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(1)The Effect of Emotional Intelligence as a Moderator on the Relationship between Cultural Intelligence and Cross-Cultural Adjustment. by Samuel David Norales Arauz. A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF EDUCATION Major: International Human Resource Development. Advisor: Jane Yi-Chun Lin, Ph. D. National Taiwan Normal University Taipei, Taiwan January, 2011.

(2) ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, I would like to give thanks to God for my life, my health and for being with me every moment in my happiness and my sadness in the process of this research. A special thanks to my two lovely beautiful women, my dear mother Gloria Bertha Arauz, who gave me life and always is thinking about my goals, and also my wife Carolina (林小玲),. who encourages me every day by phone to reach our goal. and finish my research no matter the adversity. My gratitude to my brothers and sisters: Carlos Alberto, Rigoberto Enrique, Ricardo Antonio, Gloria Bertha and Nancy Elizabeth (R.I.P.), because they always give me their moral support. Special thanks to all my family in Taiwan who always say positive things to encourage me.. Thanks for all the professors of IHRD, especially those who are behind the scene dedicating their time and really sacrifice their family in order to share with me their vast knowledge. Thanks to Dr. Jane Yi-Chun Lin, my advisor, who motivated me with her comments, support, and commitment; without her help this research cannot be done. The other members of my committee were also great assets. Thanks to Dr. Rosa Yeh and Dr. Angela Shin-Yih Chen, for their guidance and contributions in every moment.. Finally, my deepest thanks to all my friends in Taiwan, United State of America and Honduras, especially David, who helped me to collect data, and Douglas, who spent his time at work and at home revising my English grammar. I appreciate all my friends’ encouragement, support, and prayers.

(3) ABSTRACT This research intended to empirically test whether emotional intelligence has a moderating effect on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment. In addition, this study examined whether cultural intelligence predicts cross-cultural adjustment. The sample in this study is Thai worker categorized into the level of blue collar workers in Taiwan. The participants were conveniently selected. They have been working more than three months for the manufactory industry in Central Taiwan. A total of 500 questionnaires were distributed, and a total of 323 (64.6%) of them responded. The questionnaire contained demographic information and three variables measuring emotional intelligence, cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to test two hypotheses of this research. The results were summarized as follows: 1.. Cultural intelligence had a positive relationship with cross-cultural adjustment.. 2.. Emotional intelligence significantly and negatively moderated the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment.. Keywords: Emotional intelligence, cultural intelligence, cross-cultural adjustment. I.

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(5) TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT...............................................................................................................I TABLE OF CONTENTS ...........................................................................................III LIST OF TABLES .....................................................................................................V LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................VII. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ............................................................ 1 Background of the Study ...................................................................................1 Statement of the Problem ...................................................................................4 Research Purpose ...............................................................................................5 Research Questions ............................................................................................6 Significance of the Study ...................................................................................6 Definition of Terms ............................................................................................7 Delimitations and Limitations............................................................................8. CHAPTER II. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................ 10 Brief Overview of Foreign Workers in Taiwan’s labor Market……………….10 Brief Overview of Thailand………...…………………………………………12 The Cultures of Taiwan and Thailand ................................................................16 Cultural Intelligence ……..................................................................................18 Cross Cultural Adjustment .................................................................................20 Cultural Intelligence and Cross-Cultural Adjustment ........................................22 Emotional Intelligence . .....................................................................................23 Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence and Cross-Cultural Adjustment .25. CHAPTER III. METHODOLOGY ........................................................ 28 Research Framework .........................................................................................28 Research Hypothesis ..........................................................................................29 III.

(6) Research Procedure ............................................................................................29 Research Methods ..............................................................................................30 Target Population and Sample…………………………………………………31 Instrument... ........................................................................................................31 Data Analysis .....................................................................................................35. CHAPTER IV. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS................................. 39 Descriptive Statistics…………………………………………………………..39 Correlation Analysis…...……………………………………………………….42 Hierarchical Regression Analysis of Variables….. ………..…………………..45. CHAPTER V. CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS ....................... 51 Conclusions ........................................................................................................51 Suggestions ........................................................................................................52. REFERENCES........................................................................................ 54 APPENDIX A: Hierarchical Regression Analysis for Four Cultural Intelligence’s Dimensions Predicting Cross-Cultural Adjustment……………………………………………....59 APPENDIX B: Moderating Effect of the Four Dimensions of Emotional Intelligence on the Relationship between Cultural Intelligence and Cross-Cultural Adjustment……………..60. IV.

(7) LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 Differences in the Taiwanese and Thai National Culture According to Hofstede.16 Table 3.1 Coding of Control Variables………… …………………………………………34 Table 3.2 Reliability………………………………………………………………………36 Table 4.1 Demographic Information … ………………………………………………….40 Table 4.2 Means, Standard Deviation, Numbers, Correlations and Reliabilities…..…… 44 Table 4.3 Two Hypotheses……………………………………………….………………..45 Table 4.4 Hierarchical Regression Analysis for Cultural Intelligence Predicting Cross-Cultural Adjustment …………………………………………………….47 Table 4.5 Hierarchical Regression Analysis of the Effect of Emotional Intelligence……. 49 Table 4.6 Results of Hypotheses Testing………………………..…………………………50. V.

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(9) LIST OF FIGURE Figure 2.1 Foreign workers in Taiwan labor sectors by nationality and gender…….11 Figure 2.2 GDP-Composition by sector …………………………………………….13 Figure 2.3 Thai labor by occupation in Thailand……………………………………13 Figure 2.4 Foreign workers in productive industry by industry and nationality…….14 Figure 2.5 Foreign workers in social welfare by nationality………………………...15 Figure 2.6 Thai worker population in Taiwan’s productive industries by areas……..15 Figure 3.1 Research framework……………………………………………..………28 Figure 3.2 Process of the Study……………………………………………………....30 Figure 4.1 Moderator effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between CQ and Cross-cultural adjustment….………………………..…50. VII.

(10) CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION This chapter provides a clear explanation of this study, including the background of the study, a statement of the problem, the purpose of the research, research questions, a research hypothesis, the significance of the study, definitions of the terminology and finally the delimitations and limitations of the research.. Background of the Study The global economy encourages mobility of workers across national and cultural boundaries. For example, since the 90’s, because of the economic and social development, Taiwan has been introducing a large number of foreign workers from many countries of Southeast Asia as a supplement of the shortage of hard laboring that most of the citizens are not willing to pursue. For example, in Taiwan’s productive industry, the Thai workers occupy the largest population of foreign workers which amounts 61,147 or 33.5% around the island (Council of labor affairs of Taiwan, 2010). Workers in different countries face more challenges in a cross cultural environment. They experience a transition from their familiar settings to unfamiliar settings. They discover that many types of behavior, emotions and cultural aspects which are acceptable in their familiar environment are not acceptable in their unfamiliar settings; in contrast, some types of behavior, emotions and cultural aspects which are offensive in their own cultural settings are allowed in a new cultural environment (Black & Gregersen, 1991a). Foreign workers in an unfamiliar environment face difficulties and uncertainty in regard to language and communication, religion, politics, interaction with the host nationals, adjusting in a new culture, and so forth. Consequently, foreign workers may face situations that involve misunderstanding as part of a lack cultural and emotional awareness due to differences in behavioral expectations (Ang, Van Dyne, & Koh, 2006; Black & Gregersen, 1991a; Brisling, Worthley, & Macnab, 2006; Kumar, Rose, & Subramaniam, 2008; Triandis, 1.

