How Social Culture Impacts Young Executive Decision Making in a Context of Uncertainty

Abstract

In this chapter, we explore social science theories that could explain how executives make decisions in contexts with a high degree of uncertainty. In particular we focus on how emerging young executives respond to risk in situations of uncertainty. First, we conduct a literature review followed by a critical analysis of socio-cultural decision-making literature. Then we performed a controlled experiment using a sample of senior university students to represent young executives. A context of uncertainty was designed which required the participants to work in small teams and make a decision based on incomplete and uncertain information about a managerial case study. In this way, we intended to illustrate what aspects of culture impacts decision making in a context of uncertainty.