Antecedents of intercultural adjustment of American expatriates in the People's Republic of China.

A greater understanding of the antecedents of intercultural adjustment of Americans working in China can assist organizations in selecting, training and supporting employees who work in this country. Interviews with forty Americans and seven Chinese living in Beijing yielded seven categories of adjustment factors labeled as personality, expectations, prior overseas experience, motivation, language skills, intraand intercultural relationships, preparation and training. Four categories could be classified as endogenous, that is originating within the person, and three could be considered erogenous, that is originating within the environment. Background and Purpose of the Research The growing reality of a world economy shapes the futures of many U.S. organizations including universities. In 1991 the U.S. had more than 3500 multinational corporations, 55,000 companies with regular international involvement, and 40,000 firms that carry out periodic operations abroad (Harris & Moran, 1991). American companies have responded to the trading potential of other countries. China, in particular, provides a source of inexpensive manufacturing and a market for U.S. goods and services. China has the "fastest growing economy on earth" with an annual growth of over ten percent from 1991 1995 (Zhang & Liu, 1995, p. 3). The total foreign trade between the U.S. and China in 1992 was nearly 17.5 billion (China Statistical Yearbook, 1993). The success of expatriate businessmen, university professors and exchange students assumes increasing importance if the United States is to further cultural, scholarly, and economic exchanges with China. Yet, despite the recent flurry of exchanges, Hofstede (1991) maintains that organizations sending representatives abroad have yet to understand those factors which facilitate adjustment to host countries and host cultures. The purpose of this research study was to clarify, define and describe the antecedents of intercultural adjustment for American expatriates living in Beijing, the capital of the People's Republic of China. Theoretical Perspective Pratt (1989) maintained that one of the difficulties in adaptation for U.S. citizens living in China related to the divergent concepts of the self deeply imbedded in each respective culture. Such differences in cultural assumptions often result in early terminations which Caudron (1991), speaking of foreign assignments in general, judged to be between 18 and 68%. Yet, failure in an overseas assignment has rarely been due to lack of technical expertise, but rather reflected an inability to adapt to cultural differences (Mendenhall & Oddou, 1985; Marquardt & Engel, 1993). Black and Gregerson (1991) used an in-depth analysis of prior literature on cross cultural adjustment, with special reference to Pacific Rim nations, to develop a model which distinguished between 'anticipatory' factors of adjustment from 'in-country' factors of adjustment. This study attempts to further clarify those 'anticipatory' factors of adjustment by exploring the expatriate's own experience of preparing for life and work in China.