Cultural intelligence as a predictor of expatriate adjustment and performance in Malaysia

This research tests the linkage between cultural intelligence, expatriate adjustment to the host country's environment and expatriate performance while on international assignments. The investigation is carried out with data from 134 expatriates based in multinational corporations in Malaysia. The results highlight a direct influence of expatriates’ cultural intelligence on general, interaction and work adjustments. The improved adjustments consequently have positive effects on both the expatriates’ task and contextual performance. The research findings have implications for both international human resource management (IHRM) researchers and managers.     

Temporal boundaries and expatriate staffing: Effects of parent–subsidiary work-time overlap

By integrating the boundary-spanning perspective with the expatriate staffing literature, we explore why and how temporal boundaries between multinational enterprise (MNE) parent and subsidiary locations affect MNEs’ deployment of expatriates in foreign subsidiaries. Temporal boundaries, defined as local work-time schedule differences, delimit the degree of work-time overlap between two locations. A lack of work-time overlap between MNE parent and subsidiary locations creates significant barriers in day-to-day, remote real-time communication, resulting in increased deployment of expatriates as intermediaries by parents to overcome these barriers. Conversely, greater parent–subsidiary work-time overlap enables more remote real-time communication via digital technologies, altering the cost–benefit analysis of deploying expatriates over local nationals, consequently reducing parents’ reliance on expatriates as intermediaries. Therefore, we posit a negative relationship between parent–subsidiary work-time overlap and the expatriate ratio in a subsidiary. Further, we posit that the negative relationship is weakened by home – host country distance in terms of information and communication technology development and linguistics because technological and semantic boundaries can reduce the effectiveness of parent–subsidiary real-time communication. Empirical analyses of 22,556 subsidiaries established by 5,912 Japanese MNEs operating in 31 host countries between 1990 and 2018 support our theorizing.     

Exploring expatriate adjustment through identity perspective

This study reveals multifaceted identities experienced by corporate expatriates and how these identities are related to expatriate host country work and non-work adjustment. Specifically, we take a symbolic interactionism-based identity theory perspective and examine qualitative data from 73 corporate expatriates in China and Japan, revealing an expatriate identity (i.e., identification with being a manager and a foreigner), and a cultural identity (i.e., identification with home and host country cultures) which through identity stability/change are related to the mode and degree of expatriate work and non-work adjustment. Our findings suggest that these identities explain how corporate expatriates shape their new environment to their preferences, instead of adjusting to it.     

International Training and Management Development Policies and Practices of South Korean MNEs in China

International training and management development has to date received little research attention. This study aims to contribute to the international human resource management literature by empirically exploring international training and management development policies and practices for both expatriates and host‐country nationals (HCNs) of South Korean multinational enterprises (MNEs) operating in China. The data for this study were collected through in‐depth interviews with both HCN managers and expatriate managers of 10 Korean MNEs. The results show that in our sample, South Korean MNEs provide expatriates with inadequate and low‐rigor predeparture cross‐cultural training and leadership training. However, the sample MNEs provide extensive predeparture and postarrival language training and regular postarrival technical and professional training. On‐the‐job training is provided mainly to HCN production workers in order to improve productivity and work safety. Selected high‐performance HCN middle managers and employees are sent back to headquarters for training. This, however, is not regarded for career development but for rewarding good performance. The sample South Korean MNEs pay little attention to management development for both expatriates and HCNs. Consequently, this has a negative effect on employees’ organizational commitment and retention. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Expatriate personality and cultural fit: The moderating role of host country context on job satisfaction

This study draws on the cultural fit hypothesis to examine interactive effects of host country context and four (Multicultural Personality Questionnaire) expatriate personality traits – Cultural Empathy, Social Initiative, Emotional Stability, and Open Mindedness – on job satisfaction. The cultural fit hypothesis maintains that it is not only the expatriate personality traits per se, but the cultural fit between expatriate personality traits and host country cultural values, norms, and prototypical personality traits that predict expatriate adjustment in host countries (Searle & Ward, 1990). Providing partial support for the cultural fit hypothesis, data derived from 191 expatriates in Brazil and Japan shows that the importance of two personality traits varies in these countries. Specifically, expatriates with high Cultural Empathy were more satisfied with their jobs in Japan than in Brazil, whereas Social Initiative was more important for expatriates in Brazil.     

