33 research outputs found
Does It Really Work? Re-Assessing the Impact of Pre-Departure Cross-Cultural Training on Expatriate Adjustment
Cultural adjustment is considered to be a prerequisite for expatriate success abroad. One way to enhance adjustment is to provide employees with knowledge and awareness of appropriate norms and behaviors of the host country through cross-cultural training (CCT). This article analyzes the impact of pre-departure CCT on expatriate adjustment and focuses on variations in participation, length and the comprehensiveness of training. Unlike previous research, the study focuses on the effectiveness of pre-departure CCT for non-US employees expatriated to a broad range of host country settings. Employing data from 339 expatriates from 20 German Multinational Corporations (MNCs) the study finds CCT has little if any effect on general, interactional or work setting expatriate adjustment. However, a significant impact of foreign language competence was found for all three dimensions of expatriate adjustment. We used interviews with 20 expatriates to supplement our discussion and provide further implications for practice
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Why do they go? Individual and corporate perspectives on the factors influencing the decision to accept an international assignment
This article explores the motives of individuals to accept international
assignments. It uses a combination of qualitative and quantitative research
methods to further our understanding of how important a variety of items are in
the decision to work abroad. Employing a mutual dependency perspective it
contrasts individual motives and organizational perspectives. Organizations
significantly underestimate the importance of career, work/life balance and
development considerations and overestimate the financial imperative and some
family motives. The analysis showed that for individuals some of these factors
significantly relate to outcome variables in terms of the perceived career
capital accrued from assignments. The study presents a more nuanced picture of
influence factors on the decision to go and advocates the use of context-
sensitive, multiple perspectives. Practical implications for multinational
organizations are discussed