The Self-Preparation that Australian Self-Initiated Expatriates Perceive is Required for Living and Working in South Korea and the United Kingdom

Abstract

Although the movement of individuals across national boundaries is not a new phenomenon, the extent and complexity of expatriation and international mobility has intensified in recent decades. Studies which have examined the challenges faced by expatriates have consistently highlighted that individuals who live and work in unfamiliar cross-cultural environments tend to experience expatriate failure and to underperform; often leading to detrimental financial and non-financial effects for both expatriates and organisations. While it has been argued that organisationally-provided cross-cultural training (CCT) and support can assist in minimising expatriate failure and its effects, much of this research has primarily focused on organisationally-assigned expatriates (OAEs). The current research extends prior studies by examining the logistical and cross-cultural self-preparation of self-initiated expatriates (SIEs). SIEs comprise a large and significant cohort of expatriates who, unlike OAEs, independently and voluntarily relocate abroad to live and work. Little is known about the selfpreparation (activities undertaken independently and voluntarily to assist in living and working in another culture) that expatriates in general or SIEs, in particular, undertake.