Expatriate management: Comparison of MNCs across four parent countries

This article reports the results of a study of expatriate management and headquarters‐subsidiary relations in 29 American, British, German, and Japanese multinationals and a sample of 46 of their foreign subsidiaries based on face‐to‐face and telephone interviews with key international HR, subsidiary HR, and subsidiary managing directors. We found that earlier studies, heavily weighted with U.S. multinationals, cannot necessarily be applied to expatriate management experiences of other national industrial countries. Also, expatriate management is more similar for American and British MNCs, while both German and Japanese multinationals in our sample had fairly distinct systems of using expatriates in their foreign subsidiaries. Thus, we can discuss at least three fairly distinct models of expatriate management and corporate‐foreign‐subsidiary control. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Affective networks,informal ties,and the limits of expatriate effectiveness

Expatriate effectiveness research has so far rarely taken into account the influence of social networks on expatriate performance and adjustment. Likewise, antecedents of social networks remain poorly understood. We fill this research gap by exploring the situation of expatriates in South Korea. Based on expert interview data, we have discovered seven antecedents critical to expatriate effectiveness. Most antecedents hinder expatriate effectiveness due to the expatriates’ inability to become a part of so-called Yongo networks, a distinctive type of social tie in South Korea that is to a great extent determined by birth. As a consequence, it is in particular expatriates’ relational performance and interaction adjustment that is negatively influenced by Yongo. Based on the South Korean case, this study advises future research to more deeply study the nature and characteristics of the local social context, in particular affective ties, and extend research on expatriate effectiveness in this important dimension. Finally, we discuss practical implications important for multinational corporations and provide suggestions on how to better cope with exclusive informal social networks while on an assignment abroad.     

Why solidarity matters (and sociability doesn't): The effects of perceived organizational culture on expatriation adjustment

This study examines the relationship between perceived organizational culture and cross‐cultural adjustment. Using the organizational culture framework of Goffee and Jones (1996, 1998) that describes organizational culture as the intersection of sociability (e.g., the level of friendliness and socialization between organization members) and solidarity (e.g., the commonality of interests and goals among organization members), this research examines home and host organizational culture as they affect expatriation adjustment regardless of culture novelty (e.g., national cultural differences). The data were obtained through a self‐administered questionnaire filled in by 166 expatriates from 29 nationalities and assigned to 39 countries. The analyses showed that perceived home and host solidarity predicts expatriates' work and general adjustment, though not interactional adjustment. These results confirm that perceived organizational culture is a predictor of expatriation cross‐cultural adjustment. ©2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

A study focusing on American expatriates’ learning in host countries

This study examines the learning process and situations while expatriates are living and working in a foreign country. The survey was conducted on 70 American expatriates via individual e‐mails and the World Wide Web. The study found that expatriates gained the culture of their host country through reflective learning. Cross‐cultural training programs should be examined based on expatriates’ actual needs. Finally, several learning situations that would be helpful in reducing expatriates’ cultural difficulties are: previous cross‐cultural experience, language competency, long‐term relationships with the host people, and information about the host country originating from the home country as well as the host country.     

How host organizations prepare for and learn from expatriate assignments

This article reveals what goes on inside host organizations prior to and during expatriate assignments. On the basis of analyzing organizational documents and conducting 43 interviews with host country nationals (HCNs) and expatriates in 30 Vietnamese organizations that host external foreign assignments, we provide a detailed account of HCNs' experiences and unearth sophisticated preparation and management activities designed to maximize these organizations' learning. We depict what we call “a host organization lifecycle” and extract five lessons: (a) host organizations prepare carefully in advance to learn as much as possible from expatriates; (b) HCNs experience quite dramatic adjustments and burdens during expatriates' placements; (c) mutual trust between expatriates and HCNs is a prerequisite for HCNs' learning; (d) most of HCNs' learning occurs informally via interactions with expatriates or observing how they work; (e) host organization managers actively manage HCN–expatriate relationships. Our findings outline a “wish list” of practices that expatriate‐using organizations could consider deploying for expatriate assignments that focus on the benefit of the host organization' development.     