(11) 2006). Behavioral differences may cause misunderstanding between foreign workers and host nationals in a diversified cultural environment, which is unfamiliar to the foreign workers, who may not have the ability to pay adequate attention to or identify important information in unfamiliar situations. The information of novelty situations is relevant for making correct judgment (Brisling et al., 2006; Early & Mosakowsky, 2004; Kumar et al., 2008; Triandis, 2006). Take the incident that happened in Kaohsiung in 2005 as an example. More than 1,700 Thai workers who were hired to help build a mass-transit railway project in Kaohsiung set fire to a management shack, burnt cars and threw stones at police because their employers refused to allow them to drink, smoke, and use cell phones when they were off work (Chuang, 2005). The mistreatment of Thai workers in Taiwan has kicked up a bit of a storm in society, and the Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra called on Thai people to stay home and find work there instead of suffering unfair treatment abroad (Chen, 2005). Evidently the Thai workers could not accept the unfair treatment mentioned above because in their familiar environment such policies do not exist; the result of what the Thai workers called unfair treatment was their unacceptable behavioral reaction which indicated their lack of meta-cognitive, cognitive and behavioral cultural intelligence. In contrast, cultural intelligence would be an important tool for Thai workers in a cross cultural environment, allowing them to understand the behavior of local people, as well as the norms, regulations or laws which could help Thai workers to avoid misunderstanding and integrate themselves quickly into Taiwanese culture. Early (2002), defined cultural intelligence (CQ) as a person's capacity to adapt to new cultural settings based on multiple facets. Moreover CQ includes meta-cognitive and cognitive, motivational and behavioral features (Early & Ang, 2003). According to Brisling et al. (2006), cultural intelligence refers to types of behavior that are considered intelligent from the point of view of people in specific cultures. Also, it refers to 2.

(12) the traits and skills of people who adjust quickly with minimal stress when they interact extensively in cultures other than the ones where they were socialized. In general, the correct judgment is produced when a foreign worker thinks before taking action. It is important to be calm and even-tempered in order to make a decision to suspend opinions and cope with daily life in an unfamiliar environment (Ang et al., 2006; Brisling et al., 2006; Early & Mosakowsky, 2004; Kumar et al., 2008; Triandis, 2006). The expressions and behaviors patterns resulting from emotional intelligence can vary in different cultures, but they are needed in order to understand people’s emotions and when some knowledge of their backgrounds is required, specifically in regard to culture (Kumar et al., 2008; Law, Wong & Song, 2004). According to Black and Mendehall (1990), two or more people from different countries most cross culturally interact in a higher frequency in the economic, political and social arenas. These reciprocal actions between individuals take place in a variety of work-related situations, including short-term business trips to foreign countries, and long-term overseas assignment. Cross-cultural adjustment of foreign workers in their overseas assignments include their general adjustment to the food, transportation system, economy, politics and so forth; their adjustment to the interaction with the host nationals outside their jobs; and adjustment to aspects of their work such as working hours, the work culture and interaction with their superiors and coworker (Kim & Slocum, 2008). In addition, foreign workers not only need to adjust to their new job responsibilities in their overseas assignments, they also need to adapt to a different climate from their own country, a new culture, and a variety of language barriers (Hechanova, Beehr & Christiansen, 2003).. 3.

(13) Statement of the Problem Adjusting to an unfamiliar environment is essential in everyone’s day to day activities. Every foreigner needs to do it; however, not everyone has the ability to adjust to a new work culture and also to new ways of living (Black, Mendenhall & Oddou, 1991). Most expatriates initially do not know how to appropriately and effectively behave in the host culture. Thus, when an individual is assigned to work overseas, a period of learning about the country’s social norms is necessary before personal and job productivity can occur (Black & Mendenhall, 1991).. Prior studies on cross-cultural adjustment have established that individual-level factors such as personality, self-monitoring, self-efficacy, and openness are critical predictors of cross-cultural adjustment (Caligiuri, 2000; Hechanova et al., 2003; Kim & Slocum, 2008). Earley and Ang (2003) introduced a new important multidimensional attribute, cultural intelligence (CQ). CQ means a person’s capability to deal effectively across cultures (Earley & Ang, 2003; Thomas & Inkson, 2004). The cultural intelligence dimensions include cognitive CQ, meta-cognitive CQ, motivational CQ, and behavioral CQ and they have specific importance to researches in situations characterized by cultural diversity. Motivational CQ is a vital CQ element and a key component in the adaptation to unfamiliar environments (Ang et al., 2006; Earley & Ang, 2003; Earley & Mosakowsky, 2004; Earley, Ang & Tan, 2006; Kim, kirkman & Chen, 2006; Templer, Tay & Chandrasekar, 2006). Moreover, Ang et al. (2006) and Templer et al. (2006) found motivational CQ was positively related to cross-cultural adjustment after controlling for gender, age, time spent in the host country and prior international assignment.. However,. the. relationship. between. cultural. intelligence. and. cross-cultural. adjustment can sometimes be uncertain because people have different abilities in handling 4.

(14) their personal emotions. According to Earley and Mosakowsky (2004), emotional intelligence (EQ) comprises what makes each person different from one another. Furthermore, emotional intelligence focuses mainly on the abilities related to people’s emotional perception and thought facilitation, understanding and managing oneself and others (Kumar et al., 2008; Salovey & Mayer, 1990; Wong & Law, 2002). Meanwhile, Chuang (2005) reported that in Taiwan, the lack of face-to-face communication opportunities between local people and foreign workers leads to greater misunderstanding, which hampers management willingness to improve living and working conditions for workers. Moreover, according to Black (1990), when foreigners misunderstand the real meaning of a local person’s behavior and emotions, they become frustrated. This implies that some foreigners can overcome such frustration, but some may fail to handle the negative emotion. When they have difficulty to manage this emotion, their adjustment to local culture suffers. Therefore, this study views emotional intelligence as a moderator and examines the relationship among cultural intelligence, emotional intelligence, and cross-cultural adjustment.. Research Purpose The general aim of this study is to examine the effect of emotional intelligence as a moderator on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment. The main focuses are as follow: 1.. To investigate the relationship between cultural intelligence (CQ) and cross-cultural adjustment.. 2.. To study the moderating effect of emotional intelligence (EQ) on the relationship between cultural intelligence (CQ) and cross-cultural adjustment.. 5.

(15) Research Questions The questions for this study are: 1.. Is cultural intelligence positively related to cross-cultural adjustment?. 2.. Does emotional intelligence moderate the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment?. Significance of the Study This research attempts to explore the emotional intelligence as a moderator between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment in order to give a general idea of what is really happening with the Thai workers in Taiwan’s manufacturing sectors. This topic is essential for the development of the workforce around the island. In order to improve the managerial administration of the foreign workers in Taiwan’s manpower agencies, the aim of this study is to give a general panorama to Taiwanese employers and manpower agencies both in Taiwan and in Thailand about how cultural intelligence influence or affect the cross-cultural adjustment of the Thai workers in Taiwan. On the one hand, it helps manpower agencies such as the Taiwanese employers and the foreign human resources agencies dealing with Thai workers because they can gain a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the Thai workers when it comes to their cultural and even their emotional intelligence in order to recruit people who can qualify for jobs that require a strong capability for cross-cultural adjustment, especially in a cultural diverse environment. On the other hand, they will have a panorama of information on how to manage and apply policies to Thai workers in Taiwan. Furthermore, managers, superiors and subordinate can interact among them while acknowledging the emotions, cultural treatment and types of behavior of each culture. Companies can gain an understanding of the personal characteristics of Thai workers, such as prior experience in the host country, and local language fluency which can help 6.

