IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/manrev/v73y2023i1d10.1007_s11301-021-00245-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Cultural intelligence of expatriate workers: a systematic review

Author

Listed:
  • Geneviève Morin

    (École Nationale d’administration Publique (ENAP))

  • David Talbot

    (École Nationale d’administration Publique (ENAP))

Abstract

Expatriation for work presents various challenges before departure, during expatriation, and upon return to one’s home country. These challenges are why learning to manage cultural differences is a vital skill for expatriate managers and professionals, and hiring managers. Cultural intelligence (CQ) has been the subject of much research over the last decade. The present systematic review contributes to the literature on expatriate worker CQ by collecting and analyzing 97 empirical articles on the subject. Findings point to five core elements associated with CQ and five avenues for future research. Ultimately, the study results show that CQ positively affects many outcomes during expatriation.

Suggested Citation

  • Geneviève Morin & David Talbot, 2023. "Cultural intelligence of expatriate workers: a systematic review," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 73(1), pages 413-454, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:manrev:v:73:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1007_s11301-021-00245-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s11301-021-00245-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11301-021-00245-6
    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/s11301-021-00245-6?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 search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gertsen, Martine Cardel & Søderberg, Anne-Marie, 2010. "Expatriate stories about cultural encounters--A narrative approach to cultural learning processes in multinational companies," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 248-257, September.
    2. Fenny Ang & Hwee Hoon Tan, 2016. "Trust building with Chinese host country nationals," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 4(1), pages 44-67, March.
    3. Christian Nowak & Christian Linder, 2016. "Do you know how much your expatriate costs? An activity-based cost analysis of expatriation," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 4(1), pages 88-107, March.
    4. Daniel LOVIN & Alexandru CAPATINA & Denis BERNARDEAU-MOREAU, 2021. "The Impact of Cultural Intelligence on the Management of Multicultural Sports Organizations: A Comparative Analysis between Romania and France," REVISTA DE MANAGEMENT COMPARAT INTERNATIONAL/REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL COMPARATIVE MANAGEMENT, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 22(3), pages 301-320, July.
    5. Geneviève Morin & David Talbot, 2021. "Cultural Intelligence of Expatriate Health Workers in an Inuit Context: An Exploration of Managerial Competency Profiles," Businesses, MDPI, vol. 1(1), pages 1-17, March.
    6. Kyle C. Huff, 2013. "Language, cultural intelligence and expatriate success," Management Research Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 36(6), pages 596-612, May.
    7. Kyle C. Huff, 2013. "Language, cultural intelligence and expatriate success," Management Research Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 36(6), pages 596-612, May.
    8. Bücker, Joost‏ JLE & Furrer, Olivier & Lin, Yanyan, 2015. "Measuring cultural intelligence: a new test of the CQ scale," FSES Working Papers 461, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, University of Freiburg/Fribourg Switzerland.
    9. Joyce Osland & Asbjorn Osland, 2005. "Expatriate Paradoxes and Cultural Involvement," International Studies of Management & Organization, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(4), pages 91-114, January.
    10. Andreas Kuckertz & Joern Block, 2021. "Reviewing systematic literature reviews: ten key questions and criteria for reviewers," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 71(3), pages 519-524, July.
    11. Bruce Kogut & Harbir Singh, 1988. "The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 19(3), pages 411-432, September.
    12. Xu, Xiao-Jun & Chen, Xiao-Ping, 2017. "Unlocking Expatriates’ Job Creativity: The Role of Cultural Learning, and Metacognitive and Motivational Cultural Intelligence," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 13(4), pages 767-794, December.
    13. Murali Sambasivan & Morvarid Sadoughi & Pouyan Esmaeilzadeh, 2017. "Investigating the factors influencing cultural adjustment and expatriate performance," International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 66(8), pages 1002-1019, November.
    14. Kyle C. Huff, 2013. "Language, cultural intelligence and expatriate success," Management Research Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 36(6), pages 596-612, May.