Can locally-recruited R&D personnel significantly contribute to multinational subsidiary innovation in an emerging economy?

This paper assesses the role of locally-recruited R&D personnel relative to their expatriate counterparts as regards innovation in multinational subsidiaries in an emerging economy. Two hypotheses are developed based on a network approach to multinational enterprises in an emerging economy setting, and tested on a sample of 317 multinational subsidiaries in China. Our results indicate that locally-recruited R&D personnel have played a limited role in innovation within multinational subsidiaries. While making a marginally significant contribution to R&D output due to their direct supply of technological knowledge, locally-recruited R&D personnel are unable to translate subsidiary R&D expenditure into successful patent applications probably because of their lack of technology management skills. In comparison, R&D expatriates significantly contribute to multinational subsidiary R&R output in both dimensions.     

Host Country National Employees’ Prosocial Behavior toward Expatriates in Foreign Subsidiaries: A Common Ingroup Identity Model Perspective

Social categorization is predominately assumed to have negative effects on the prosocial behavior of host country national (HCN) employees toward expatriates in foreign subsidiaries. Challenging this assumption, I draw on the common ingroup identity model to propose that dual identity – simultaneous identification with membership in a subgroup and in a superordinate group – reduces HCNs’ intergroup biases and facilitates prosocial behavior. More specifically, I hypothesize that HCNs’ organizational identity has a moderating effect on the positive relationship between HCNs’ expatriate outgroup categorization and dual identity, such that this relationship is weaker when organizational identity is low. Furthermore, I hypothesize that dual identity mediates the relationship between expatriate outgroup categorization and two prosocial behaviors: information sharing and affiliative citizenship behavior. Results from the data collected from 1,290 HCN employees in Japan provide support for these hypotheses and the moderated mediation model.     

From dilemmatic struggle to legitimized indifference: Expatriates’ host country language learning and its impact on the expatriate-HCE relationship

We address the lack of knowledge concerning the role of host country languages in multinational corporations based on an inductive qualitative study involving 70 interviews with Nordic expatriates and host country employees (HCE) in China. Building on the strongly discrepant views of expatriates and HCEs, we demonstrate how expatriates’ willingness to learn and use the host country language lead to different types of expatriate-HCE relationships, ranging from harmonious to distant or segregated. In doing so, we emphasize the subtle and fragile connection between expatriates’ attitude towards HCEs’ mother tongue and trust formation in addition to the construction of superiority-inferiority relationships.     

The role of cross‐cultural absorptive capacity in the effectiveness of in‐country cross‐cultural training

Based on the theory of absorptive capacity, this study examines the following question. In the context of cross‐cultural training, can the amount of previously accumulated cultural knowledge affect the ability of a trainee to absorb further learning about a new culture, thus enhancing total knowledge and presumably cross‐cultural adjustment? In‐country cross‐cultural training was hypothesized to be more effective when the training components are divided and the sessions are distributed over time – resulting in increased cultural knowledge and greater cross‐cultural adjustment. Results from an experimental design suggested that in‐country cross‐cultural training can increase cultural knowledge, when distributed over time. The results also suggested that the training group had greater differences between pre‐training and post‐training scores on cross‐cultural adjustment, but the differences were not statistically different. The results, methodology and conclusions can be generalized to a variety of populations (e.g. international managers and expatriates) and organizations (e.g. multinationals). For international managers and expatriates, the results showed that in‐country cross‐cultural training, like predeparture cross‐cultural training, is also a viable intervention for knowledge acquisition.     

