General Adjustment Influence Factor of Malaysian Construction Expatriates Executives Abroad

Abstract

Abstract. The success of Malaysian construction companies creates an opportunity to explore abroad. Past studies have shown that the difficulty of expatriates in adjusting to a new environment is the main aspect that leads to failure of assignments. The success in implementing an overseas assignment does not solely depend on an expatriate's technical expertise. The adjustment issues such as the interaction with the host nationals, and adaptability to the host country's culture also exert influence on the assignment. The research was conducted to identify the influence of executive expatriate general adjustment on assignment in host countries. The objective of the study was to identify adjustment influence factors relating to general adjustment abroad. Questionnaires were sent to Malaysian expatriate executives. Sixty four Malaysian expatriate executives from Malaysian construction companies overseas were involved in this study. The findings show interaction, social and living environment influences their adjustment during expatriation. Pre-departure training preparation aspects for expatriates is a good step before their departure to host countries.

Expatriates of Malaysian Construction Company’s Psychological Comfort in Foreign Lands

“…Adjustment of social interaction involves with the fulfilment of basic needs for services, including entertainment, healthcare, shopping and banking as well as the living cost associated with the location other than the home country (Zainol et al, 2016). It was also related to an individual's care for their health that requires an awareness of the physical condition, stress reduction and self-responsibility (Pinto et al, 2017).…”

“…One of the reasons expatriates refused an offer to work in the host country was the gap in the standard of living even if it is higher than the home country. Psychological comfort was related to living and housing condition (Zainol et al, 2016;Fitzpatrick & Fitzpatrick, 2019) and health care facilities (Vianen, Pater, Kristof-Brown, & Johnson, 2004). Lin, Robbins, and Lin (2019 ) claimed that the principal elements of psychological comfort were religious practices and good engagement with local people.…”

“…Social life is among the components that influence psychological comfort. Expatriates' social life attributes in a foreign country are food, shopping, banking, cost of living, entertainment, and health care (Zainol et al, 2016). Banking is required to support spending activities like shopping.…”