This dissertation seeks to investigate the factors that influence the subjective well-being (SWB) and generational differences of individuals working for multinational corporations (MNC) in China, with a particular focus on those born in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Considering that the bulk of MNCs employ an individualist Western-style strategy, its applicability to the Chinese collectivist society must be reviewed. On the basis of a comprehensive literature analysis and interviews with representatives of all three generations, assumptions are formed about each cohort.
The Cultural Revolution generation, the Social Reform generation, and the Millennial generation have different self-perceptions, which are discussed in terms of six dimensions, including career choice satisfaction, priorities between work and family, gender-related differences, perceived skills and self-impression, perceived traits of a good manager, and readiness for potential changes / technology implementation. For China-based MNCs, additional research directions and related suggestions are established.
Introduction
The introduction of the Open Door Policy in 1978 marked the beginning of a new era in China's economic development. Currently, the country's gross domestic product (GDP) averages roughly 10 percent, indicating that it is a developing state (Knight 2014). Consequently, numerous multinational corporations (MNCs) view China as a viable partner and investment opportunity. The attitudes of local employees towards their workplaces and careers are one of the greatest obstacles associated with conducting business in the Chinese market. Most importantly, historical events, societal developments, and other local elements that have caused generational disparities must be taken into account (Clark 2017; Jia et al. 2016; Harmel & Yeh 2015).
There are several studies focusing on Western countries and their employees' perspectives, but few authors have examined the Chinese context of the topic at hand (Yi, Ribbens & Morgan 2010). Those who were born in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s exhibit the most striking disparities.
In light of this, it is obvious that additional study on the generational attitudes of employees in China who work for MNCs is necessary in order to provide actionable recommendations and boost the effectiveness of organizations.
What factors have the greatest impact on the workplace attitudes of employees in China's multinational corporations due to age differences?
This dissertation seeks to investigate the present literature and the responses of the Chinese respondents who will be questioned for the research. The following study objectives are created to address the aforementioned research issue in detail:
To examine the contemporary academic literature that examines the work ideals of Chinese employees; To specify the factors that distinguish the work attitudes of each of the post-1970s, 1980s, and 1990s generations; To analyze the data received from the participants and compare it to the existing literature based on variables such as gender, work-family balance, job choice satisfaction, etc. Under consideration of the local environment, draw applicable findings and make recommendations to MNCs operating in China.
In China, it is postulated that gender-related attitudes, collectivism, social reforms, cultural identity, and technological progress distinguish SWB across generations in the workplace.
This dissertation follows a conventional format, including an introduction, literature review, methods, analysis and discussion, conclusions, and suggestions for future research. The purpose of the critical literature review is to gather knowledge regarding the most important theories, concepts, and events of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. On the basis of data obtained from recent evidence and the responses of study participants during interviews, conclusions are offered. To illustrate the findings, extracts from the interviews are shown.
The qualitative method is utilized to evaluate the data and provide pertinent recommendations to China-based MNCs. In addition, the study analyzes the gaps between research and practice on a generational approach to employee management in the workplace.
Literature Review
Identifying Key Concepts and Assessing the Need for Change: MNCs and China
A multinational corporation is an organization that operates in at least one additional countries besides its native country. The two defining characteristics of multinational corporations are their size and global presence, which is manifested in the export and import of manufactured goods and services. These firms make substantial investments in other markets and establish factories to relocate operations to those nations. In China, MNCs contributed significantly to the growth of the local market: "in 2004, MNCs accounted for 28% of China's industrial output and 19% of its tax revenue" (Park & Vanhonacker 2007, p. 8).
Today, about 85 percent of intellectual property is owned by multinational corporations, which also brought a substantial amount of monetary transfers and management expertise. According to Park and Vanhonacker (2007), the issues over the employee-relations practices of global corporations are foremost and underdeveloped (Akhtar & Renyong 2014; Cooke 2009; Foley & Lu 2007). Conflicts arise in Chinese workplaces due to a lack of awareness of the local culture and, most significantly, generational disparities.