(16) enable a person to function effectively during an assignment abroad. Consequently, the selection of a Thai worker with appropriate individual differences will be a priority in order to minimize the training needs for foreign workers. Evidently, research on the above-mentioned topic is limited, so the current research will contribute to the theory and to academia’s empirical implications, such as the uniqueness of the sample. According to Kim and Slocum (2008), previous expatriate researches have stated that one major limitation of their studies is external validity. The findings from this research will be also applicable to other samples with different kind of jobs but similar social, economic, cultural background and values.. Definition of Terms Cultural intelligence (CQ) Cultural intelligence is defined as an individual’s capability to deal effectively in situations characterized by cultural diversity (Ang et al., 2006). Also, cultural intelligence resides in the body, or capability to adapt actions and behaviors so that they are appropriate in a new culture: the heart, or motivation and confidence in dealing with a culture as well as the head, or the ability to discover new information about a culture (Earley & Mosakowsky, 2004; Earley, Ang, & Tan, 2006).. Emotional intelligence (EQ) Emotional intelligence refers to the set of interrelated abilities possessed by individuals to deal with emotions. Emotional intelligence is composed of four distinct dimensions, these being appraisal and expression of emotion in the self (SEA), appraisal and recognition of emotion in others (OEA), regulation of emotion in the self (ROE), and use of emotion to facilitate performance (UOE) (Wong & Law, 2002).. 7.

(17) Cross-Cultural Adjustment Cross-cultural adjustment is defined as the degree of psychological comfort and familiarity that a human being has for the new place (Black, 1990; Templer et al., 2006). This implies moving from a culture in which one currently resides to a different culture in which one has never resided or has not resided for some period of time. (Black & Gregersen, 1991).. Delimitations and Limitations Delimitation The first delimitation of this study focuses on the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment of the Thai workers in Taiwan. The second delimitation is that this research focuses on the Thai blue collar workers in the productive industry sector in central area of Taiwan. And lastly, the Thai workers have to have worked in Taiwan for at least more than 2 month in order to avoid the honeymoon stage (Black, 1988; Black & Gregersen, 1991a; Black & Gregersen, 1991b; Black & Mendenhall, 1991; Winkelman, 1994).. Limitation This study has certain limitations which provide avenues for further research. The first limitation is the researcher’s lack of Thai language ability, and most of the official documents in Thailand are written in Thai. This implies the difficulty to get access to any government web site without any cognition of the Thai language. Taiwan and Thailand do not have many researches in English related to Thai’s blue collar workers; therefore the researcher won’t have an opportunity to compare the results of the study. Researcher acknowledges that a self-reported measure may cause serious single source bias, because the data for the research was collected from a manpower agency that provides 8.

(18) the questionnaire answered by the Thai workers in Taiwan, and also the survey questionnaires were distributed and collected from an initial contact, who passed on the survey questionnaires to colleagues at work and their compatriot friends outside of their work place. Nevertheless, some concerns might exist in that self-reported measures have common method bias problems; attention was paid to reduce potential biases that may result from a self-reported criterion.. 9.

(19) CHAPTER II. LITERATURE REVIEW The primary goal of this section is to review and summarize literature and theories that are relevant to cultural intelligence, emotional intelligence, and cross-cultural adjustment. The first part of this study presents a brief overview of foreign workers in Taiwan’s labor market, a brief overview of Thailand, and finally both countries’ culture, providing an understanding of the statistics of foreign workers and especially those from Thailand, and their culture differences. The second part focuses on cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment, their conceptualization and the relation between them. The third part presents emotional intelligence conceptualization. Finally the content focuses on the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between cultural intelligence, and cross-cultural adjustment.. Brief Overview of Foreign Workers in Taiwan’s Labor Market The Republic of China, Taiwan, is one of the richest countries in East Asia, with a high life standard, high gross domestic product per capita (GDP) and a purchasing power parity of 31,100 USD a year. Its population living below the poverty line is only 0.95%, according to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA, 2009). This is one positive factor that influences the foreign labor workers who come to the island. Taiwan is one of the most important destinations for the immigrant labor market in Asia, especially for some people from countries like the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and even for workers from Japan, USA, Canada, UK, etc. (Council of Labors Affairs of Taiwan [CLA], 2010). Although Taiwan has a high unemployment rate (5.86%) in Asia, a lot of foreigners from south Asia still immigrate to Taiwan looking for employment opportunities. Thailand is the leading country in the male productive industry, with 52,760 workers around the island, while Indonesia leads the female social welfare, with 125,873 workers: see figure 2.1. 10.

(20) (Executive Yuan, 2010; CLA, 2010; Bureau of employment & vocational training [BEVT], 2010).. Figure 2.1. Foreign workers in Taiwan’s productive industries and social welfare by nationality and gender Source: Council of labors affairs of Taiwan, 2010; & Bureau of employment & vocational training, 2010.. According to the Council of labor affair of Taiwan (2010), the occupational sectors in the island are divided in three large labor areas depending on the immigrants’ countries and abilities such as productive industries, social welfare, and special professions or technical assignments. The productive industries are important and include the following: agriculture, manufacturing (major investing), construction (major construction projects). Workers from this sector are called blue collar workers. Jobs related to social welfare are: nursing workers and home-maids which are also called blue collar workers. The third sector is special 11.

(21) professions or technical assignments which are comprised of foreign white collar workers. Base on the Central intelligence agency’s 2009 statistics, most countries in Southeast Asia do not have as high of a living standard as Taiwan and job opportunities are not easy to find; this implies that the people have to migrate to countries that provide a good opportunity to exploit their abilities. Some workers look for outsourcing agencies, and others just migrate by themselves, which is the same situation for many Latin-Americans, such as Mexicans, Guatemalans, Salvadorans, Nicaraguans, Hondurans, etc. who leave their countries in order to have a better life in a country with more equality, justice and jobs opportunities.. Brief Overview of Thailand Thailand is located in Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and the southern extremity of Burma. Its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast and Indonesia and India in the Andaman Sea to the southwest. Thailand has an estimate population of 65.99 million, almost three times more than the Taiwanese population (CIA, 2010). The CIA (2010) discloses that the living standard of the Thai people is almost four times less than that of the Taiwanese; Their GDP for 2009 was 8,100 USD and most of the people work in the agriculture and services sector. CIA (2010) also reveals that the industry sector in Thailand is developing, as is the service sector; the two sectors merged together comprise 87.7% of GDP composition by sector; however, only a 57.3% of the labor force has the opportunity to work in the service and industry sector, according to the CIA (2005). The GDP composition by sector is illustrated in Figure 2.2 and figure 2.3 illustrates the Thai Labor force by occupation in Thailand.. 12.

