With regard to popular leadership theories developed in the United States, for example, McGregor’s Theory X versus Theory Y, Likert’s System 4 Management, Blake and Mounton’s Managerial Grid, what these theories have in common is that they all advocate participant in the manager’s decisions by his/her subordinates-participative management. This is understandable as the United States has small “power distance’ which means American cultures has a higher degree of equality among its people. Thus, these theories reflect American culture , It is interesting to note that in the management literature of another country with a larger “power distance” like France according to Hofstede’s findings, there is little concern with participative management American style, but great concern with who has the power (Hofstede, 1984) Therefore, these American management theories will work with the American subordinates and with those from “small power distance” cultures like Canada, Germany, or Australia, more than with subordinates from “larger power distance” culture like the Thai, in which quite some degree of arbitrariness with regards to authority, hierarchy, special privileges, and power, etc., are accepted facts of life and they are often personalized.
In conclusion, from the perspective of cultural values in organizations or more specifically effective management, cannot implement management theories wholesale from abroad. Effective leaders cannot choose their styles at will; what is feasible depends to large extent on the cultural conditioning of the leader’s subordinates. Culturally “unfitted” management theories are of limited use and might to more harm than good. Although from a different framework in studying values, the Thai value systems finding have substantiated the proposition of this latest theoretical development