    15. Hyeong-Deug Kim & T. J. Kamalanabhan, 2021. "Task Performance of Expatriates Based on Emissary Model of Global Human Resource Strategy," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 46(1), pages 78-93, February.
    16. Abdul Malek, Marlin & Budhwar, Pawan, 2013. "Cultural intelligence as a predictor of expatriate adjustment and performance in Malaysia," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 222-231.
    17. Sharma, Revti Raman, 2019. "Cultural Intelligence and Institutional Success: The Mediating Role of Relationship Quality," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(3), pages 1-1.
    18. Alessandro Liberati & Douglas G Altman & Jennifer Tetzlaff & Cynthia Mulrow & Peter C Gøtzsche & John P A Ioannidis & Mike Clarke & P J Devereaux & Jos Kleijnen & David Moher, 2009. "The PRISMA Statement for Reporting Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Studies That Evaluate Health Care Interventions: Explanation and Elaboration," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 6(7), pages 1-28, July.
    19. Zhang, Ying & Xu, Nan & Frost, Mark & Zhou, Wei & Li, Yuran, 2021. "Modeling team efficiency for international production assignments in Chinese manufacturing multinationals," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 235(C).
    20. Ang, Soon & Van Dyne, Linn & Koh, Christine & Ng, K. Yee & Templer, Klaus J. & Tay, Cheryl & Chandrasekar, N. Anand, 2007. "Cultural Intelligence: Its Measurement and Effects on Cultural Judgment and Decision Making, Cultural Adaptation and Task Performance," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 3(3), pages 335-371, November.
    21. Khalid Akhal & Shimin Liu, 2019. "Cultural intelligence effects on expatriates’ adjustment and turnover intentions in Mainland China," Management Research Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(7), pages 818-836, May.
    22. Zhang, Yi & Hussain, Taiba, 2021. "SIEs’ interaction and adaptation to their task performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 370-380.
    23. Christian Nowak & Christian Linder, 2016. "Do you know how much your expatriate costs? An activity-based cost analysis of expatriation," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 4(1), pages 88-107, March.
    24. Ali, Imran & Ali, Murad & Leal-Rodríguez, Antonio L. & Albort-Morant, Gema, 2019. "The role of knowledge spillovers and cultural intelligence in enhancing expatriate employees' individual and team creativity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 561-573.
    25. Fenny Ang & Hwee Hoon Tan, 2016. "Trust building with Chinese host country nationals," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 4(1), pages 44-67, March.
    26. Sana Mumtaz & Chris Rowley, 2020. "The relationship between leader–member exchange and employee outcomes: review of past themes and future potential," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 70(1), pages 165-189, February.
    27. Soon Ang & Linn Van Dyne & Christine Koh & K. Yee Ng & Klaus J. Templer & Cheryl Tay & N. Anand Chandrasekar, 2007. "Cultural Intelligence: Its Measurement and Effects on Cultural Judgment and Decision Making, Cultural Adaptation and Task Performance," Management and Organization Review, The International Association for Chinese Management Research, vol. 3(3), pages 335-371, November.
    28. Nurul Afiqah Zulkifly & Maimunah Ismail & Siti Raba’ah Hamzah, 2019. "Predictors of knowledge transfer between expatriates and host country nationals," European Journal of Management and Business Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 29(2), pages 199-215, November.
    29. 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.
    30. Elenkov, Detelin S. & Manev, Ivan M., 2009. "Senior expatriate leadership's effects on innovation and the role of cultural intelligence," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 357-369, October.
    31. Jessica Marie Arokiasamy & Soyeon Kim, 2020. "When does emotional intelligence function better in enhancing expatriates' cross-cultural adjustment? A study of Japanese PCNs in Malaysia," Journal of Global Mobility, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(1), pages 67-84, May.
    32. Khalid Akhal & Shimin Liu, 2019. "Cultural intelligence effects on expatriates’ adjustment and turnover intentions in Mainland China," Management Research Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(7), pages 818-836, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Dunia G Marino Zuleta & Niu Xiongying & Muhammad Qasim, 2024. "Unlocking Global Success: The Role of Cultural Intelligence and International Experience in Enhancing Expatriates’ Adjustment and Well-Being," International Journal of Science and Business, IJSAB International, vol. 40(1), pages 124-139.