(22) Figure 2.2. GDP- Composition by sector Source: CIA, 2009.. Figure 2.3. Thai labor force by occupation in Thailand Source: CIA, 2005. According to the Council of labors affairs of Taiwan and the Bureau of employment & vocational training’s (2010) statistics, the Thai worker population in Taiwan is the most important foreign labor force around the island in the productive industry sector, with 61,147 Thai workers; and a minority in the social welfare sector, with only 1,283 Thai workers compared with other South Asian countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Mongolia. Moreover, the Council of labors affairs of Taiwan and the Bureau of 13.

(23) employment & vocational training’s (2010), report an increase of 838 Thai workers in the productive industry, and a decrease of 24 Thai workers in social welfare area since both institutions in November 2009 reported 60,309 and 1309 Thai workers respectively. In Taiwan, although the Thai are one of the four biggest groups of foreign workers in the productive industries, they are leading in the manufacturing and construction sectors as foreign workers in Taiwan, followed by Filipinos, Vietnamese, and Indonesians as illustrated in Figure 2.4. Figure 2.4. Foreign workers in sectors of productive industry by nationality Source: Council of labors affairs of Taiwan, 2010; & Bureau of employment & vocational training, 2010.. Furthermore, Thais are behind the three other above-mentioned countries in the social welfare sector, as revealed by the Bureau of employment & vocational training and the Council of labors affairs of Taiwan, (2010) shown in Figure 2.5.. 14.

(24) Figure 2.5. Foreign workers in social welfare by nationality Source: Council of labors affairs of Taiwan, 2010; & Bureau of employment & vocational training, 2010.. The Council of labors affairs of Taiwan and Bureau of employment & vocational training’s (2010) reported on geographic location the Thai labor population around the island. The majority of the Thai workers in Taiwan can be found in the north, central and south areas however, a minority of Thai labors still immigrated to the east area and islands which do not have a lot of productive industries as illustrated in figure 2.6. Figure 2.6. Thai worker population in Taiwan’s productive industries by areas Source: Council of labors affairs of Taiwan, 2010; & Bureau of employment & vocational training, 2010. 15.

(25) The Cultures of Taiwan and Thailand The culture of Taiwan is a combination of various sources, for example, elements of traditional Chinese culture or Han Chinese, attributable to the historical and ancestry origin of the majority of its current residents, Japanese culture, traditional Confucianism beliefs, and increasingly globalized values (Wikipedia, 2010). Furthermore, O’Hagan (2006) said that most of the Taiwanese are a mixture of races because the aborigines, who did not escape to the mountains and stayed on the plains, married with Chinese and Europeans. Today the population is made up of about 70% of Taiwanese, 28% of Chinese and 2% of aborigines. Moreover, most of the Taiwanese are influenced by two traditional religions, Buddhism and Taoism and also a kind of philosophy called Confucianism, in addition there are nine other religions practiced on Taiwan and recognized by the government (O’Hagan P., 2006). On the other hand, the culture of Thailand is mainly influenced by the Indian culture and is strongly influenced by Buddhism, specifically the Theravada school of Buddhism, which is the oldest school of Buddhism. Other influences include Hinduism, cultural and culinary influences from Southeast Asian neighbors such as Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar, and repeated influxes of Chinese immigrants (Wikipedia, 2010 & CIA, 2010). Hofstede (1983) shows in his empirical research “National cultures in four dimensions” the cultural differences between 50 countries. He considers the four dimensions, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism versus collectivism and masculinity versus femininity to be fundamental problems which any human society faces. Furthermore, Hofstede’s dimensions are a convenient approach to highlight possible conflict between Taiwanese managers and Thai subordinates, as illustrated in Table 2.1.. 16.

(26) Table 2.1. Differences in the Taiwanese and Thai National Culture According to Hofstede. Cultural dimensions. Taiwanese. Thai. Difference. Power distance (higher = more hierarchy). 58. 64. Thai + 6. Individualism (higher = more individualistic). 17. 20. Thai +3. Masculinity (higher = more masculinity). 45. 34. TW + 11. Uncertainty avoidance (higher = more uncertainty avoidance). 69. 64. TW + 5. Source: Hofstede, 1983; Hofstede, 1999; Hofstede & Hofstede, 2005.. Table 2.1 shows the differences in the Taiwanese and the Thai national cultures according to Hofstede. Both cultures are high in power distance and uncertainty avoidance, but the Thai culture is somewhat higher in power distance, and the Taiwanese culture is somewhat higher in uncertainty avoidance. Taiwanese and Thai cultures are rated low in individualism which indicates a collective orientation, but the Taiwanese culture is more collective than that of Thailand. Taiwanese and Thai cultures are both low in masculinity, but the Taiwanese is moderately higher (Hofstede, 1983; Hofstede, 1999; Hofstede & Hofstede, 2005). The Taiwanese are more collectivist, masculinity and uncertainty avoidance oriented than the Thai people; these are all possible conflict sources between Taiwanese managers or superiors and Thai subordinates. Swierczek and Onishi (2003) research reveals important characteristics of Thai national culture alongside Hofstede’s national culture dimension; for example, the Thais are individualism oriented and prefer solving problems alone when they have sufficient knowledge. In their research they show that the Thais are feminine-oriented society, and its 17.

(27) emphasis is on “work in order to live”; this implies that Thai subordinates’ values emphasize free time, enjoyment and comfort. Moreover, the Thai people, being lower in uncertainty avoidance, prefer flexibility and believe that a decision should be adjusted as the environment changes.. Cultural Intelligence (CQ) Cultural intelligence (CQ) is a new term introduced by Earley and Ang (2003). They define CQ as an individual’s capability to deal effectively in situations characterized by cultural diversity (Ang, et al., 2006). Therefore, they explain how people can be effective in a multicultural environment. Meanwhile, Earley and Mosakowsky (2004) and Earley et al. (2006) said cultural intelligence resides in the body and the heart, as well as the head. Head refers to learn about the beliefs, customs, and taboos of foreign culture. Body means the people actions, gestures, and demeanor that must prove that they already understand and enter to the foreign culture. Heart refers that people must believe in their own efficacy and motivation. Thomas and Inkson (2004) defined cultural intelligence as the capability to interact effectively with people from different cultural backgrounds; they added cultural intelligence enables us to recognize cultural differences through knowledge and mindfulness and gives us a propensity and ability to act appropriately across cultures. Earley and colleagues developed the composition of the cultural intelligence’s four factors or dimensions as meta-cognitive CQ, cognitive CQ, motivational CQ, and behavioral CQ (Ang et al., 2006; Ang et al., 2007). Meta-cognitive CQ is the procedure or strategy that the people use to acquire and understand cultural knowledge. While cognitive CQ is general knowledge and knowledge structures about culture. Knowledge structures imply economic, legal and social aspects of different cultures. Meanwhile, motivational CQ is magnitude and direction of energy applied toward learning about and functioning in cross-cultural situations. 18.

