Indonesia tradition and culture

Different culture among Indonesian and Chinese are assumed will be continued from previous era of dualistic economy (Boeke, 1953). Unfavorable work habits and orientation, short cut behavior or ‘budaya menerabas’ (Koentjaraningrat, 1969) are assumed still valid. Cultural changes are expected incurred after long period of economic development, assumed could reinforce Indonesian approaching Chinese in terms of work centrality (CW), normative dimension of obligation (OBL) and entitlement (ENT) or opportunity (OPP), economic function of working (PAY), intrinsic work outcomes (IR), and valued work outcome in terms of social contact (CONTACT).

Indonesia is a country with diverse local cultures. Economic development plan for the country had been creating issues at the beginning after there were presumptions that ‘Indonesian culture’ was unfit in supporting economic development program (Boeke, 1953; Koentjaraningrat, 1969). Cultural unfit presumptions were imposed based on common comparison between Indonesian origins and Chinese, whom had played economic role successfully in the country.

Presumption on managerial fit, however, confronting with social learning theory among groups (Bandura) and a long period successful economic development in Indonesia may be hypothesized to have cultural change.

Cultural changes may be referred to any change in part or whole cultural dimensions. Hofstede, Kluckhohm, Deal & Kennedy, Harrison & Hardy, or Hampden & Turner have their cultural dimensions . In this study cultural change will be measured in terms of (1) central variables meaning of working in terms of work centrality, societal work norms and valued work-outcomes and work-goals, and (2) managerial job fit in terms of people’s work aspiration gap with work reality.

Economic development period is assumed contextual factor of the meaning of working, originally being measured in terms of personal-family situation, present job and career history and macro-socio-economic environment (MOW International Research Team, 1987). Managerial fit in this study is cultural job fit comparable to soft competency in managerial level. And phenomenon of learning through credible example among people with certain personality and strongly conditioned by displacement’ in the model of ‘entrepreneurial event’ (Shapiro, 1987) could change individual’s career becoming business entrepreneur.