One of the fundamental themes in China's economic development is the fact that both domestic and multinational corporations are considering the formation of new joint ventures and the expansion of existing ones (Yin & Jamali 2016; Zhang 2009). This collaboration is mutually beneficial: on the one hand, Chinese enterprises are searching for ways to join foreign markets, and on the other hand, multinational corporations require support to flourish on domestic markets (Tian & Slocum 2014; Sardana & Zhu 2017; Schmitz, Froese & Bader 2018).
According to a study by KPMG, one of the Big Four accounting firms, all stakeholders must support this development because it is a means of overcoming the economic crisis (Future for MNCs in China: a KPMG study 2012). Specifically, many Chinese organizations intend to quadruple their staff in order to fulfill the expanding demands of foreign corporations.
Subjective Well-Being as an Indicator of Attitudes in the Workplace
It is vital to apply the notion of subjective well-being in order to better comprehend the attitudes of Chinese employees regarding their profession and workplace (SWB). It is a multifactoral construct that reflects an individual's concept of himself or herself, his or her life, and social standing. According to Diener, Lucas, and Oishi (2018), the majority of studies on SWB are generalized since the notion of SWB is formed at the confluence of economics and psychology, utilizing quantitative and qualitative methodologies that show a person's socioeconomic situation and emotional responses.
The socio-economic approach to studying people's perspectives calculates the level of subjective well-being based on the national income per capita and the gross domestic product. The majority of recent studies cast doubt on the extent to which subjective well-being increases alongside the expansion of social welfare (Diener, Lucas & Oishi 2018).
One of the most important SWB complexes is responsible for professional relationships: occupation, professional identity, money, partnerships, etc. Subjective well-being is significantly influenced by the laborer's state of well-being (Rozkwitalska 2017). An employee's work-related values reflect his or her perspectives of professional activity, including internal values connected with self-actualization, motivation, burnout, and labor outcomes. In the context of a career, SWB is a criterion of professional identity and a reflection of a subject's attitude toward the process and outcomes of work.
The primary determinants of SWB in the professional realm include job satisfaction, professional health, quality of working processes, financial condition and satisfaction, subjective economic position, and adequate income in relation to individual demands (Rozkwitalska 2017). The components of the well-being of various professions' representatives are investigated, and efforts are made to discover characteristics of the professional environment that contribute to an increase in SWB.
Generation as a Social Group Concept
Karl Mannheim launched the first significant attempt to depict the concept of a generation as a social group by formulating the problem of comprehending the connections between members of the same generation. The author stated that the generation is not a social group because the latter is a collection of persons engaging based on preexisting or naturally occurring relationships (Cassell 2017; Burnett 2016). According to Mannheim, generations do not correspond to these two qualities and, as a result, cannot be regarded a group, but rather a unique social event.
Nevertheless, Kim et al. (2018) assert that Mannheim defined the criterion of belonging to a generation as a class fitting, such as a person's location or social status. Class affiliation is an objective reality, irrespective of whether an individual is aware of it or acknowledges it (Teclaw et al. 2014; Srinivasan, John & Christine 2014). Thus, Mannheim defined generational membership as a social position. However, the author did not rule out the emergence of subgroups within the same generation as a result of personal interactions between members of the same group.
Examining the Key Characteristics of the Decades Following the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s in China
Companies have never before faced such a synthesis of acquired knowledge, professional experience, and youthful exuberance. Diverse perspectives, misunderstandings, disagreements, paradoxes, intrigues, and other issues can be viewed as characteristics of the modern workplace in China's multinational corporations (MNCs) (Lyons & Kuron 2014; Lyons et al. 2015; Lee 2016; Lee, Brown & Wen 2016). The different generations of employees are likely to alter their opinions of the workplace and the future of the work process. Digital revolution expands the generational gap and drastically escalates the issue of adjusting to new contexts (Dueck & Han 2014; Hollinshead 2017; Cheng 2014).
Representatives of the late Millennials generation are the most adept at adapting to conditions of rapid change, while smartphones, laptops, and headphones are a vital part of their daily lives.