(28) This implies an individual’s intention to adapt to different cultural situation; it is conceptualized as intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy in cross cultural contexts. Intrinsic motivation reflects drivers of performance that originate from within an individual while self-efficacy refers to one’s belief that one can be effective on a given task in cross cultural contexts. Behavioral CQ is the ability to do in proper verbal manner such as individuals utilize culturally sensitive communication, and non verbal actions when interacting with people from different cultures and some adopted behaviors should be different from the one’s own. Cultural intelligence researchers look at the importance of the personality traits. According to Ang et al. (2006), openness to experience (which is characterized by curiosity, broad-mindedness and imagination) was positive and was related to all four dimensions of Cultural intelligence and it is a crucial personality dimension that is highly related to a person’s capability to deal effectively with people when interacting with those who have different cultural backgrounds. Researchers encourage examining the extent of which openness to experience might be the key personality factor that relates to adaptability after having controlled age and years of experience of interacting with people from other cultures. On one hand, Kim et al. (2006) theoretically studied how CQ influences foreign workers adjustment and performance and they contributed to the literature in terms of expatriate selection, placement and training process. On the other hand, Templer et al. (2006) examine the relationship of the motivational dimension of cultural intelligence and realistic preview to the three factors of cross-cultural adjustment of global professionals. They found strong evidence on the relationship between motivational CQ and all three adjustment factors after controlling for gender, age, month spent in the host country and prior international assignment.. 19.

(29) Cross Cultural Adjustment Adjustment has been conceptualized in basically two ways. The first used in the past as unitary cross cultural adjustment constructs which consist of the degree of adaptation has been towards more objective terms such as job satisfaction and organizational commitment; this implies objective terms such as performance ratings obtained from independent sources. And the second is a multifaceted construct which refers to the adjustment to work, interaction with host national and adaptation to the general environment (Black, 1990; Black & Gregersen, 1991a). Black (1990) conceptualized cross cultural adjustment as “the degree of psychological comfort and familiarity that an individual has for the new environment” (Templer, et al., 2006). This implies moving from a culture in which one currently resides to a different culture in which one has never resided or has not resided for some period of time (Black & Gregersen, 1991). According to Black and Gregersen (1991), Kim and Slocum (2008), cross-cultural adjustment is composed of three dimensions: adjustment to the job or work adjustment, adjustment to interacting with host nationals or interaction adjustment, and adjustment to the general non work environment or general life adjustment. Adjustment to the job refers to the adjustment to job responsibilities, supervision, and job performance expectation. While adjustment to interact with host nationals means the ability to socialize and communicate with host country nationals. Adjustment to the general non work environments reflects the ability to adjust to life, housing, food, shopping and so forth. According to Black, Mendenhall, and Oddou (1991) the existing literature regarding cross cultural adaptation consists mostly of anecdotal or atheoretical empirical efforts to understand the phenomenon. In addition, Black (1990) said “Much of the general interest in cross cultural adjustment began in 1955 with Lysgaard’s study of the adjustment of 20.

(30) Norwegian students who have received Fullbright scholarships” (p.120). Furthermore, much of the theoretical foundation for cross cultural adjustment research is based on Oberg’s work on cultural shock. (Black, 1990; Black & Gregersen, 1991a) Black and Gregersen (1991) argued that moving from one country to another often involves two situations such as changes in the job the individual performs and the corporate culture in which responsibilities are executed; it can also involve dealing with unfamiliar norms related to the general culture, business practices, living conditions, weather, food, health care, daily customs, and political systems, plus facing a foreign language on a daily basis. Some researchers provided an important insight to the cross-cultural adjustment field. For example, Black (1990) demonstrated that only four dimensions of personality, cultural flexibility, social orientation, willingness to communicate, collaborative conflict resolution orientation had a high relationship with the three facets of psychological adjustment for Japanese expatriate managers in America. Selecting employees with these personal factors may be most appropriate if the job the individual will fill involves a lot of interaction with host nationals either inside or outside of work. On the other hand, the personality trait such as openness to experience guides the expatriates to socialize with the host country nationals to enhance their adjustment in the foreign country (Caligiuri, 2000). Moreover, Hechanova et al., (2003) explored the relationship between individual, job, environmental, and family-related variables with expatriate adjustment and they found that self-efficacy, frequency of interaction with locals, and family support were highly related to all three types of adjustment. Furthermore, individual differences such as self monitoring personality, prior experience in the host country and local language fluency were related with only two dimensions of cross-cultural adjustment, work and interaction adjustment; but the researchers encourage to include a general dimension of cross-cultural adjustment because this might provide a big panorama of the relationship among individual differences, cross-cultural adjustment, and 21.

(31) expatriate assignment effectiveness (Kim & Slocum, 2008). Also some studies in cross-cultural adjustment focus on expatriate and spouse cross-cultural adjustment because either foreign workers adjustment influences spouse adjustment or vice versa. Some factors such as age, time overseas, and housing conditions were important in both expatriates and spouse adjustment but in general a high percentage of the variance in re-entry adjustment was explained for expatriates than for spouses (Black & Gregersen, 1991a; Black & Gregersen, 1991b; Black & Stephens, 1989).. Cultural Intelligence (CQ) and Cross-Cultural Adjustment Kim et al. (2006) theoretically explored how Cultural intelligence (CQ) influences expatriate adjustment. They said that individuals having a higher, rather than a lower level of CQ will be better adjusted to the new work and non-work environment in the host country because it is likely that individuals with higher CQ gain more appropriate emotional and informational support through getting along with local people. Further, Early et al. (2006) define cultural intelligence as a person’s capability for successful adaptation to new cultural settings; that is, for unfamiliar settings attributable to cultural context. Templer et al. (2006) provided a strong evidence of the relationships between motivational CQ and all three adjustment criteria after they have been controlled by gender, age, length of time living in the host country, and prior international assignments. They demonstrated the validity, generalizability, and applicability of the CQ concept. Global employees who are more self-confident in their abilities to adapt to new cultural environments adjust better to work, life, and social demands in foreign assignments. Therefore, this study has the first hypothesis as follow: Hypothesis 1 Cultural intelligence is positively related to cross-cultural adjustment.. 22.

(32) Emotional Intelligence (EQ) Salovey and Mayer (1990) provided the first modern definition of Emotional Intelligence as “the subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and other’s feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions” (p. 189). Thomas and Inkson (2004) defined EQ as the capability of regulating and using one’s emotional states. Furthermore, Brown, Bryant, and Reilly (2006) refer Salovey and Mayer’s emotional intelligence concept to the ability to deal with one’s own emotions and those of others to advantage in problem solving and decision making. However, Daniel Goleman in 1996 defined EQ as “the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well, in ourselves and in our relationships” (Bagshaw, 2000, p. 61). This implies that his idea of social and emotional competencies differs from the concept of Salovey and Mayer who pay more attention to emotional abilities which link emotion and individual cognition. In addition, Wong and Law (2002) pointed out that emotional intelligence is referred to as a set of interrelated abilities possessed by individuals to deal with emotions. According to Koman and Wolff (2008), emotional intelligence has varied definitions. There is an agreement in the literature that EQ includes an individual having an awareness of and an ability to regulate their emotions; Salovey and Mayer’s theory focuses on the emotional abilities that link emotion and individual cognition, while Goleman’s theory focuses on social and emotional competencies. Over the last decade, two distinctly different but related models of EQ have been suggested as ability model and mixed model. Ability emotional intelligent model refers to the combination between emotions with intelligence. This model has largely evolved from Salovey and Mayer’s original definition of Emotional Intelligence. While mixed emotional intelligent model reflects the combination between traits with social behaviors and competencies. Basically it arises largely from the work of Bar-On (1997), an approach 23.

