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1 Effects of Expatriate Demographic Characteristics on Adjustment: A Social Identity Approach 1 1 This is a preprint of an article published in Human Resource Management, 48(2), 311-328, March/April 2009, available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hrm.20281/abstract (Please cite the publisher’s version.) Jesse E. Olsen Doctoral Candidate Georgia Institute of Technology College of Management 800 West Peachtree Street NW Atlanta, GA 30308 Luis L. Martins Associate Professor Georgia Institute of Technology College of Management 800 West Peachtree Street NW Atlanta, GA 30308 ABSTRACT: Expatriates are receiving growing emphasis by both scholars and practitioners as organizations are increasingly going global and need expatriates to manage their operations in various parts of the world. A key factor affecting an expatriate’s success in an international assignment is the support that the expatriate receives from host country nationals (HCNs) with whom he/she works. However, researchers interested in understanding expatriate success have not examined the phenomenon much from an HCN perspective. At the same time, although we have gained a significant understanding of the roles of psychological, organizational, and contextual variables in the international assignment, there is still much to be understood about how expatriates’ demographic characteristics affect their experiences in international assignments. Current findings regarding effects of demographic characteristics are often inconsistent, highlighting the need for more complex theorizing. This paper reviews recent research on the effects of expatriate demographic characteristics and proposes a social identity approach to understanding how these characteristics affect HCN support for the expatriate. It seeks to develop theory that addresses discrepancies in extant empirical findings, and provides propositions to guide future research in the study of expatriates. The paper also discusses implications of the framework proposed for both researchers and practitioners. Keywords: expatriates, host country nationals, demographics, diversity, Social Identity Theory, international HRM, global careers Organizations that wish to succeed in this era of globalization are realizing that they must turn to international markets in order to remain competitive. An integral part of setting up a subsidiary overseas, acquiring a foreign organization, or participating in an international joint venture is a successful expatriate or international assignment program. However, many assignments end in the premature return of the expatriate or in expatriate attrition (GMAC, 2007), while some expatriates may experience psychological withdrawal even as they remain in their international assignment (Black & Gregersen, 1991; Shaffer & Harrison, 1998; Tung, 1981). A recent study reveals that the expatriate’s inability to adjust to the new environment is a key factor leading to unsuccessful expatriate assignments, with 57 percent of human resource managers surveyed citing this as a problem; only partner dissatisfaction was mentioned more frequently (GMAC, 2007).

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1

Effects of Expatriate Demographic Characteristics on Adjustment:

A Social Identity Approach1

1 This is a preprint of an article published in Human Resource Management, 48(2), 311-328, March/April 2009,

available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hrm.20281/abstract (Please cite the publisher’s

version.)

Jesse E. Olsen Doctoral Candidate

Georgia Institute of Technology

College of Management

800 West Peachtree Street NW

Atlanta, GA 30308

Luis L. Martins Associate Professor

Georgia Institute of Technology

College of Management

800 West Peachtree Street NW

Atlanta, GA 30308

ABSTRACT: Expatriates are receiving growing emphasis by both scholars and practitioners as

organizations are increasingly going global and need expatriates to manage their operations in

various parts of the world. A key factor affecting an expatriate’s success in an international

assignment is the support that the expatriate receives from host country nationals (HCNs) with

whom he/she works. However, researchers interested in understanding expatriate success have not

examined the phenomenon much from an HCN perspective. At the same time, although we have

gained a significant understanding of the roles of psychological, organizational, and contextual

variables in the international assignment, there is still much to be understood about how

expatriates’ demographic characteristics affect their experiences in international assignments.

Current findings regarding effects of demographic characteristics are often inconsistent,

highlighting the need for more complex theorizing. This paper reviews recent research on the

effects of expatriate demographic characteristics and proposes a social identity approach to

understanding how these characteristics affect HCN support for the expatriate. It seeks to develop

theory that addresses discrepancies in extant empirical findings, and provides propositions to guide

future research in the study of expatriates. The paper also discusses implications of the framework

proposed for both researchers and practitioners.

Keywords: expatriates, host country nationals, demographics, diversity, Social Identity Theory,

international HRM, global careers

Organizations that wish to succeed in this era of globalization are realizing that they must

turn to international markets in order to remain competitive. An integral part of setting up a

subsidiary overseas, acquiring a foreign organization, or participating in an international joint

venture is a successful expatriate or international assignment program. However, many

assignments end in the premature return of the expatriate or in expatriate attrition (GMAC, 2007),

while some expatriates may experience psychological withdrawal even as they remain in their

international assignment (Black & Gregersen, 1991; Shaffer & Harrison, 1998; Tung, 1981). A

recent study reveals that the expatriate’s inability to adjust to the new environment is a key factor

leading to unsuccessful expatriate assignments, with 57 percent of human resource managers

surveyed citing this as a problem; only partner dissatisfaction was mentioned more frequently

(GMAC, 2007).

2

Research to date has made considerable advances in defining and describing expatriate

adjustment (e.g., Black, 1988; Black & Stephens, 1989), as well as understanding many of the

antecedents and consequences of the phenomenon (see Harrison, Shaffer, & Bhaskar-Shrinivas,

2004 for a recent review). The current dominant model of expatriate adjustment suggests, among

other things, that those who surround an expatriate while on assignment—the host country

nationals (HCNs)—may play a role in expatriate adjustment through the support that they

provide to the expatriate (Black, Mendenhall, & Oddou, 1991). However, few researchers (Toh

& DeNisi, 2003, 2005; Varma, Toh, & Budhwar, 2006) have examined how HCNs might

contribute to adjustment, or the factors that determine HCN support for an expatriate.