In contrast, older generations, despite their professional expertise and high levels of competence, may not always know how to approach a laptop. Wen, Muthuveloo, and Ping (2018) and Bruche (2009) think that such a disparity in worldviews is inevitable, and that it is impractical to assemble all the unskilled enthusiasts or barely competent workers in one company: doing so will harm the microclimate in the team and the entire work process. Costanza and Finkelstein (2015, p. 320) assert that "scanning the environment, identifying workforce trends, developing appropriate HR policies and practices, and evaluating those policies and practices are time-tested organizational best practices." In an era of digitisation, multinational corporations are expected to adapt their workspace, employment structures, and work culture in order to face the future with confidence.
After 1970 and the Cultural Revolution
Prior to 1949, the People's Republic of China (PRC) was known as the dynasty empire. Since the proclamation of the People's Republic of China, the nation has experienced numerous momentous and dramatic events that have dramatically altered the values of its people. Yi, Ribbens, and Morgan (2010) classify the three major eras as "Republican (born 1930-1950), Consolidation (born 1951-1960), Cultural Revolution (born 1961-1970), and Social Reform (born 1971-1976)." (p. 603).
The authors' assumptions are based on the concept of perceptional differences elucidated by Egri and Ralston (2004), who investigate cross-cultural shifts and generational differences among individuals in the United States (US) and China. It is asserted that knowledge of how employees view their work assists in anticipating their resistance or receptivity to new treatments (Egri & Ralston 2004). In many ways, the social and political developments altered the perspectives of many people, whose impressions vary based on gender, contentment with profession choice, work-family balance, etc. It should be noted that people born at the junctures of decades tend to adopt the traits of both, making it considerably more difficult to anticipate their future choices.
In the peak of the Cultural Revolution during the 1970s, traditional Buddhist precepts were heavily criticized. The official task of implementing the Cultural Revolution failed to adhere to the Marxist-Leninist method for constructing socialism, according to Yang (2016). (CCP). However, Mao Zedong, fearing that officials' discontent with his policies would increase, gave this notion a different interpretation. The Confucian legacy was destroyed and deemed outmoded, while the power of a single political leader was advocated as the path to the country's future development (Yang 2016).
The general trend toward communism compelled parents to instruct their children in the importance of contributing to the common good and acting like Little Red Guards. According to Perry (2018), children and adolescents who lived in the 1970s were witnesses to this tremendous occurrence, which indelibly impacted their entire lives. Yi, Ribbens, and Morgan (2010) concur with the cited scholar and add that this generation has also experienced natural disasters and poverty, which compels them to view any changes with extreme caution.
Beginning in the 1960s, the self-sacrifice of the Chinese as a national trait was discouraged due to a trend towards individualistic concerns. Despite the fact that the Cultural Revolution lasted until Mao Zedong's death in 1976, the 1970s are considered the most important. To better comprehend the modernization of China, one must view it as a process of transformation, a protracted shift from one social condition to another.
Regarding China's modernization, this is a transition from a traditional agricultural society to a contemporary industrial one. It is considered that the 1970s generation endured more catastrophic occurrences than any subsequent age (Edge 2014). Due to their precarious circumstances, they tended to pursue higher education and rely solely on their own efforts in life and work. High intelligence and college education also enabled individuals to enhance their abilities and knowledge so that they could apply them in the workplace and become successful professionals.
The Eighties and Social Policy
In many ways, the Marxist conception of social development dominated in the PRC until the 1980s. According to Wang (2014), even the processes of pre-revolutionary China were widely regarded as conforming to the formation theory, which reduced the struggle of workers and peasants against Chinese landlords, foreign capital, and Manchu dominance to an explanation of the causes and nature of its socio-historical dynamics.
Lian (2014) and Cherrington (1997) indicate that the notion of constructing socialism with Chinese features, which was proposed by the Chinese leadership in the early 1980s, widened the field of study by emphasizing the exploration of novel approaches. It became vital to acknowledge the distinctiveness of ancient Chinese culture and social ideas, as well as their influence on current development (Wang 2016). Midway through the 1970s, it became evident that successful modernization was not possible while preserving tradition.