The Impact of Communication on Conflict between Expatriate and Local Managers Working in NPD Projects of MNC Subsidiaries: A Local Perspective

This study investigates the impact of communication between expatriate and local managers on two types of conflict in subsidiaries of multinational companies (MNCs) engaged in new product development (NPD). The data was collected from 438 local NPD managers who regularly collaborate and communicate with expatriate managers. The findings suggest that the quality and bidirectionality of cross-cultural communication reduce relationship conflict but increase task-related conflict. In addition, a more formalized communication style increases both relationship conflict and task conflict. The findings hold implications for MNCs in that improvements to different communication dimensions are suggested.     

Organizational cynicism in multinational corporations in China

Organizational cynicism is a pejorative attitude toward the employing organization induced by mistrust, disillusion, and various negative experiences. Based on cognitive dissonance theory we develop and test a theoretical model of how perceived cultural differences lead to organizational cynicism which in turn results in greater turnover intentions among host country nationals (HCN) employed in foreign subsidiaries of multinational corporations. Furthermore, we argue that the negative effect of perceived cultural differences can be mitigated by localization, i.e. replacement of expatriates by local staff. Survey results from HCN employees in foreign subsidiaries in China confirm the expected relationships.     

The acculturative stress of host country managers working at MNC subsidiaries: Determinants and effects

This paper introduces the concept of acculturative stress to indicate a distinct psychological difficulty faced by host country managers working at multinational corporation (MNC) subsidiaries. Drawing on the social identity and self-verification theories, we suggest that host country managers are exposed to acculturative stress due to the challenges they face in verifying their national cultural identity. We identify the perceived cultural incongruence and the lower relative standing of host country managers as proximal determinants of acculturative stress and examine its negative impact on their work engagement. The analysis results of a sample of 643 Korean managers working at 60 MNC subsidiaries in Korea support our hypotheses on the determinants and effects of acculturative stress.     

The impact of expatriate personality traits on cross-cultural adjustment: A study with expatriates in Japan

While regarded as among the most important factors affecting expatriate cross-cultural adjustment, little focused research with a broad array of personality traits has been conducted. This study draws from the cultural fit hypothesis and the socio-analytic theory to examine the impact of expatriate personality traits through the Multicultural Personality Questionnaire on the general-, interaction-, and work-related facets of cross-cultural adjustment among 181 expatriates in Japan. The results show positive relationships between the personality traits of Open Mindedness and interaction adjustment, Emotional Stability and Cultural Empathy and general adjustment, and Social Initiative and work adjustment.     

Of bears, bumble-bees, and spiders: the role of expatriates in controlling foreign subsidiaries

This article investigates the role of expatriate managers in multinational companies. We discuss three key organizational functions of expatriation: position filling, management development, and organization development. In the last function, organization development, international transfers are used as an informal coordination and control strategy through socialization and the building of informal communication networks. The article explores this role of international transfers in greater detail, but also discusses a more formal way in which expatriates can control subsidiaries. The following metaphors for these different control functions of expatriation are introduced: “bear” (formal direct control), “bumble-bee” (socialization), and “spider” (informal communication). A large-scale mail survey offers empirical evidence for the bear, bumble-bee and spider roles and shows under which circumstances they are most effective. Being aware of the different control functions of expatriation and the circumstances under which they are most effective can help managers to use expatriate assignments as a more strategic tool.     

Expatriates on the run: The psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on expatriates’ host country withdrawal intentions

Extant research on expatriation in high-stress environments where stress is caused by ongoing and unexpected natural crises remains limited. Drawing on stress theory, in this study, we develop a model to examine the stress-inducing effects of intra-family concerns and workplace discrimination on the intentions to leave the host country among expatriates in the high-stress environment of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We also explore whether gender and the level of work adjustment moderate the propensity of intra-family health concerns and workplace discrimination to induce psychological stress. Based on our analysis of 381 expatriates living and working in the United Arab Emirates, we find the model to be generally supported. We also reveal an intriguing moderating effect of work adjustment on the relationship between intra-family health concerns and psychological stress. Overall, the analysis is among the first ones to shed light on the role of natural crises’ stressors in defining expatriate outcomes.