Additionally, a review of the literature reveals that research on expatriates has tended to

focus primarily on psychological, organizational, and contextual variables as predictors of an

expatriate’s experience on an international assignment. One set of variables that has not been

explored in much detail is expatriate demographics. Furthermore, the little empirical research

that does exist on the effects of expatriate demographics has been inconclusive. Understanding

the effects of these characteristics on the expatriate experience is important as the pool of

expatriate managers grows increasingly diverse, reflecting the changing nature of the workforce

and increased global mobility of employees (Inkson, Arthur, Pringle, & Barry, 1997). For one,

such an understanding is likely to contribute to organizations’ abilities to develop their diverse

pool of employees. There is evidence that a lack of understanding of the effects of expatriate

demographic characteristics could lead to poor decision making based on weak assumptions, and

in the process deprive certain individuals the opportunity to pursue global careers. For example,

as is discussed in further detail in a later section, erroneous assumptions about how women will

adjust to international assignments have in the past caused some organizations to maintain low

percentages of female expatriates (Adler, 1984, 1987, 1993, 1994, 2002).

Secondly, researchers have noted the importance of the international assignment in

contributing to an expatriate’s career development (e.g., Feldman & Thomas, 1992; Selmer,

Ebrahimi, & Mingtao, 2002; Stahl, Miller, & Tung, 2002). At the same time, successful

multinational corporations are noting the importance of training employees to function across

cultures (Metcalfe & Rees, 2005). A better understanding of the effects of expatriate

demographic characteristics could contribute not only to the personal and professional

3

development of the expatriate, but also to organizations’ abilities to develop effective training

and international human resource development programs.

This paper seeks to explore how expatriates’ demographic characteristics may play a role

in their experience in international assignments. Specifically, we use Social Identity Theory as

the basis of a theoretical framework of the relationship between expatriate demographic

characteristics and HCN support. In the process, we also attempt to explain inconsistent results in

the literature on the effects of expatriates’ demographic characteristics, and seek to address the

need to explore the role of HCNs. In the section below, we first discuss expatriate adjustment

and extant research on HCN support, and then provide a brief overview of the relevant research

on social identity that forms the basis of the framework proposed. Next, we use social identity

theory to examine prior research and form new propositions on the effects of demographic

characteristics on HCN support. Finally, we discuss the implications of our framework for both

research and practice.

DEFINITIONS AND KEY CONCEPTS

Expatriates are defined as “employees of business organizations, who are sent [to another

country] on a temporary basis to complete a time-based task or accomplish an organizational

goal” (Harrison et al., 2004). Human resource practitioners note the high turnover rate among

expatriates, as well as the prominence of premature returns (GMAC, 2007). In addition,

researchers in this field have pointed out that some expatriates may experience psychological

withdrawal (Black & Gregersen, 1991; Shaffer & Harrison, 1998; Tung, 1981), which may be

even more costly to the organization than physical withdrawal (Harzing, 1995). In any event,

assignment failure may take various forms. Low performance, attrition, and psychological

withdrawal are all undesirable outcomes, potentially leading to high costs to the organization.

According to human resource practitioners, expatriates’ inability to adjust is one of the

biggest reasons for failure (GMAC, 2007). Expatriate adjustment has been commonly defined as

“the degree of comfort or absence of stress associated with being an expatriate” (Bhaskar-

Shrinivas, Harrison, Shaffer, & Luk, 2005). Prior research has found that expatriate adjustment is

related to critical organizational variables (Harrison et al., 2004). For example, it is negatively

related to withdrawal cognitions, i.e., an expatriate’s intentions to leave an assignment (e.g.,

Black & Stephens, 1989; Gregersen & Black, 1990; Takeuchi, Tesluk, Yun, & Lepak, 2005;

Takeuchi, Yun, & Russell, 2002) and positively related to satisfaction (both work- and non-

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work-related) (e.g., Nicholson & Imaizumi, 1993; Shaffer & Harrison, 1998). Expatriate

adjustment has also been found to be positively related to performance (e.g., Kraimer, Wayne, &

Jaworski, 2001; Parker & McEvoy, 1993), though recently some have challenged the extent to

which researchers have claimed these constructs to be related (Thomas & Lazarova, 2006).

Relatively little expatriate research focuses on host country nationals (HCNs), or the

natives of the host country, with whom the expatriate may have contact on assignment. The little

research that does exist on this subject finds that expatriates with large and diverse networks

experience greater adjustment (Johnson, Kristof-Brown, van Vianen, & de Pater, 2003; Wang &

Kanungo, 2004) and that HCN coworker support is positively related to expatriate adjustment

(Aryee & Stone, 1996; Shaffer, Harrison, & Gilley, 1999; Toh, 2003). Scholars taking the HCN

into consideration primarily refer to HCN co-workers of the expatriate (e.g., Toh & DeNisi,

2003; Varma et al., 2006), rather than to HCNs in general—both within and outside of the

organizational setting (see Johnson et al., 2003 for an exception). Because of the work-oriented

goals of the expatriate’s assignment abroad, this paper will also focus on HCN co-workers,

though much of the discussion to follow may also be applicable with modification to the

expatriate’s HCN acquaintances outside of the organization.

We should note that expatriates may have different modes of adjustment, one of which

may be to regress into an “environmental bubble” of the home country, i.e., an enclave “which

shelter[s] them off from the environment of the host society” (Cohen, 1977: 16). This would

essentially isolate the expatriate from the host country and allow for an existence somewhat

similar to that he or she had at home. However, we posit that the primary objectives of many

modern organizations (e.g., transferring technology, knowledge, and organizational culture to the

host country, or building local business relationships; see GMAC, 2007) require expatriates to

interact with HCN co-workers. Although environmental bubbles undoubtedly exist, most

business expatriates in this era must be able to adjust to the host country and interactions with its

natives. Our paper applies to these expatriates, rather than to those who are able to confine

themselves to environmental bubbles.

