Purpose The purpose of this study is to understand the destination image perceptions about Australia – a Western culture country – as held by the rapidly increasing, high spending, culturally dissimilar new segment of travellers, the Emiratis[1] from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Design/methodology/approach A qualitative methodology was used to understand the cognitive, affective and conative images of Australia. A structured categorisation matrix was used to analyse the data so that only aspects fitting the matrix were selected. Findings Within the cognitive variable, Australia was found to be pleasant, family oriented, a fun place, laid back and the local people friendly. From an affective factor perspective, Australia was seen as being exciting, because of the variety of activities available for these tourists. Exciting was expressed by words like fantastic, amazing and extreme experience. In terms of the conative variable most of the Emirati tourists expressed strong feelings to go back to Australia and to even re-visit with friends. They also mentioned that they would recommend Australia to family and friends. Research limitations/implications A limitation of this study was that our sample comprised informants mainly from the Emirates of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the two largest Emirates of the nation. The study offers destination marketing organisations’ (DMOs) insights into Emirati travellers’ perceptions about Australia, which would benefit destination marketing. Originality/value This study examines the under researched area of how Australia – with its liberal Western culture – could be better marketed to the growing numbers of culturally conservative, high spending Emirati outbound tourists from the officially Islamic UAE, and also more generally to the socio-culturally homogeneous Gulf Cooperation Council region that the UAE is part of. Whilst destination image is an intensively analysed topic within the realm of tourism research, and reportedly a powerful influence on destination choice, the extant literature on how Australia is perceived as a travel destination by Emiratis is scant. For DMO’s attempting to attract wealthy Emirati tourists into Australia, this research is valuable and timely, as several Emiratis are seeking newer travel destinations away from the Western hemisphere, where the general anti-Arab/Islamic sentiments are currently quite strong.

Purpose -Using the case of a cross-cultural setting, the purpose of this paper is to compare perceptions of students towards face-to-face learning and blended learning. A social constructivist perspective is used which implies that cultural data are in fact social constructs made on the basis of the participants' own cultural thought patterns and the concepts and categories to which they are socialised within learning organisations. This paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach -Perceptual evidence forms the primary qualitative and quantitative data for this study. The paper uses social constructivist approach with empirical data in developing the notion that cross-cultural management is a process whereby people, through social interactions, acquire participative competence for working in cross-cultural settings. Findings -Perceptual data emerging from this study point out that considering the learning objectives of a cross-cultural context are paramount when engaging in cross-cultural management curriculum and teaching design. Such social contexts, while complex and challenging, is often a perfect opportunity where cross-cultural competence can be developed. Originality/value -The value of the study lies in the original insights it offers into student experiences and the challenges to adopt a "one size fits all" strategy in a cross-cultural setting. 254ET 56,4 touted as an alternative to the first mode, is best described by Keegan (1995, p. 7) as distance education and training that results from the teacher and learner being technologically separated, thus freeing the student from the necessity of travelling to "a fixed place, at a fixed time, to meet a fixed person, in order to be trained". This mode, too, has drawn criticism, given its propensity for causing a sense of learner isolation and frustration, anxiety, and confusion (Brown, 1996;Hara and Kling, 2000;Piccoli et al., 2001), and also higher student attrition rates (Laine, 2003;Ryan, 2001). The third, a hybrid which combines elements of the earlier two, and credited with nullifying the lacunae within them, is BL (Meyer, 2007;Rubenstein, 2003;Smart and Cappel, 2006).With innovative technologies finding their way into the field of education and training (Arbaugh, 2008;Williams, 2008;Hwang and Francesco, 2010), many scholars maintain that online learning is a leading growth sector in higher education (Allen and Seaman, 2006;Foster and Carnevale, 2007;Kim and Bonk, 2006). Despite its popularity, the literature on innovative technologies such as BL provides little explanation of its efficacy within cross-cultural management settings. Three major contributions whose approaches to the understanding of cross-cultural management in its international aspects that have been influential in the field include: Adler (1991), Hofstede (1980) and Trompenaars (1993). All three have been pioneering in their own way and have been arguably the principal creative sources on the thinking of many other writers on cross-cultural management issues. To such ...

This paper argues that the successful international transference of Japanese lean manufacturing practices in general, and the Toyota Way and Toyota Production System (TPS) in particular, is in varying degrees contingent upon the sociocultural, historical and environmental context of the host nations into which such transfer occurs. This has significant implications for human resource management policies and practices. The paper contends that lean manufacturing is not simply a set of concepts, techniques and methods that can be implemented by command and control. In the course of transferring lean practices from Japan into overseas affiliates, either an absence of due consideration or disregard for a host nation's unique sociocultural and environmental factors could lead to unproductive organisational outcomes for the parent company. This viewpoint is examined through a case study analysis of the Indian affiliate of the Japanese automobile industry giant Toyota Motor Corporation, namely Toyota Kirloskar Motors, located at Bidadi, near Bangalore, India.

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PurposeHigher education is influenced, to an increasing extent, by changing student demographics. This requires educators to design and deliver learning systems which will enhance students’ learning experience with innovative, real world and engaging resources. The authors predict that transformations in the learning systems will increase as higher learning institutions seek to add educational value. The authors maintain that current pedagogies in cross‐cultural education are insufficiently adapted to student learning‐style needs. This problem is particularly noticeable in one cross‐cultural setting. This study aims to explore games, as an alternate pedagogy, to enhance learning systems.Design/methodology/approachStudents’ feedback formed the primary qualitative data for this study. The paper develops a conceptual model which provides an organised framework to manage intercultural differences, using games. The Mapping, Bridging, Integrating (MBI) model creates an opportunity for students to appreciate differences and understand the model's implications for their careers in international management.FindingsParticipants’ responses to the games were overwhelmingly positive. Participants’ responses indicated games as a preferred method for developing the intercultural competence, team work, decision making and self awareness skills essential for business and entrepreneurship.Practical implicationsThere is a growing need to consider and align the relationship between education, the increasing cultural diversity in student populations, and the learning and teaching styles of a changing student population in order to enhance the extent of expected knowledge transfer.Originality/valueIn this study, the authors adopted a qualitative approach to trialling the use of games in a cross‐cultural context with the view to reducing international cross‐cultural barriers and developing skills in intercultural competence, self awareness, collaborative working and decision making. This study shows the need for alternative, more integrative models of education comprising elements of complexity that fit with an increasingly complex world.