Investigating the factors influencing cultural adjustment and expatriate performance: The case of Malaysia

Abstract

Purpose

The fundamental question addressed in this research is: How do cultural intelligence, personality traits of expatriates, spousal support and cultural adjustment of expatriates impact their performance? The answer to the question is important to ensure that expatriation is successful. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The integrated framework linking the factors was formulated and tested among the 139 expatriates employed by multinational corporations (MNC) in Malaysia. A questionnaire was developed and distributed. The framework was validated using structural equation modeling technique.

Findings

Based on the analysis, the important findings are: cultural empathy and social initiatives (personality traits) of expatriates, cultural intelligence and spousal support enhance cultural adjustment of expatriates; spousal support, cultural empathy and social initiatives influence the cultural intelligence of the expatriates; and cultural intelligence and spousal support impact the performance of expatriates.

Research limitations/implications

This study selected the expatriates working in MNCs and residing in Malaysia for six months and above.

Originality/value

This integrated view helps us understand the mechanism that leads to an expatriate’s perceived performance. Generally, researchers use “Big Five” to capture the personality traits. This research has used the construct and its dimensions that are relevant for studies on expatriation.

Citation

Sambasivan, M., Sadoughi, M. and Esmaeilzadeh, P. (2017), "Investigating the factors influencing cultural adjustment and expatriate performance: The case of Malaysia", International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Vol. 66 No. 8, pp. 1002-1019. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPPM-10-2015-0160