Social Identity Theory

Social Identity Theory or “SIT” (e.g., Tajfel & Turner, 1979; Turner, 1985) provides a

sound theoretical basis for understanding HCN support, and in particular, how it is affected by

the expatriate’s demographic characteristics. SIT proposes that individuals derive their sense of

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self through membership in social groups (e.g., Tajfel & Turner, 1979; Turner, 1985). At a basic

level, the theory addresses individual behavior within the context of groups and both actual and

perceived group membership. In its original formulation, SIT seeks to explain inter-group

behavior and is based on the assumptions that 1) individuals seek a positive self-concept, 2)

group memberships tend to carry with them socially-defined positive or negative evaluations,

and 3) individuals evaluate their own groups via comparisons with other groups (Tajfel &

Turner, 1979). Tajfel and Turner (1979) note that through the process of ingroup-outgroup

differentiation, one shows favoritism toward his/her own group and acts discriminatorily against

the relevant outgroup(s). Such biases have important implications in organizations, as they can

facilitate or inhibit cooperative and supportive behavior (Ashforth & Mael, 1989).

A major advance in the SIT literature is Turner’s (1985) introduction of self-

categorization theory (SCT), which seeks to further explain the cognitive processes behind social

identification as the basis of inter-group dynamics. Turner (1985) posits that an individual’s

overall self-concept is composed of a number of situation-specific identities (both personal and

social) that are activated as appropriate. At the social level, one categorizes oneself and others

into groups, and through this process of social categorization, individuals are depersonalized, or

viewed in terms of their group prototypicality, rather than as unique individuals. (Hogg & Terry,

2000; Turner, 1985). This line of research has also pointed out that the salience of a social

category is important in determining whether that aspect of one’s identity or that of others, is

activated in interpersonal interactions (e.g., Brewer & Brown, 1998; Fiske & Taylor, 1991;

Oakes, 1987).

Social Identity Theory and Expatriate Research

Despite the potential for SIT to inform the fundamental bases of HCN support for

expatriates, it is only very recently that researchers have begun utilizing it as the theoretical

underpinning for understanding the expatriate experience (e.g., Carr, Rugimbana, Walkom, &

Bolitho, 2001; Toh & DeNisi, 2003, 2005; Varma et al., 2006). A review of the literature

revealed a dissertation (Toh, 2003) and subsequent theoretical publication (Toh & DeNisi, 2003)

largely utilizing Turner’s (1985) SCT as the framework for a model that attempts to explain

HCNs’ organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) toward facilitating expatriates’ adjustment.

This research suggests that HCNs’ classification of the expatriate as a member of their ingroup is

positively related to their adjustment-facilitating OCBs (Toh, 2003). This suggestion is in

6

agreement with Ashforth and Mael’s (1989) discussion of cooperation with coworkers and

support for the organization as outcomes of organizational identification.

Another study, by Carr and colleagues (2001), suggests that a prestige factor plays a role

in expatriate-HCN relations. The researchers asked Tanzanian business undergraduate students

about how they feel human resource managers would select job candidates from different

countries. All else being equal, the respondents indicated that fellow Tanzanians would first be

preferred for the job, followed by Western expatriates, and lastly East Africans. The authors

suggest that the ingroup is preferred over both outgroups, as would be predicted by the notion

put forth in SIT that individuals show favoritism toward their own groups (Tajfel & Turner,

1979). Furthermore, the study supports the proposition of SIT that given two outgroups, the one

that is more subject to comparison would be more subject to social competition (Tajfel & Turner,

1979). Carr et al. (2001) explain that Tanzanians would view Westerners, who generally come

from countries that differ considerably from Tanzania, as less comparable to themselves than

nationals from nearby countries which they may see as more similar to Tanzania. This

application of SIT, though related to expatriate selection rather than to HCN support, lends

empirical support to the idea that HCNs tend to categorize expatriates based on the processes

identified by SIT.

Overall, whereas SIT has the potential to inform understanding of the mechanisms

underlying expatriates’ experiences in international assignments, we have barely scratched the

surface in terms of applying the theory, especially when it comes to understanding HCN support.

In the remainder of this section, we propose some core propositions about the social identity

dynamics underlying international assignments, and then use those as the foundation for the

framework connecting expatriate demographics to HCN support in the following section.

By definition, the expatriate is a foreigner in the host country, so his/her membership in a

“foreigner” outgroup will likely be salient to the HCNs initially (Toh, 2003; Toh & DeNisi, 2003,

2005). SIT research has found that salient demographic characteristics are likely to be used as

bases for social categorization, as they are more readily cognitively available (Brewer & Brown,

1998; Tsui, Egan, & O'Reilly, 1992). Thus, a starting proposition may be stated as follows:

Proposition 1: HCNs will initially categorize an expatriate as a member of a foreigner

outgroup.

7

Additionally, the expatriate is likely to be viewed by the HCNs as a member of another

department or organizational unit within the same super-ordinate organization. According to

Ashforth and Mael (1989), unless members of separate organizational units share a strong

organizational identity, the identities of their respective units are likely to be salient, possibly

leading each party to view the other negatively. Applying this principle to the international

assignment, we propose that

Proposition 2: The stronger the super-ordinate organizational identity, the more likely

the expatriate and HCNs will share a common identity in the organizational group.

However, the weaker the super-ordinate organizational identity, the more likely the

expatriate and HCNs will be to view one another as a member of an outgroup in terms of

their subordinate organizational unit membership.

Consistent with an approach using SIT and related research (like that of Toh & DeNisi,

2003; Varma et al., 2006), it may be posited that if HCNs and expatriates identify with the same

social group, HCNs will be more willing to support the group through cooperation with

expatriate members at work and possibly even outside of work. Additionally, interactions should

occur more easily between expatriates and HCNs if they identify with the same social group.

These arguments are consistent with the propositions of SIT that individuals will be more likely

to have positive attitudes and behavior toward those that they classify as belonging to one of

their ingroups (Ashforth & Mael, 1989). Therefore, in general, and forming a basic proposition

in this paper,

Proposition 3: As the salience (from the perspective of the HCNs) of a social identity

common to the expatriate and HCNs increases, HCN support of the expatriate will also

increase.

