Culture change in organizational public discourse 1998–2008: Examining annual reports of Japanese and US corporations

• This study examined value changes of Japanese and US corporations over the 1998–2008 period.
• These changes are assumed to manifest in the use of the terms in the texts of corporate annual reports.
• This study tests whether the theory of convergence is applicable to the study of organizational culture change.
• Three value dimensions—performance, continuity, and growth—were derived.
• The results provided partial evidence to support the theory of convergence.

This study examines changes in organizational cultures of Japanese and US corporations between 1998 and 2008 through the lens of communication. Specifically, it analyzes organizational values that are manifest in the use of specific terms in the texts of corporate annual reports (N = 255). By doing so, this study empirically determines the patterns that describe over-time changes in organizational cultures of Japanese and US corporations. Theoretically, this study investigates whether the basic premise of the theory of convergence is applicable to the study of organizational culture change. To that end, three dimensions of organizational values—performance, continuity, and growth—have been derived. To test the hypotheses and the research question offered, this study examines the effects of time in years, national culture, and the interaction between the two on the three value dimensions. Using linear growth model analysis, this study found that time and national culture had significant effects on the use of the terms related to the performance and continuity dimensions. The effects were not significant for the growth dimension. In none of the cases, the interaction effects between time and national culture were significant. The results provided evidence to support the parallel change pattern for the performance and continuity dimensions and the unitary stability pattern for the growth dimension. The findings partially support the premise of the theory of convergence.