Abstract

This study investigated the psychological, sociological, and cultural factors behind generation gap and conflicts in business organizations. 1Ne surveyed directors, managers, assistant managers, and lower level employees in large business organizations, asking questions on everyday life culture and behavioral patterns of successive generations as well as their value orientations and attitudes. Results showed that generation gap became clear between ranks and major gap lay between lower level employees/assistant managers and their seniors. Major sources of generation gap include, (1) acceptance of and adaptation to changes, (2) existence of subcultures, and (3) inconsistency among emotional, cognitive, and behavioral aspects of attitudes. Although younger generation were more or less progressive on issues such as gender equality and new business trends, they didn't show postmaterialist value and no generational difference appeared on the issue of work orientation. Younger generation put more priority on extrinsic rewards and were dissatisfied with their intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. In behavioral pattern, younger generation were more individualistic but at the same time more obedient than their seniors. It means that younger generation's individualism does not necessarily lead to anti-collectivism. In terms of value orientation, however, old generation showed more collectivist, authoritarian, and conservative orientation while their counterpart showed individualistic and equalitarian orientation, which may become a source of creating different subcultures in business organizations. More interestingly, it was found that old generation tended to hold more duality in value orientation than their counterpart. Finally, the analyses of responses on emotion/value/behavior dualism revealed that old generation held more inconsistent attitude on the issues of acceptance of new trends.