A common social identity may take any of a number of forms, such as that of a cultural,

racial, or organizational group. However, SIT posits that the categorization processes described

above will be based on the most salient characteristics at a given time. Thus, it is likely that

demographic characteristics will be used, at least initially, as the expatriate and HCNs interact

with each other, since such characteristics are “observable or readily detectable attributes”

(Milliken & Martins, 1996: 403). It is important to note that membership in a foreigner outgroup

is normally based on such salient and fixed characteristics that a “foreign” individual has little to

no social mobility (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) on this dimension. In other words, an expatriate who

8

has been categorized by HCNs as a foreigner based on dimensions such as national origin, race,

or ethnicity will often be hard-pressed to remove him- or herself from the foreigner outgroup in

the eyes of the HCNs (Toh & DeNisi, 2003; Varma et al., 2006). As will be discussed, this may

work to the expatriate’s advantage or disadvantage, and expatriates will have varying rates of

success in moving into HCN ingroups, depending on their demographic characteristics and the

characteristics of the host country. Foreign outgroup membership may be so salient to HCNs that

an expatriate is unable to benefit from his/her membership in a prestigious group (such as the

dominant sex in that particular culture, or as an elder to be respected in a culture emphasizing

Confucian values). On the other hand, the expatriate may be able to benefit from his/her

foreignness if there is risk of being categorized on some less favorable dimension (for example,

if he/she is a member of the non-dominant sex in that country). These phenomena will be further

discussed in the sections on expatriate sex and age.

The remainder of this paper will thus use a social identity approach to explore how the

demographic characteristics of both expatriates and HCNs may come into play in explaining

HCN support for expatriates.

DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS AND HCN SUPPORT: A SOCIAL IDENTITY

APPROACH

Whereas SIT is one of the most commonly used theories in research on the effects of

demographic characteristics in the literature on workforce diversity (see Milliken & Martins,

1996; van Knippenberg & Schippers, 2007; and Williams & O'Reilly, 1998 for reviews), it has

not been applied similarly in research on expatriates. In this section we use SIT to propose

relationships between demographic characteristics and HCNs’ adjustment-facilitating support for

expatriates. In the process, we also suggest potential explanations for prior inconsistencies in

findings regarding the effects of demographic characteristics on expatriate adjustment. Our

arguments and propositions focus on the following demographic characteristics that have been

central in research on expatriates and on diversity in organizations: national origin,

race/ethnicity, sex, and age.

National Origin

A review of the literature reveals that research on expatriate national origin has

approached the topic from the standpoint of the expatriate, without much regard for how it may

affect the behaviors and attitudes of HCNs. In the 1980s, research on expatriate national origin

9

largely explored American expatriates in comparison to expatriates from other countries.

Researchers suggested that due in part to insufficient training programs, Americans had a more

difficult time adjusting in the host country than did expatriates of other nationalities (Kobrin,

1988; Tung, 1981; Tung, 1982, 1987). However, this effect was not seen in later research (Parker

& McEvoy, 1993; Tung, 1998). Tung, who had in the 1980s noted Americans’ difficulties with

adjustment, later observed that the Americans in her 1998 sample seemed to be more

“cosmopolitan,” with more previous experience abroad and a greater knowledge of other

languages and cultures (Tung, 1998). This research mainly reflects differences in the preparation

and training of expatriates across countries, rather than how national origin is perceived and

evaluated by individuals in the host country.

More recent work that investigates the effect of an expatriate’s national origin on

international assignment outcomes has essentially focused on the expatriate’s cultural distance

(discussed below) from the country of assignment. However, there has been little recent research

that investigates the effect of national origin itself (for exceptions, see Selmer, Ebrahimi, &

Mingtao, 2000a, b; Selmer, Ling, Shiu, & de Leon, 2003).

Whereas an expatriate’s national origin is a determinant of the cultural distance between

the home country and the host country, SIT suggests that national origin itself may have effects

that are separate from cultural distance. Individuals are as likely to have positive or negative

social evaluations of other nations as they are of any other social group, creating an effect that is

triggered by national origin rather than cultural distance. The self-enhancement motive proposed

by SIT (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) suggests that if the expatriate comes from a country that is seen

as prestigious by the HCNs, the HCNs may be more likely to adopt him/her as a member of

some common group or strive to belong to a common group with the prestigious expatriate. As a

result, the expatriate may experience increased HCN support. On the other hand, an expatriate

from a country that is seen as less prestigious than the host country will be less likely to be

included in a common social group categorization by the HCNs. The HCNs may exhibit less

interest in including such an expatriate in informal groups, may demonstrate competitive

behavior or may simply avoid the expatriate, thus providing less adjustment-facilitating support

than they would to an expatriate whom they perceive as being from a higher-prestige country.

Indeed, although Carr et al.’s (2001) study deals with selection as an outcome, it suggests that a

country’s prestige plays a role in HCNs’ attitudes and behaviors toward an expatriate. Therefore,

10

Proposition 4: The more prestigious an expatriate’s country of origin as viewed by the

HCNs, the more support the expatriate will receive.

As noted above, rather than examine an expatriate’s nationality itself, much of the

research in this area has examined cultural distance instead. Researchers have referred to cultural

distance as cultural toughness (e.g., Mendenhall & Oddou, 1985) and culture novelty (e.g., Black

et al., 1991), and have measured this construct in various ways (Selmer et al., 2003). However,

most researchers have generally defined cultural distance as the “distance between native and

host cultures” (Harrison et al., 2004), or the degree of difference between the expatriate’s home

culture and the culture of the host country.

Much of this research has focused on how cultural distance directly impacts the

experience of the individual expatriate. For instance, researchers have suggested that high

cultural distance, or large differences between the host and home countries, will negatively affect

expatriate adjustment (Harrison et al., 2004; Parker & McEvoy, 1993). This proposition has

indeed received support in a recent meta-analysis (Bhaskar-Shrinivas et al., 2005). Such research

often concludes with recommendations as to what the individual and/or his organization can do

to overcome any negative effects of cultural distance. However, this expatriate-focused approach

has produced fairly inconsistent findings across and within studies. For example, although Parker

& McEvoy (1993) found a negative relationship between cultural distance and interaction

adjustment (the degree to which the expatriate is able to adjust to interactions with the HCNs),

they found a surprising positive relationship between cultural distance and general adjustment

(the degree to which the expatriate is able to adjust to the general culture and environment).

