Literate for a Global Business World? A Comparison of Central European and U.S. Students

Abstract for Journal of Teaching in International Business, forthcoming.<br>To
function in the global business world, managers must have global business
knowledge, complemented by the skills and attitudes to deal with different
cultural patterns. Business schools thus face the challenge of developing the
global business literacy of their students. It is still not clear what factors
determine the development of dimensions of global business literacy and what
role country differences play. This
study compares the global business literacy of 505 business students in four
Central European countries and 157 in the U.S.A. Besides testing country
differences, it applies regression analysis to determine whether these
differences can be explained by variations in the course of study, language
training, and other characteristics. The Central European students score higher
in self-efficacy and international business knowledge compared to Americans,
which differences can be explained by factors such as international course work,
study abroad participation, foreign language competence, and interactions with
foreigners. However, there are no significant differences in willingness to
learn and American students are better in relationship development. It appears
that while most dimensions of global business literacy can be developed
universally, some dimensions require culture-specific approaches.