(33) generally embraced and advocated by Goleman in 1995 (Brown et al., 2006). According to Wong and Law (2002) emotional intelligence is composed of four distinct dimensions such as Appraisal and expression of emotion in the self (SEA), Appraisal and recognition of emotion in others (OEA), Regulation of emotion in the self (ROE), and Use of emotion to facilitate performance (UOE). SEA refers to the individual’s ability to understand their deep emotions and be able to express these emotions naturally while OEA relates to people’s ability to perceive and understand the emotions of people around them. Meanwhile, ROE refers to the ability to regulate one’s own emotions, which will enable a more rapid recovery from psychological distress and UOE relates to the ability of individuals to make use of their emotions by directing them towards constructive activities and personal performance (Wong & Law, 2002). In contrast, Koman, and Wolff’s (2008) empirical research point out Goleman (2001) and Boyatzis (2000) four dimensions of emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management. The main differences between the dimensions above mentioned and those reported by Wong and Law (2002) are the implications on social traits and performance management evolved by Goleman and Boyatzis.. 24.

(34) Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence and Cross-Cultural Adjustment Although Cultural intelligence is not equivalent to emotional intelligence, literature offers some useful insights and theories as factors that might contribute to cultural intelligence, emotional intelligence, and their effects to cross-cultural adjustment. In the last decades, the CQ and EQ affecting cross cultural adjustment had generated some empirical studies. These empirical and conceptual works have consistently found that CQ and EQ are different especially when discussing the applicability of the constructs in cross cultural context (Kumar et al., 2008). This implies that emotional intelligence focuses on the general ability to perceive and manage emotions without consideration of cultural context. For instance, accurate perception and understanding in others need some knowledge of other people’s backgrounds, specifically their cultural background which is the meta-cognitive component; besides, this CQ dimension also involves skills to question one’s assumptions about others’ emotional expressions; Moreover, Ang et al. (2007) said that meta-cognition refers to the knowledge and control of mental cognitions and adjusting one’s mental models, and it implies understanding one’s own cultural knowledge and information processing (Early & Ang, 2003). Gabel, Dolan, and Cerdin (2005) found cultural differences act as a moderator and those differences have an important influence on the intensity of the relationship between EQ and cross-cultural adjustment, while Ang et al. (2006) found openness to experience is a crucial personality characteristic that is related to one person’s capability in diverse cultural settings (CQ). On the other hand Kumar et al. (2008) found openness to cultural experiences is a common personality trait that can enhance one’s CQ and EQ, and they concluded that some similarities might exist among the intelligences above described. According to Kumar et al. (2008), intelligence behaviors are observed by behavioral theories which are categorized into academic or nonacademic domains. Those intelligence behaviors observed in the academic domain are labeled as academic intelligence such as science, linguistic, 25.

(35) mathematics, etc. Meanwhile, the intelligence behaviors observed in the nonacademic domain, have been labeled as nonacademic intelligences or real world intelligences, such as EQ, CQ, and social intelligence (SQ) which are grounded in the theory of multiple intelligence. This implies a connection between cultural intelligence, emotional intelligence, and social intelligence and may enable the enhancement of those forms of intelligence in a cross-cultural setting (Brislin et al., 2006). In addition, Earley and Mosakowski (2004); Kumar et al. (2008, p.44) pointed out the psychologist Daniel Goleman’s (1998) words “a propensity to suspend judgment-to think before acting”, are one critical element shared by CQ and EQ. On the other hand, Triandis (2006) argued that beside suspending judgment and paying attention to situations, the culturally intelligent individual also has the ability to identify the information that is relevant for making a judgment and can integrate this information to make correct judgment. Triandis (2006) concluded that CQ is similar to the Goleman’s (1998) EQ dimension of self-regulation dimension which addresses the propensity to suspend judgment and think before acting. This implies that one needs cultural and emotional intelligence skills to understand the meaning behind some emotional expressions in others when interacting across culture. Kumar et al., (2008) pointed out that openness to cultural experiences is a common personality trait that can enhance one’s cultural intelligence and emotional intelligence, and it is like a key aspect in desiring to learn about and adapt to other cultures. Furthermore, theoretical and empirical researches in cultural intelligence and international assignment also demonstrate a positive relationship between cultural intelligence with some personality traits such as openness to experience, extroversion, self-efficacy, and emotional intelligence (Kim et al., 2006). In addition, Ang et al. (2006) found that openness to experience was related to all four factors of cultural intelligence. This implies openness to experience is a crucial personality characteristic that is related to a 26.

(36) person’s capability to function effectively in diverse cultural environment. Evidence also shows a positive relationship between extraversion and cognitive CQ, maybe because outgoingness and sociability induce individuals to interact more with people from different cultures. In addition, Templer et al. (2006) found global employees who were more interested and motivated to explore and experience diverse cultures, and who were more self-confident in their abilities to adapt to new cultural environments adjusted better to work, life, and social demands in foreign assignments. This finding suggests that motivational CQ is an important individual attribute that has strong relationship with cross cultural adjustment. Furthermore, Gabel et al. (2005) found a significantly higher correlation between EQ and adjustment dimension; however, cultural adjustment was not correlated with any EQ dimensions. An individual with high EQ in one cultural context may not be emotional intelligent in another culture. Cognitive capabilities do not necessarily translate into behaviors and actions. The ability to encode and decode emotions in the home culture does not automatically transfer to unfamiliar cultures (Early & Ang, 2003). Based on the theory of multiple intelligence the rationale and some empirical evidence which connect CQ with EQ will possibly establish the positive relationship between the emotional intelligence and the cultural intelligence because one needs cultural and emotional intelligence skills to understand the meaning behind some emotional expressions in others when interacting across culture. Moreover, according to Kumar et al. (2008) a person with high CQ needs the emotion management skill, which involves the appropriate regulation of feeling and the effective management of others’ emotions. This implies that high EQ can enhance one’s CQ and it is likely a key component to exhibit appropriate action and being flexible in behaviors across culture; therefore, this research has the second hypothesis as follow: Hypothesis 2 Emotional intelligence significantly and positively moderates the effect on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross cultural adjustment. 27.

(37) CHAPTER III. METHOLODOLY This chapter explains the framework and method used in this research. The methodology of the study contains the following sections: (1) Research Framework, (2) Research Procedure, (3) Research Method, (4) Target population and sampling method, (5) Instrumentation, and (6) Data Analysis.. Research Framework The research framework of this study included three variables, which are cultural intelligence (CQ), cross-cultural adjustment, and emotional intelligence (EQ). The research and hypotheses were developed to examine the relationship between CQ and cross-cultural adjustment. Moreover, the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between CQ and cross-cultural adjustment was also examined.. Emotional Intelligence (EQ). Cultural Intelligence (CQ). Cross-cultural Adjustment. Figure 3.1. Research framework. 28.