Some research has found that the directionality of the differences may be an important

consideration. For example, if an expatriate is assigned to a culturally distant country in which

conditions are perceived as superior in some way to the expatriate’s native country (better

economic/political conditions, higher standards of living, etc.), expatriate outcomes such as

adjustment could be facilitated (Harrison et al., 2004). In fact, results from a recent qualitative

study of Chinese expatriates in Hong Kong and Hong Kong expatriates in China support this

argument. Although cultural distance is the same for each group, Chinese expatriates seemed to

adjust more easily in Hong Kong than did Hong Kong expatriates in China (Selmer et al., 2003).

One potential explanation for the inconsistent findings as well as the directional findings

noted above, is that the perceptions of HCNs and their effects on their support for the expatriate

11

need to be taken into account. Differences between cultures essentially equate to differences

between cultural group prototypes. Greater cultural difference, or cultural distance, therefore

produces a greater sense of differentiation for members in each group. Although research to date

has used objective measures of cultural distance or differences from the point of view of the

expatriate, we posit that the perceptions of the HCNs are an important consideration. Because

HCNs choose whether or not to accept the expatriate into their ingroup, their categorization of

the expatriate is likely to have a big impact on their interactions with the expatriate. SIT suggests

that the more salient a demographic characteristic, the more likely it is to be used as the basis for

social categorization (e.g., Brewer & Brown, 1998; Fiske & Taylor, 1991; Oakes, 1987). Since a

larger perceived cultural distance will be more salient, we propose that:

Proposition 5: From the point of view of the HCN, cultural distance between the

expatriate’s culture and the host culture will be positively related to the salience of the

expatriate as an outgroup member.

According to Tajfel and Turner (1979), the salience of an outgroup can lead an individual

to attempt to positively differentiate his/her ingroup from the outgroup, leading to social

competition. The above proposition suggests that high cultural distance between an expatriate

and HCNs leads to greater salience of their respective group memberships. The increased group

salience may lead to social competition, inhibiting support and cooperation between the

expatriate and HCNs. This is likely an underlying mechanism for the negative relationship

between cultural distance and outcomes such as expatriate adjustment generally found in

research to date. We therefore propose the following:

Proposition 6: The greater the cultural distance between the expatriate’s culture and the

host culture from the point of view of the HCNs, the less supportive will be the HCNs’

attitudes and behaviors toward the expatriate.

Race and Ethnicity

Consistent with research on cultural anthropology, we use the term “race” to refer to a

classification of “people on the basis of selected biological traits such as skin color and facial

features,” (Miller, 2002, 389) and the term “ethnicity” to refer to “group affiliation based on

features such as a distinct history, language, or religion” (Miller, 2002, 393). In the diversity

literature, researchers have combined the two into “racioethnicity” (e.g., Cox, 1993; Elsass &

Graves, 1997; Martins, Milliken, Wiesenfeld, & Salgado, 2003). Although most expatriate

12

researchers report the nationalities of their research participants, we were unable to find studies

that noted expatriates’ racial or ethnic backgrounds. However, this dimension is important as the

pool of expatriates is likely to become increasingly more diverse in race and ethnicity with the

continuing globalization of business and the use of third country nationals (Adler, 2002).

Race and ethnicity capture important elements of demographic difference beyond

national origin, and are likely to be subject to the prestige effects noted in the arguments above.

Researchers have found that individuals have an implicit perception of the hierarchical ordering

of certain races, and may have positive or negative stereotypes of particular races and ethnicities

(Song, 2004). Thus, it may be expected that two expatriates from the same country of origin may

be perceived and categorized differently in the same host country. Expatriates whose

racioethnicities are categorized as prestigious may enjoy more support from HCNs based on the

HCNs’ desire for self-enhancement through categorization of themselves in the same ingroup as

the expatriate. Conversely, expatriates whose racioethnicities are categorized negatively by

HCNs may be considered to be part of the outgroup, and may not receive adjustment-facilitating

support from the HCN. Thus,

Proposition 7: The more prestigious an expatriate’s racial or ethnic group as viewed by

the HCNs, the more support the expatriate will receive from the HCNs.

This proposition may be modified in the case of expatriates whose racioethnicity is

similar to those of the HCNs. Expatriates who are of the same or similar race as the HCNs will

share physical similarities, which the diversity literature (e.g., Tsui et al., 1992; van Knippenberg

& Schippers, 2007) suggests will lead to categorization of one another into a common social

group. However, HCNs will likely initially expect a racially similar expatriate to be skilled in

their language and cultural practices, and may categorize the expatriate as a foreigner if the

expatriate is not knowledgeable in these areas. A social identity approach suggests that racial or

ethnic similarities of an expatriate to HCNs will cause him or her to be subject to more relevant

comparison and thus possibly greater social competition (Tajfel & Turner, 1979; Turner, 1985).

This argument is supported by the findings of Carr et al.’s (2001) study of Tanzanians’

preferences between fellow Tanzanians and other Africans. In this situation, it is likely that

outgroup categorization is a result of differences in language and ethnicity, rather than race.

Thus, we expect that cultural and linguistic knowledge will moderate the relationship

between an expatriate’s racioethnic similarity to HCNs and the support provided by HCNs.

13

Expatriates who are racioethnically similar to HCNs and are also adept at the host country

culture and language will be more likely to be categorized by HCNs into their ingroups and are

consequently more likely to receive adjustment-facilitating support from them, than will

expatriates who are racioethnically similar to HCNs but are not adept at the host country culture

and language. In other words,

14

Proposition 8: An expatriate’s knowledge of the culture/language of the host country will

moderate the relationship between the expatriate’s racioethnic similarity to HCNs and

HCN support, such that when knowledge of the culture/language is higher, the

relationship between racioethnic similarity and HCN support will be stronger than when

knowledge of the culture/language is lower.

Selmer et al’s (2000a) study of Western and Chinese expatriates in Hong Kong seems to

support this proposition, though the results of the study were contrary to the authors’ hypotheses.

