IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/manint/v65y2025i6d10.1007_s11575-025-00596-2.html

Shades of Darkness in Expatriation: The Effects of Cultural Discrimination and Underemployment on Self-Initiated Expatriates’ Role Adjustment

Author

Listed:
  • Alexei Koveshnikov

    (Aalto University School of Business, Department of Management Studies)

  • Miikka J. Lehtonen

    (Rikkyo University, College of Business)

Abstract

This study examines the implications of workplace underemployment and discrimination for self-initiated expatriates’ (SIE) role adjustment in terms of their task-related and social roles. Analyzing a sample of 379 expatriates in the United Arab Emirates and drawing from role theory, it shows that not all effects of underemployment and discrimination are negative. While discrimination negatively affects SIEs’ role adjustment by hindering the quality of social interaction and job clarity, underemployment, in contrast, enhances SIEs’ socialization and job clarity. The analysis also finds SIEs’ gender to moderate the relationship between perceive discrimination and the quality of SIEs’ social interaction. The study uncovers the nuanced influences of discrimination and underemployment on SIEs’ role adjustment, mediated by job clarity and social interactions, and partially moderated by gender. It calls for further exploration of their complex effects on SIEs’ task-related and social role adjustment.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexei Koveshnikov & Miikka J. Lehtonen, 2025. "Shades of Darkness in Expatriation: The Effects of Cultural Discrimination and Underemployment on Self-Initiated Expatriates’ Role Adjustment," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 65(6), pages 1039-1063, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:manint:v:65:y:2025:i:6:d:10.1007_s11575-025-00596-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s11575-025-00596-2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11575-025-00596-2
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11575-025-00596-2?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Phyllis Tharenou, 2010. "Women’s Self-Initiated Expatriation as a Career Option and Its Ethical Issues," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(1), pages 73-88, August.
    2. Deng, Hong & Guan, Yanjun & Wu, Chia-Huei & Erdogan, Berrin & Bauer, Talya & Yao, Xiang, 2018. "A relational model of perceived overqualification: the moderating role of interpersonal influence on social acceptance," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 67547, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    3. Jan Selmer & Jakob Lauring, 2011. "Expatriate academics: job factors and work outcomes," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 32(2), pages 194-210, May.
    4. Koveshnikov, Alexei & Wechtler, Heidi & Dejoux, Cecile, 2014. "Cross-cultural adjustment of expatriates: The role of emotional intelligence and gender," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 362-371.
    5. Shen, Jie & Wajeeh-ul-Husnain, Syed & Kang, Haiying & Jin, Quan, 2021. "Effect of outgroup social categorization by host-country nationals on expatriate premature return intention and buffering effect of mentoring," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(2).
    6. Ali, Imran & Ali, Murad & Grigore, Georgiana & Molesworth, Mike & Jin, Zhongqi, 2020. "The moderating role of corporate reputation and employee-company identification on the work-related outcomes of job insecurity resulting from workforce localization policies," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 825-838.
    7. Lee, Chay Hoon, 2005. "A study of underemployment among self-initiated expatriates," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 172-187, May.
    8. Kate Hutchings & Snejina Michailova & Edelweiss C. Harrison, 2013. "Neither Ghettoed Nor Cosmopolitan," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 53(2), pages 291-318, April.
    9. Bowles, Hannah Riley & Babcock, Linda & Lai, Lei, 2007. "Social incentives for gender differences in the propensity to initiate negotiations: Sometimes it does hurt to ask," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 103(1), pages 84-103, May.
    10. Mahajan, Ashish & Hassan, Yusuf, 2024. "Do expatriates adjust better when they seek advice from host country nationals? Role of perceived social costs and organizational support in advice-seeking," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 30(3).
    11. Erdogan, Berrin & Bauer, Talya N. & Peiró, José María & Truxillo, Donald M., 2011. "Overqualified Employees: Making the Best of a Potentially Bad Situation for Individuals and Organizations," Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Cambridge University Press, vol. 4(2), pages 215-232, June.