(38) Research Hypothesis Based on the proposed research questions and literature, the following hypotheses were tested in this study: Hypothesis 1: cultural intelligence is positively related to cross cultural adjustment. Hypothesis 2: Emotional intelligence significantly and positively moderates the relationship. between. cultural. intelligence. and. cross. cultural. adjustment.. Research Procedure First, the research objective and scope were identified and defined. Second, relevant literature was collected and reviewed for better understanding of the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment of the Thai blue collar worker in Taiwan’s manufacturing sectors. Then, the research framework was created and the adequate questionnaires were selected after literature review. Questionnaire survey was carried out by Thai workers in central Taiwan’s manufacturing sectors industry, since respondents’ native language is Thai, the instrument went through backward language translation technique from their original language English to Thai for the purpose of ensuring equivalent meaning. The data collection was done through a manpower or human resources agency which had the direct access to the foreign labors, and also the survey questionnaires were distributed and collected from an initial contact, this person passed on the survey questionnaires to colleagues at work and their fellow countrymen outside of their work-place. After the questionnaires were filled, the manpower agency and the initial contact returned the questionnaires by mail to the researcher.. After finishing the data collection, the researcher coded the survey data into the 29.

(39) computer system by using the Statistical package for Social Science (SPSS 18) and finally ran the data for the analysis of the results. The research procedure was illustrated in Figure 3.2:. Identification of the research objective and objective and research scope. Literature collection and review. Development of conceptual framework. Research design and method of the study. Data collection. Analysis of the data. Findings and Discussion. Conclusions and suggestions Figure 3.2. Process of the study. Research Methods The method to use in this study was quantitative. The research was done through a questionnaire survey approach as the data collection technique. Backward language translation was administered for the questionnaire survey. 30.

(40) Target population and sample The target population of this study was the Thai workers located in central Taiwan. They must work for the productive industry, specifically in the manufacturing sector. The total population at the end of April 2010 in Taiwan was 58,428, and in the central area was 17,985 Thai workers (Council of Labors Affairs of Taiwan, 2010; Bureau of employment and vocational training, 2010), which did not include either illegal Thai immigrants or tourists without working permit. For the samples of this study, a total of 500 questionnaires were sent to two places; 300 were sent to one manpower or human resources agency, and 200 questionnaires were sent to an initial contact in central Taiwan. The initial contact (supervisor) gave the questionnaire to the Thai workers, and they passed it on to their compatriot friends. 323 of them were responded. They were conveniently selected from the agency data base and also from Thai workers’ reference. The response rate was 64.6% from the total of 500 questionnaires sent out. To collect the information of the respondents, ten questions were written to collect the personal or demographic information. The sampling method applied was the convenient.. Instrument The instrument composed of four measures: cultural intelligence, emotional intelligence, cross-cultural adjustment, and personal information. The details are as follows: Cultural intelligence: CQ is the independent variable for this research. The independent variable is compound of four dimensions such as meta-cognitive CQ, cognitive CQ, motivational CQ, and behavioral CQ. Cultural intelligence items were extracted from Ang et al.’s research (2007), and the cultural intelligence center’s website (2005). Some researchers found a high internal consistence, reliability and validity for the four factor model of CQ. The cronbach’s alpha coeficient for each dimension of CQ was ranged as follows: metacognitive CQ (α = 0.70 - 0.88), cognitive CQ (α = 0.80 - 0.89), motivational CQ (α = 31.

(41) 0.71 - 0.81), and behavioral CQ (α = 0.82 - 0.87) (Ang et al., 2006; Ang et al., 2007). The research includes twenty items scales separated as following: 1) metacognitive CQ contains four items such as “I check the correctness of my cultural knowledge as I interact with people from different cultures”; 2) cognitive CQ includes six items such as “I know the rules for expressing nonverbal behaviors in other cultures”;. 3) motivational CQ contains five items. such as “I enjoy living in cultures that are unfamiliar to me”, and. 4) behavioral CQ contains. five items such as “I change my verbal behavior (e.g., accent, tone) when a cross-cultural interaction requires it”. All items were measured on a 7 point Likert-type scale from (1) = “Strongly Disagree” to (7) = “Strongly Agree”. Cross-cultural adjustment: the cross-cultural adjustment is the dependent variable for this research. The dependent variable’s questionnaire items were extracted from Black (1988). The study included eleven items; because adjustment was hypothesized to be multifaceted. Cross-cultural adjustment as multifaceted is compound of three dimensions such as general adjustment, adjustment to work, and adjustment to interacting with host national. The questionnaire’s eleven items are distributed among the three dimensions which had a high validity and reliability as follows: general adjustment (α = 0.80), adjustment to work (α = 0.77), and adjustment to interact with host national (α = 0.83) (Black, 1988, 1990; Black & Stephens, 1989); Dimensions were measured as follows: six items were extracted to measure general adjustment such as “I am adjusted to the transportation system in Taiwan”. While three items were extracted to measure adjustment to work such as “I am adjusted to my job and responsibilities”. And two items were extracted to measure adjustment to interacting with host national such as “I am adjusted to interacting with Taiwanese in general”. All items were measured on a 5 point Likert-type scale from (1) = “Strongly Disagree” to (5) = “Strongly Agree”. Emotional intelligence: EQ served as the moderating variable of this research. The moderating variable is compound of four dimensions such as appraisal and expression of 32.

(42) emotion in the self (SEA), appraisal and recognition of emotion in others (OEA), regulation of emotion in the self (ROE), and use of emotion to facilitate performance (UOE). EQ scale items were extracted from Wong and Law’s research (2002); they found a high internal consistency, reliability and validity for the four dimensions which are described as follows: SEA (α = 0.86), OEA (α = 0.82), ROE (α = 0.79), and UOE (α = 0.85). The response format used a 7 point Likert-type scale for all the items, which was represented from (1) = “Strongly Disagree” to (7) = “Strongly Agree”. The study included sixteen items scales separated as follows: 1) self-emotion appraisal (SEA) contains four items such as “I have a good sense of why I have certain feelings most of the time”;. 2) Appraisal and recognition of emotion in. others (OEA) contains four items such as “I always know my friends’ emotions from their behavior”;. 3) Use of emotion (UOE) contains four items such as “I always set goals for. myself and then try my best to achieve them”, and. 4) Regulation of emotion in the self. (ROE) contains four items such as “I am able to control my temper and handle difficulties rationally”. Personal Information: These items provide a picture of the sample composition, including gender, education, age, duration in host country; experience overseas, number of times being in Taiwan, housing, and English and Chinese language ability (speaking-listening and writing-reading). Four of the above items including age, duration in host country; experience overseas, and English and Chinese language ability (speaking-listening and writing-reading) served as control variables. See Table 3.1 for the coding of control variables.. 33.

(43) Table 3.1. Coding of Control Variables. control variables Age. Coding Current age of the participant. Duration in Host country. Current duration in months. Experience overseas. English/Chinese listening ability. English/Chinese speaking ability. English/Chinese reading ability. English/Chinese writing ability. No. 0. Yes. 1. Not at all. 1. Poor. 2. Average. 3. Good. 4. Excellent. 5. Not at all. 1. Poor. 2. Average. 3. Good. 4. Excellent. 5. Not at all. 1. Poor. 2. Average. 3. Good. 4. Excellent. 5. Not at all. 1. Poor. 2. Average. 3. Good. 4. Excellent. 5. 34.