The researchers expected the Chinese expatriates to adjust more easily than the Western

expatriates, but they found the opposite in their study. The authors note that the Western

expatriates were generally fluent in English, which is the language of business in Hong Kong,

while the primarily Mandarin-speaking Chinese were not generally very skilled in either English

or the Hong Kong Cantonese dialect. Further support for our proposition is seen in Selmer et al’s

(2000b) investigation of Chinese expatriates in Hong Kong. This study revealed that Cantonese-

speaking Chinese from the neighboring Guangdong province were better adjusted than other

Chinese, though cultural distance may also be playing a role here.

Clearly, the above proposition would be difficult to apply to an expatriate in a racially or

ethnically diverse host country. For example, a Chinese or a French expatriate in a major city in

the US is similar in race and ethnicity to many Americans. The HCNs’ expectations of each

expatriate’s abilities should not differ, since one looks or acts no more or less foreign than the

other. The race or ethnicity of an expatriate would therefore be a poor predictor of HCN support

in a major city in the US or in many racially and ethnically diverse countries. This argument is

consistent with a finding in the diversity literature, that the racioethnic diversity of teams within

an organization did not affect group functioning in an organizational context that was

racioethnically diverse, but had strong effects on group functioning in the less racioethnically

diverse organizational context (Martins et al., 2003). Thus, we expect that,

Proposition 9: As the racial and ethnic diversity of the host country increases, the

salience of the expatriate’s race and ethnicity to HCNs will decrease, weakening the

effect of his/her race and/or ethnicity on HCN support.

Sex

In the samples used in empirical research on international assignments, males far

outnumber females. In fact, it has been estimated that only 20% of expatriate assignments are

15

filled by females (GMAC, 2007), though this is quite an increase from 12-15% in the late 1990s

(Selmer & Leung, 2003a, b; Windham, 1997, 1998). Notably, research shows that women are not

any less willing than men to go on overseas assignments (Adler, 1984, 1987, 1993, 1994; Hill &

Tillery, 1992; Tung, 1998). Perhaps more importantly, there is empirical support for the notion

that female expatriates do not experience significantly lower levels of adjustment (Morley &

Flynn, 2003; Selmer, 2001; Selmer & Leung, 2003b for sociocultural adjustment, but not

psychological adjustment), lower levels of performance (Caligiuri & Tung, 1999), or higher

levels of prejudice (Varma et al., 2006; Westwood & Leung, 1994) than their male counterparts.

Adler (1993; 1994; 2002) attempts to dispel certain misconceptions that managers may

have about sending female employees overseas. In particular, she suggests that even in male-

dominated cultures, female expatriates are typically viewed in the host country as foreigners who

happen to be women, rather than as women who happen to be foreigners (Adler, 1993, 1994,

2002). Adler’s suggestion has important implications for social identity processes related to the

sex of an expatriate. The findings described above imply that to HCNs, the salience of a female

expatriate’s membership in the foreigner outgroup is generally greater than the salience of her

membership in the female sex group, thus negating or minimizing any negative impacts on HCN

support that may be due to a country’s level of male domination. In other words, identification as

a member of a socially inferior group (i.e., as a female in a male-dominated society) could lead

to less adjustment-facilitating support from HCNs, but Adler (1993; 1994; 2002) suggests that

female expatriates are first identified as members of cultural or national groups that may not

necessarily be evaluated as socially inferior.

It may be useful to approach this subject with a concrete example. In a relatively male-

dominated country like Japan, for instance, a Western female expatriate would be identified by

Japanese nationals primarily as a Westerner, rather than as a female. The Japanese would likely

treat her in the same manner that they would treat a Western male, and her likelihood of

receiving HCN support should be no different than that of her male counterpart. Drawing upon

the discussion above for race and ethnicity, a social identity approach would suggest that in the

same environment, a non-native Japanese female expatriate of Japanese ethnicity (a Japanese-

American, for example) would not have a foreigner identity that was salient to Japanese HCNs

and will likely be identified first as a female. This expatriate would thus be expected by the

HCNs to behave like a female HCN and would also be treated as such by the HCNs, reducing the

16

amount of adjustment-facilitating support she would otherwise receive. Although the HCNs are

likely to recognize that the expatriate is a foreigner when she speaks (or does not speak) their

language, we posit that ethnic similarities will prevent HCNs from categorizing her in the same

way that they are likely to categorize ethnically dissimilar expatriates. As per proposition 8, we

posit that she will not easily be categorized as an ingroup member because of the salience of

cultural/linguistic differences, but it will also be difficult for HCNs to see beyond her ethnic

similarity to exclude her from categorization into the (non-dominant) female group.

Proposition 10: In a country in which males (or females) dominate females (or males), a

female (or male) expatriate will receive more HCN support as salience (as perceived by

HCNs) of the expatriate’s foreigner outgroup membership increases, because the relative

salience of her (or his) non-dominant sex will decrease.

Age

Although age is commonly measured as a means to detect differences or similarities

between samples, it is not often explored as a predictor of international assignment outcomes.

The work of Selmer (2001) and Morley and Flynn (2003), however, are examples of research

investigating expatriate age in such a way. In Selmer’s (2001) study, the adjustment of

expatriates in Hong Kong was found to correlate positively with age, due to Asian/Confucian

values which place importance on respecting those of older age. Morley and Flynn’s (2003)

study in Ireland shows no such relationship, but this inconsistency with Selmer’s (2001) findings

may be due to differences between Celtic and Confucian values.

SIT suggests a potential explanation for their results. The relatively large number of

foreigners in Hong Kong today has likely caused the distinction of the foreigner outgroup to fade

in such a manner that foreignness is not as salient as age. If age is valued by HCNs and is salient

even in foreigners, older expatriates essentially belong to a prestigious group in the eyes of the

HCN, calling for greater respect and support. However, if age is not valued by HCNs in such a

way, older expatriates and younger expatriates are likely to be viewed as equals, and only their

foreignness will be salient. Therefore,

Proposition 11: In a country with a culture emphasizing respect for age, the positive

relationship between an expatriate’s age and HCN support is moderated by the salience

(as perceived by HCNs) of the expatriate’s foreigner outgroup membership. Specifically,

as salience increases, the relationship between age and HCN support will weaken. In a

17

country without such emphasis on respecting older individuals, there will be no

relationship between an expatriate’s age and HCN support.