    12. Margaret A Shaffer & B Sebastian Reiche & Mihaela Dimitrova & Mila Lazarova & Shoshi Chen & Mina Westman & Olivier Wurtz, 2016. "Work- and family-role adjustment of different types of global professionals: Scale development and validation," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 47(2), pages 113-139, February.
    13. Luksyte, Aleksandra & Spitzmueller, Christiane, 2011. "Overqualified Women: What Can Be Done About This Potentially Bad Situation?," Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Cambridge University Press, vol. 4(2), pages 256-259, June.
    14. Benjamin Bader & Sebastian Stoermer & Anna Katharina Bader & Tassilo Schuster, 2018. "Institutional discrimination of women and workplace harassment of female expatriates," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 6(1), pages 40-58, February.
    15. Jan Selmer & Jakob Lauring, 2011. "Expatriate academics: job factors and work outcomes," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 32(2), pages 194-210, May.
    16. Susan Shortland & Stephen J. Perkins, 2020. "Women's expatriate careers: losing trust in organisational equality and diversity policy implementation?," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(2), pages 183-208, July.
    17. Xinshu Zhao & John G. Lynch & Qimei Chen, 2010. "Reconsidering Baron and Kenny: Myths and Truths about Mediation Analysis," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 37(2), pages 197-206, August.
    18. Peltokorpi, Vesa, 2020. "Host Country National Employees’ Prosocial Behavior toward Expatriates in Foreign Subsidiaries: A Common Ingroup Identity Model Perspective," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(2).
    19. Sasha Pustovit, 2020. "Improving expatriate adjustment: a social network perspective," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(1), pages 55-65, January.
    20. Elizabeth Lauren Campbell & Oliver Hahl, 2022. "He’s Overqualified, She’s Highly Committed: Qualification Signals and Gendered Assumptions About Job Candidate Commitment," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 33(6), pages 2451-2476, November.
    21. Pawan Budhwar & Vijay Pereira & Kamel Mellahi & Sanjay Kumar Singh, 2019. "The state of HRM in the Middle East: Challenges and future research agenda," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 36(4), pages 905-933, December.
    22. Thomas Köllen & Andri Koch & Andreas Hack, 2020. "Nationalism at Work: Introducing the “Nationality-Based Organizational Climate Inventory” and Assessing Its Impact on the Turnover Intention of Foreign Employees," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 60(1), pages 97-122, February.
    23. Pawan Budhwar & Vijay Pereira & Kamel Mellahi & Sanjay Kumar Singh, 2019. "Correction to: The state of HRM in the Middle East: Challenges and future research agenda," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 36(4), pages 935-935, December.
    24. Mahajan, Ashish & Toh, Soo Min, 2014. "Facilitating expatriate adjustment: The role of advice-seeking from host country nationals," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 476-487.
    25. G. Sathish & Tuheena Mukherjee & Sangeeta Sahney, 2024. "Expatriate’s protean career orientation and cross-cultural adjustment: the mediating role of career adaptability," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 12(4), pages 620-647, July.
    26. Tharenou, Phyllis, 2008. "Disruptive decisions to leave home: Gender and family differences in expatriation choices," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 105(2), pages 183-200, March.
    27. Varma, Arup & Toh, Soo Min & Budhwar, Pawan, 2006. "A new perspective on the female expatriate experience: The role of host country national categorization," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 112-120, June.
    28. Kubovcikova, Annamaria & van Bakel, Marian, 2022. "Social support abroad: How do self-initiated expatriates gain support through their social networks?," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(1).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Koveshnikov, Alexei & Lehtonen, Miikka J., 2025. "Workplace discrimination and overqualification among self-initiated expatriates: The moderating role of organizational legitimacy," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(3).
    2. Koveshnikov, Alexei & Lehtonen, Miikka J. & Wechtler, Heidi, 2022. "Expatriates on the run: The psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on expatriates’ host country withdrawal intentions," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(6).