    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. Schlägel, Christopher & Sarstedt, Marko, 2016. "Assessing the measurement invariance of the four-dimensional cultural intelligence scale across countries: A composite model approach," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 34(6), pages 633-649.
    2. Schlaegel, Christopher & Richter, Nicole Franziska & Taras, Vasyl, 2021. "Cultural intelligence and work-related outcomes: A meta-analytic examination of joint effects and incremental predictive validity," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(4).
    3. Xiaoyun Guang & Peerayuth Charoensukmongkol, 2022. "The effects of cultural intelligence on leadership performance among Chinese expatriates working in Thailand," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 21(1), pages 106-128, February.
    4. Miroslav Jurasek & Petr Wawrosz, 2023. "How Does Self-Efficacy in Communication Affect the Relationship Between Intercultural Experience, Language Skills, and Cultural Intelligence," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, December.
    5. Lorenz, Melanie P. & Ramsey, Jase R. & Richey, Robert Glenn, 2018. "Expatriates’ international opportunity recognition and innovativeness: The role of metacognitive and cognitive cultural intelligence," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 53(2), pages 222-236.
    6. 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.
    7. Jurásek Miroslav & Potocký Tomislav, 2020. "How to Improve Communication within an Organization? The Relationship between Cultural Intelligence and Language Competence," Journal of Intercultural Management, Sciendo, vol. 12(2), pages 53-81, June.
    8. Sousa, Cátia & Gonçalves, Gabriela, 2019. "Multiculturality as an antecedent to work wellbeing and work passion," Journal of Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, Cinturs - Research Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, University of Algarve, vol. 7(2), pages 101-124.
    9. Abdel-Rahim, Heba Y. & Lorenz, Melanie P. & Zaher, Angie Abdel, 2022. "How do cultural difference, cultural exposure, and CQ affect interpretations of trust from contract choices? Evidence from dyadic cross-country experiments," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    10. Vlajčić, Davor & Caputo, Andrea & Marzi, Giacomo & Dabić, Marina, 2019. "Expatriates managers’ cultural intelligence as promoter of knowledge transfer in multinational companies," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 367-377.
    11. Ying Zhang & Puzhen Xiong & Wei Zhou & Lang Sun & Edwin T.C. Cheng, 2023. "Exploring the longitudinal effects of emotional intelligence and cultural intelligence on knowledge management processes," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 40(4), pages 1555-1578, December.
    12. Altinay, Levent & Kinali Madanoglu, Gulsevim & Kromidha, Endrit & Nurmagambetova, Armiyash & Madanoglu, Melih, 2021. "Mental aspects of cultural intelligence and self-creativity of nascent entrepreneurs: The mediating role of emotionality," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 793-802.
    13. Richter, Nicole Franziska & Martin, Jonathan & Hansen, Sofie V. & Taras, Vasyl & Alon, Ilan, 2021. "Motivational configurations of cultural intelligence, social integration, and performance in global virtual teams," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 351-367.
    14. Rockstuhl, Thomas & Van Dyne, Linn, 2018. "A bi-factor theory of the four-factor model of cultural intelligence: Meta-analysis and theoretical extensions," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 124-144.
    15. Seng-Su Tsang & Thi Vinh Tran Nguyen, 2023. "Sociocultural adaptation and job satisfaction as mediators between cultural competence and intention to stay among Vietnamese workers in Taiwan," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-12, December.
    16. Zhang, Ying & Xu, Nan & Frost, Mark & Zhou, Wei & Li, Yuran, 2021. "Modeling team efficiency for international production assignments in Chinese manufacturing multinationals," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 235(C).
    17. Tharapos, Meredith & O'Connell, Brendan T. & Dellaportas, Steven & Basioudis, Ilias, 2019. "Are accounting academics culturally intelligent?: An empirical investigation," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 111-129.
    18. Zhang, Yi & Hussain, Taiba, 2021. "SIEs’ interaction and adaptation to their task performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 370-380.
    19. Annelies Costers & Yves Van Vaerenbergh & Anja Van den Broeck, 2019. "How to boost frontline employee service recovery performance: the role of cultural intelligence," Service Business, Springer;Pan-Pacific Business Association, vol. 13(3), pages 581-602, September.
    20. Dimitrova, Mihaela & Chia, Sherwin Ignatius & Shaffer, Margaret A. & Tay-Lee, Cheryl, 2020. "Forgotten travelers: Adjustment and career implications of international business travel for expatriates," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(1).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Cultural intelligence; Cultural competence; Expatriates; International assignments; International human resource management; Systematic review;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • M12 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Personnel Management; Executives; Executive Compensation
    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility
    • M16 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - International Business Administration

    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:manrev:v:73:y:2023:i:1:d:10.1007_s11301-021-00245-6. 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.