In the age of ‘liquid modernity’: self-initiated expatriates in Crete, their multi-generational families and the community

Abstract

In this paper, we aim to broaden and deepen the current debate on expatriation in business and management discourse, and especially self-initiated expatriation. Following Bauman's [Liquid Modernity (2000), Cambridge: Polity; Liquid Love, On the Frailty of Human Bonds (2003), Cambridge: Polity] critique of postmodern society and, employing an anthropological lens, we examine work-related expatriation as set within a wider life context. Whereas conventional expatriation research focus is on the workplace, the focus of this study is the wider community. We take a longitudinal approach demonstrating the essential fluid nature of expatriation in general, self-initiated expatriation in particular. We show the importance of multi-generational links as overall critical considerations in effecting decisions to move or stay; we also show how over time, changes in circumstances, career plans and demands of significant others, drive the expatriate agenda. We pay particular attention to nontraditional expatriates and issues of health and disability in the extended family. Finally, we document the importance of the wider family and of the community in the process of adjustment and in engendering a sense of belonging.

Social Support and Life‐Domain Interactions among Assigned and Self‐Initiated Expatriates

“…Recently, Clark et al . () have explained how organizational and supervisor life‐domain support might mitigate the amount of resource drain felt by employees (loss spiral); for example, an employer who allows employees to work flexible hours may reduce the time demands attributable to life‐domain schedules, or a supervisor can help employees cope with their life‐domain demands in providing emotional (e.g., serving as a sounding board) or instrumental (e.g., offering suggestions for assistance) support. Some authors have also illustrated the gain spiral effect of organizational life‐domain support as a source of development and affective and capital gains.…”

“…Likewise, researchers should investigate the gender differences between IMEs, since domestic research has shown that employees may be influenced differently by gender roles, cultural norms, social power, etc. (Clark et al ., ; Ballesteros‐Leiva et al ., ).…”

Home sweet home: Creating a sense of place in globally mobile working lives

“…Frequent business travelers referred to themselves as a group of ‘road warriors’, showing how cosmopolitan identities are ‘accomplished in the context of shared social spaces and conditions’ (Skovgaard‐Smith & Poulfelt, 2018, p. 131), but not, as in the case of the Amsterdam expatriates in their study, in fixed physical locations. Participants described accessing ‘social enclaves’ (Clark & Altman, 2015, p. 735) to create a new sense of belonging by identifying themselves as ‘non‐nationals’ (Skovgaard‐Smith & Poulfelt, 2018). Others sought but failed to establish networks, especially the families of those on corporate assignments.…”

“…Indeed, the growth of communication technology has enabled the development of networks ‘despite distance and the passage of time’ (Baldassar, 2016, p. 159). The significance of social networks on the ‘identity building’ of those engaged in expatriation is emphasized by Clark and Altman (2015, p. 735) who argue that expatriates tend to form ‘social enclaves in order to facilitate a sense of “home”’. This may be achieved through transnational social spaces, such as joining expatriate clubs, attending churches, meeting in cafes, engaging in web‐based chat forums and organizations that transcend national boundaries (Leonard, 2010).…”

Career Mobility in a Global Era: Advances in Managing Expatriation and Repatriation

“…In fact, migration is no longer the finite mobility transition it used to be. Migrants do not normally cut themselves off from their relations, friends and networks back home; their COI citizenship allows for the possibility to repatriate with changing economic, political or personal circumstances (Clark & Altman, 2015). Within political-economic blocks such as the contemporary EU, or the historical Habsburg Empire, migration and expatriation are conflated terms.…”