    3. Lauring, Jakob & Jonasson, Charlotte & Stoermer, Sebastian, 2024. "Virtual expatriate assignments and host country national support: The role of higher-level construals in social categorization processes," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(6).
    4. Sebastian Stoermer & Samuel Davies & Fabian Jintae Froese, 2021. "The influence of expatriate cultural intelligence on organizational embeddedness and knowledge sharing: The moderating effects of host country context," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(3), pages 432-453, April.
    5. Michailova, Snejina & Fee, Anthony & DeNisi, Angelo, 2023. "Research on host-country nationals in multinational enterprises: The last five decades and ways forward," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 58(1).
    6. Pintar Rok & Martins Jorge Tiago & Bernik Mojca, 2017. "Analysis of Expatriation Process in a Slovenian Company," Organizacija, Sciendo, vol. 50(1), pages 63-79, February.
    7. Koveshnikov, Alexei & Tienari, Janne & Piekkari, Rebecca, 2019. "Gender in international business journals: A review and conceptualization of MNCs as gendered social spaces," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 54(1), pages 37-53.
    8. He, Beiting & Xu, Guangyi & Gu, Xinran, 2025. "Within-group differences: Differentiated Chinese expatriate-HCN interactions and the influence of human resource management practices," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(4).
    9. Yamao, Sachiko & Yoshikawa, Toru & Choi, Daejeong & Toh, Soo Min, 2020. "When do host country nationals help expatriates? The roles of identification with the multinational enterprise and career development support by the subsidiary," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3).
    10. Caligiuri, Paula & Bonache, Jaime, 2016. "Evolving and enduring challenges in global mobility," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 127-141.
    11. Kang, Haiying & Wang, Ying & Cao, Yi, 2024. "Host Country Nationals' Role Overload and Perspective Taking as Antecedents of Knowledge Sharing: The Moderating Role of Host Country nationals' Agreeableness," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 30(4).
    12. Ma, Chao & Lin, Xiaoshuang & Chen, (George) Zhen Xiong & Wei, Wu, 2020. "Linking perceived overqualification with task performance and proactivity? An examination from self-concept-based perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 199-209.
    13. Salem Al-Oun & Ziad (Mohammed Fa’eq) Al-Khasawneh, 2025. "Sustainable Human Resource Management and Career Quality in Public Utilities: Evidence from Jordan’s Electricity Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-35, May.
    14. Manoj Vohra & Manoj Patwardhan & Yogesh Upadhyay, 2025. "Exploring the Impact of HRM Practices on Organizational Effectiveness in the Indian Manufacturing Sector: a Comprehensive Analysis Using PLS-SEM and ANN," Public Organization Review, Springer, vol. 25(4), pages 1937-1959, December.
    15. Michael Christofi & Huda Khan & Lea Iaia, 2024. "Responsible innovation in Asia: A systematic review and an agenda for future research," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 41(3), pages 1085-1127, September.
    16. Kanokon Kiti & Guofeng Wang & Jason Kobina Arku & Shadrach Twumasi Ankrah & Megi Gumashvili & Dalila Batista de Sousa de Menezes, 2025. "The Impact of Leader Sensemaking Competence on Expatriate Agility During Economic Uncertainty: The Mediating Roles of Perceived Organisational Support and Self-Efficacy," SAGE Open, , vol. 15(2), pages 21582440251, May.
    17. Tapaswini Panda & SWAMY T.N.V.R.L, 2025. "From Strain to Spark: Examining the Detachment-Flexibility-Innovation Mechanism in IT Workplaces," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 26(4), pages 903-933, December.
    18. Evans Sokro & Soma Pillay, 2020. "Host Country Nationals’ Attitudes, Social Support and Willingness to Work with Expatriates," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 21(5), pages 1184-1199, October.
    19. Kang, Haiying & Wang, Ying & Wu, Chia-Huei & Shaffer, Margaret A., 2024. "When and why host country nationals give advice to expatriates: A relational work context perspective," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(6).
    20. Chen, Keyu & Zhou, Qiwei, 2025. "Why and when perceived overqualification drives positive relational outcomes: An optimal distinctiveness perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:manint:v:65:y:2025:i:6:d:10.1007_s11575-025-00596-2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.