Abstract:
This thesis is
concerned with understanding the expectations that corporate
employees form
about the work- and career-related outcomes of an
international assignment.
Such
expectations are
frequently
cited as
being "unreasonable"
and a major
source of problems
in the repatriation and reintegration of
international
returnees.
There is, however,
a
lack of research evidence to indicate when
these expectations form, how they change with time, or what
factors influence
their formation.
The research takes a
UK
perspective in
view of the comparatively low levels
of
research into British international assignees
in
general and their motivations
and expectations in
particular.
The
author
believes this to be the first
study devoted
exclusively to the
expectations of
international assignees.
The
main stage of this research comprised of a postal survey to collect
information about
international assignees, about their work-related and career-
related expectations, and about a number of
factors
which might prove to be
precursors or predictors of expectations.
Data
were captured
from
a
comparatively
homogeneous
population comprising
British employees of
profit-making companies.
The
main contribution of this thesis is
an
increase in
our understanding of the
work-related and career-related expectations that corporate employees
form
when assigned overseas.
In
particular, the thesis increases our
knowledge
of
when these expectations
form; how they vary with time; and what personal
characteristics, actions taken by the employing organisation, and
characteristics of the assignment
itself
affect those expectations
during the
course of an
international assignment.
A secondary contribution of this thesis is to identify
a number of classes or
categories of assignment that appear to be intrinsically associated with
different types and degrees
of expectation.