(44) Data Analysis This research explored the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment of the Thai blue collar workers in Taiwan’s manufacturing sector. The results were used to identify the Thai workers’ level of cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment. Personal information provided a picture of the sample composition including gender, education, age, duration in host country; experience overseas, number of times being in Taiwan, housing, and English and Chinese language ability (speaking-listening and writing-reading).. Reliability Cronbach’s alpha will be applied in the test of reliability to examine the internal consistency among items of variables. As shown in Table 3.2, Cronbach’s α values ranged from 0.55 to 0.85 which indicates reasonable to good consistency of the items’ sets in measuring the research variables. Cronbach’s alpha of cross-cultural adjustment was 0.76 and its dimensions of adjustment to work was 0.72, adjustment to interacting with host nationals was 0.77, and general adjustment was 0.55; the reliability for cultural intelligence was 0.82; for the four cultural intelligence’s dimensions, the cronbach’s alpha was 0.82 for meta-cognitive cultural intelligence, 0.74 for cognitive cultural intelligence, 0.77 for motivational cultural intelligence, and 0.77 for behavioral cultural intelligence. Table 3.2 also showed that cronbach’s alpha of the moderator variable emotional intelligence was 0.84. For the cronbach’s alpha of four factors of emotional intelligence (appraisal and expression of emotion in the self, regulation of emotion in the self, use of emotion to facilitate performance, and appraisal and recognition of emotion in others) respectively were 0.76, 0.79, 0.78 and 0.85.. 35.

(45) Table 3.2. Reliability Variables and Dimensions. Cronbach’s Alpha. 1- Cross-cultural adjustment. 0.76. 1.1- Adjustment to work. 0.72. 1.2- Adjusting to interact with Host Nationals.. 0.77. 1.3- General Adjustment. 0.55. 2-Cultural Intelligence. 0.82. 2.1-Meta-cognitive CQ. 0.82. 2.2-Cognitive CQ. 0.74. 2.3-Motivational CQ. 0.77. 2.4-Behavioral. 0.75. CQ. 3- Emotional Intelligence. 0.84. 3.1- Appraisal and expression of emotion in the self. 0.76. 3.2- Regulation of emotion in the self. 0.79. 3.3- Use of emotion to facilitate performance. 0.78. 3.4- Appraisal and recognition of emotion in others. 0.85. Correlation and Hierarchical Regression Analysis To examine the relationships among emotional intelligence (EQ), cultural intelligence (CQ), and cross-cultural adjustment of the foreign workers in Taiwan’s manufacturing sector, a Pearson correlation was used to measure the strength of a relationship between variables. If the correlation of each variable is zero or more than zero, each variable has a certain 36.

(46) correlation with each other (Cohen, Cohen, West, & Aiken, 2003; Field, 2009). The hierarchical regression analysis was applied to test the two proposed hypotheses (Cohen et al., 2003) In terms of hypothesis one, first step or “Model I” started by adding the control variables items such as age, duration in the host country, overseas experience, and language ability such as English listening-Speaking, English Reading-Writing, Chinese listening-Speaking, and lastly Chinese Reading-Writing; the four control variables base on previous studies (Ang et al., 2006; Ang et al., 2007; Black & Gregersen, 1991a; Black & Gregersen, 1991b; Black & Stephens, 1989; Caligiuri, 2000; Gabel et al., 2005; Hechanova et al., 2003; Kim & Slocum, 2008; Templer et al., 2006). The second step or “Model II”, the cultural intelligence as independent variable and when it came to the four dimensions of cultural intelligence as predictors for cross-cultural adjustment, they were included in the second steep or Model II instead of the cultural intelligence variable. In terms of hypothesis two, first step or “Model I” started by adding the same control variables as were described for hypothesis one. The second step or “Model II”, the cultural intelligence as independent variable was added, the third step or “Model III” was the moderating variable of emotional intelligence, and the last step or “Model IV” the interaction between the cultural intelligence and emotional intelligence was added. All predictors were standardized. The researcher expected that in the step four the interaction term between emotional intelligence and cultural intelligence will show whether it has a moderating effect on the relationship between cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment.. 37.

(47) 38.

(48) CHAPTER IV. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS The aim of this chapter was to provide the findings based on two proposed hypotheses of this study. The first part presented the findings of a descriptive statistical analysis. The second part included the results of correlations among emotional intelligence, cultural intelligence and cross-cultural adjustment. The third part focused on the findings of each hypothesis by using the regression analysis.. Descriptive Statistics The demographic information included gender, education, age, duration in host country; experience overseas, number of times being in Taiwan, housing, and English and Chinese language ability (speaking-listening and writing-reading). The frequency and percentage of the demographic information was shown in the Table 4.1. 320 participants in this research are male (99.1%). The majority of the respondents are from 25 to 30 years old (51.7%). As for the respondents’ education level, most of them had obtained the high school degree (43.3%) and vocational school degrees (40%). Moreover, when it comes to English listening comprehension and speaking ability in verbal communication, over eighty percent participants have the over average level of the ability to speak and understand (listen) average English. However, when it comes to English reading and writing, over sixty percent participants have the poor level of the ability to read and write poor English. As for the Thai workers’ Chinese listening, most of the respondents have an average ability (71.2%). The Chinese speaking ability differs slightly from the English speaking ability because the respondents were below two segments Poor (37.5%) and average (39.9%). Moreover, most of the participants could not read and write Chinese at all (62.2%) and (87%) respectively. Most of the participants worked in the manufacture industry (94.7%), and lived in the manufacture dormitory (94.1%). Moreover, around fifty one percent Thai workers have been 39.

(49) living in Taiwan from two to three years. Most of the respondent (80.2%) never had overseas experience. In contrast, a less of them have been in Taiwan for three times (16.7%).. Table 4.1. Demographic information (N=323) *(N=1 Missing) Item. Frequency Percentage (%). Gender. Female Male. 3 320. .9 99.1. Education. Elementary School High School Vocational Dipl. Bachelor Degree Other. 27 140 142 12 2. 8.4 43.3 44.0 3.7 .6. Age. Less than 25 years old 25 to 30 years old. 13 167. 4.0 51.7. 31 to 35 years old 36 to 40 years old More than 40 years old. 78 63 2. 24.1 19.5 .6. 2 to 12 Month. 65. 20.1. 13 to 24 Month 25 to 36 Month. 91 166. 28.2 51.4. Overseas experience. No Yes. 259 64. 80.2 19.8. Times being in Taiwan. 1 2. 133 136. 41.2 42.1. 3 4 More than 5. 54 0 0. 16.7 0 0. Industry sector. Manufacture Industry Construction Agriculture. 306 17 0. 94.7 5.3 0. Housing. Agency Dormitory Factory Dormitory. 8 304. 2.5 94.1. Apartment-Renting. 11. 3.4. Duration in Host Country*. (table continues). 40.

(50) Table 4.1. (Continued) Item English listening ability. English speaking ability. English reading ability. English writing ability. Chinese listening ability. Chinese speaking ability. Frequency. Percentage (%). Not at all Poor Average. 3 12 304. .9 3.7 94.1. Good Excellent. 4 0. 1.2 0. Not at all Poor Average. 3 37 280. .9 11.5 86.7. Good Excellent. 3 0. .9 0. Not at all Poor. 21 242. 6.5 74.9. Average Good Excellent. 56 4 0. 17.3 1.2 0. Not at all Poor Average Good. 80 214 24 5. 24.8 66.3 7.4 1.5. Excellent. 0. 0. Not at all. 10. 3.1. Poor Average Good Excellent. 71 230 12 0. 22.0 71.2 3.7 0. Not at all. 58. 18.0. Poor. 121. 37.5. Average. 129. 39.9. Good. 15. 4.6. Excellent. 0. 0 (table continues). 41.

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