Thus, we propose that while the disadvantages of belonging to a lower status social group

can be overridden by the salience of one’s foreign outgroup membership (as per the discussion

about sex), so too can the advantages of belonging to a prestigious group be overridden by that

foreign outgroup membership (as per this discussion about age). We should note that while some

studies present correlation tables in which the correlation between age (as a control variable) and

adjustment are presented, studies that specifically investigate age as a main effect are uncommon.

Additionally, because many studies use heterogeneous (with respect to national origin) expatriate

samples, correlational data are difficult to interpret in terms of this proposition.

DISCUSSION

In this paper, we have used SIT to develop a HCN-centric model of the effects of an

expatriate’s demographic characteristics on the support he/she receives from HCNs at work

during an international assignment. Prior research has argued that HCN support leads to greater

expatriate adjustment (Aryee & Stone, 1996; Shaffer et al., 1999; Toh, 2003), and our approach

helps to address some inconsistent findings in research on expatriate demographic characteristics

and their effects on outcomes such as adjustment. This approach has several implications for

research and for practice.

Future Research Directions

Going beyond simple similarity effects, the SIT approach suggests that how an

expatriate’s demographic characteristics are perceived by HCNs matters greatly in determining

their effects. For example, in understanding the mixed effects of an expatriate’s age on HCN

support, SIT suggests that it is the meaning ascribed to age by HCNs that may influence the

extent of adjustment-facilitating support provided by the HCNs. Future research may measure

HCNs’ perceptions of expatriate age and their actual adjustment-facilitating supportive

behaviors. These may then be compared across cultures with and without underlying Confucian

values that emphasize a respect for older age.

The discussion above suggests that research on the international assignment needs to go

further than it currently has in integrating HCN characteristics and perceptions into models of

expatriate adjustment. It suggests that some results might only make sense when contextualized

in HCN characteristics or perceptions. For example, it might be useful for researchers to take

18

into account the demographic distance (e.g., Tsui et al., 1992) between an expatriate and the

workgroup into which they are assigned. Also, using survey or observational methods to

examine whether expatriates with specific characteristics are included in the ingroups of key

HCNs would help in improving our understanding of the link between expatriates’ demographics

and HCN support. In this area, researchers could also draw on social network theory, as has been

done in similar research on the effects of demographic characteristics in organizational groups

(e.g., Mehra, Kilduff, & Brass, 1998).

In reviewing the literature on the effects of demographic characteristics on expatriates’

experiences, we are struck by the relative lack of research in the area. Interestingly, there is a

relatively large literature on the effects of demographic differences in workgroups (see Milliken

& Martins, 1996; van Knippenberg & Schippers, 2007; Williams & O'Reilly, 1998, for reviews)

and demographic differences (see Riordan, 2000 for a review) in domestic settings, which has

developed an extensive theoretical foundation linking demographic characteristics to individual

and group outcomes. In particular, this literature has drawn heavily on SIT and related theories to

develop propositions that could have potential applicability to understanding the effects of

expatriates’ demographic characteristics. Thus, expatriate researchers may benefit from the use

of a “diversity lens” when examining expatriates within the context of a workplace consisting

primarily of HCNs. In addition, longitudinal studies that examine the effect of the workplace’s

demography on HCN attitudes and behaviors throughout an expatriate’s assignment could

provide unique insights into the expatriate adjustment process and HCNs’ roles in it.

One area in which a SIT lens could provide good insights is the effects of expatriate race

and ethnicity on HCN support. Because racioethnicity is a visible or readily accessible

characteristic (e.g, Milliken & Martins, 1996), it has been found to be a strong basis for social

identification and categorization and consequent interpersonal interactions and outcomes (e.g.,

van Knippenberg & Schippers, 2007). Interestingly, although researchers often make note of

expatriate nationality in their studies, they rarely assess racioethnicity. However, in an

increasingly diverse world, and a consequently racially and ethnically diverse pool of expatriates

emanating from the same country, it is important to also consider race and ethnicity in this area

of research.

Moreover, whereas much attention on the experience of expatriates in international

assignments has focused on the characteristics of the expatriate (Bhaskar-Shrinivas et al., 2005;

19

Black et al., 1991; Harrison et al., 2004), our approach suggests that how these characteristics

relate to those of HCNs is very important in understanding their effects on the expatriate’s

experience in an international assignment. Thus, for example, SIT helps us realize that the

comparison of an expatriate’s racioethnic background with the racioethnic makeup of the host

country may help to set expectations in terms of the degree of HCN supportiveness. Specifically,

if the expatriate is racioethnically similar to the HCNs or if the host country is very diverse,

HCNs’ expectations of the expatriate will be greater, making knowledge of the host country’s

culture and language more critical to gaining HCN acceptance and support. Otherwise, while

such knowledge will undoubtedly aid a dissimilar expatriate in a homogeneous host country,

social comparisons may be less relevant, and HCN expectations will not be as high. On one hand,

such expatriates will have a difficult time overcoming categorization into a foreigner outgroup.

On the other hand, he/she may be better able to rely on a prestigious status to win the support of

the HCNs. Alternatively, if such a prestigious group membership is unavailable, the

superordinate organizational identity could be emphasized. Additionally, organizational factors,

such as the provision of support staff (e.g., translators, interpreters, bilingual assistants, etc.), in

the country of assignment may be sufficient to facilitate the expatriate’s adjustment without

HCNs actually identifying with the expatriate. Although very large sample sizes are likely

needed to explore these phenomena, future research should explore the characteristics and

perceptions of both HCNs and expatriates across multiple countries, using demographically

diverse samples.

