| Abstract
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This study tests three hypotheses, regarding the (possible) effect of culture on performance. First, the more widely employees of a district office (kandep) share norms and values, the better the kandep will perform. Second, the better the cooperation among sections in the kandep, the better the kandep's performance. Third, the more mission-driven are employees, the better the kandep will perform. Each hypothesis corresponds to a dimension of culture: Conformity, Cooperation, and Mission-orientation. Data for the independent variables (culture) were gathered through questionnaires distributed to a sample of kandep employees. Data for the dependent variables (performance) were obtained through: (a) interviews with officials from a higher organizational unit, the kanwil, and with school principals, and (b) a document study. Four variables were used as controls: the percent women among kandep's employees, the length of service of employees, the average level of education of employees, and the location of the kandeps. The data were analyzed using correlations and multiple regressions. The results indicate that none of the hypotheses is supported. When the control variables are excluded from the model, Mission-orientation has a modest positive effect (p < 0.10) on performance as viewed by kanwil's officials. However, when all the control variables are included in the model, Conformity has a significant negative effect (p < 0.05) on performance, again as represented by the assessment of the kanwil's officials. This means that widely-shared norms and values tend to cause lower performance. The implication for theory is that the study contradicts the existing culture-performance literature, in which much of the bottom line is that a strong culture leads to better or superior performance. The practical implication is that the Ministry of Education and Culture of Indonesia (Depdikbud) which sponsors the study should consider cultural diversity in its organizational management to achieve better performance. Another interesting finding concerns the effect of one of the control variables, the percent women. This variable has a positive significant effect on the same measure of performance mentioned above.
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