Also, with an increase in the percentage of expatriates made up of women, it is important

to develop a more theoretically-grounded understanding of the effects of sex on HCN support as

well as expatriate adjustment. Although much research suggests that males do not generally have

an advantage over females on international assignments, we suggest that there may be

circumstances in which they do. Additionally, some research has suggested that females may

actually have an advantage in certain circumstances. For example, Selmer and Leung (2003b)

found that Western female expatriates in Hong Kong adjusted better to work and to interactions

with HCNs than did their male counterparts. Varma et al. (2006) similarly found that female

American expatriates were preferred over male American expatriates by Indian HCNs. Selmer

and Leung (2003b) posit that the phenomenon may be due to the tendency for Western cultures

to emphasize nurturing and relationship orientation in female gender roles. Empirical research

20

that takes into account gender identification, role identities, and social categorizations may

present a clearer picture of how an expatriate’s sex affects how much support the expatriate

receives from HCNs. An interesting extension of this research would be an examination of the

interaction between sex and race/ethnicity on HCN support.

We also recognize that more complex interactions may exist among the phenomena

described in the propositions presented. For example, HCN support may be influenced in a very

complicated manner when cultural distance between the countries, relative prestige, and

racioethnic similarity between the expatriate and HCNs are all taken into consideration together2.

We have limited our discussion to less complicated relationships, but future theoretical and

empirical work should explore these higher-order interactions.

Finally, placing the focus back on the expatriate, future research could use SIT to

understand how expatriates identify with their organizations, professions, and demographic

groups. Researchers note that not only do individuals identify with groups who share their

demographic characteristics (Tajfel, 1978; Tajfel & Turner, 1986) or organizational membership

(Ashforth & Mael, 1989), but that they may also form professional identities independent of their

organizational identities (Ibarra, 1999). Circumstances in which two or more of these identities

conflict can be problematic. For example, research suggests that individuals may leave or

threaten to leave their organizations if they perceive incongruence with their professional

identities (Pratt & Rafaeli, 1997). Expatriate research has already noted the low availability of

career development programs for expatriates (Selmer, 1999), indicating that organizations are

not taking expatriates’ professional identities into consideration. An understanding of how an

expatriate’s various identities relate, as well as how these identities can be aligned to avoid

conflict, may have important implications for expatriate turnover and premature return, and for

developing ways to channel executive career development though international assignments.

Practical Implications

In addition to its implications for theory, a SIT approach to the effects of demographic

characteristics on HCN support also suggests several implications for practice. It suggests that in

preparing expatriates for international assignments, organizations should consider the

expatriates’ personal characteristics as they relate to properties of the host country. Such a

contextually situated approach will, for example, suggest that a Japanese-American woman

2 We thank an anonymous reviewer for this suggestion.

21

expatriate sent to Japan should receive somewhat different preparation for the assignment than

an Irish-American woman expatriate sent to the same country. Such a more differentiated

approach will result in better preparation for the individual expatriates involved, since a generic

training approach might not really prepare each individual equally well for the specific

challenges that they are likely to face, thus perhaps handicapping their success. Whereas a

superficial application of such a differentiated approach might raise ethical and possibly legal

issues, a well-designed differentiated approach of the type discussed above might in fact

empower each expatriate more and enhance their chances of success in their assignments. This is

important in opening the door to “boundaryless” global careers (Arthur & Rousseau, 1996) for

all individuals in an increasingly diverse global labor market.

Further moving the lens to HCNs, a SIT approach suggests implications for the selection

and training of HCNs who will be working with the expatriate. HCNs who are sensitized to the

social identity processes underlying much of the interactions at work will probably be less likely

to use demographic characteristics as the basis for their cognitive categorizations of, and

interactions with, expatriates. Such a sensitization may instead lead to more individuation of an

expatriate by HCNs (i.e., they will see the expatriate for his or her individual characteristics as

opposed to seeing the expatriate as being representative of the demographic group to which the

expatriate belongs), which researchers have found to improve relationships and interactions at

work (e.g., Brewer & Brown, 1998). Thus, HCNs who are sensitized to the social identity

processes underlying interactions with expatriates may be more accepting and supportive of

expatriates, which will facilitate the expatriate’s adjustment and subsequent success.

Organizations should therefore develop selection and training programs to equip HCNs with this

sensitivity.

Finally, a SIT approach suggests that organizations can also implement socialization

programs to facilitate interactions between expatriates and HCNs. Such programs set the stage

for positive inter-group contact, which should result in the breaking down of inter-group biases

based on demographic characteristics, and consequently to greater acceptance of an individual

who is demographically different (e.g., Allport, 1954; Brewer & Brown, 1998). In addition, they

may also increase the salience of a common organizational identity, allowing HCNs and

expatriates to better identify with one another, thus facilitating HCN support.

CONCLUSION

22

Expatriate research has come a long way in a short amount of time to describe in

impressive detail the nature of the international assignment. HCN support is unquestionably

critical in the success of many expatriate programs. This paper has sought to advance

understanding of the international assignment by integrating a rigorous theoretical foundation

into the discussion of the effects of expatriates’ demographic characteristics on HCN support.

We have provided a unique perspective that focuses on the HCNs and their perceptions.

Additionally, because the identification and explanation of discrepancies, anomalies, or

exceptions in current theoretical arguments is an important part of theory-building (Carlile &

Christensen, 2005), this paper makes a contribution to the literature by using SIT to address

certain discrepancies that currently exist in empirical research on the link between demographic

characteristics and expatriate adjustment. We believe that SIT provides a rich theoretical

foundation for understanding the expatriate experience, and have developed some propositions,

ideas for future research, and suggestions for practitioners.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

Jesse E. Olsen is a doctoral candidate in organizational behavior at the Georgia Institute of Technology

College of Management. His research interests include workforce diversity and diversity management, social

identity theory, and international organizational behavior and HRM.

Luis L. Martins is an Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Georgia Institute of

Technology College of Management. He conducts research on diversity in organizations and on managerial

cognition. He is currently studying these topics in the context of global work and work arrangements and processes

enabled by information and communication technologies.

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