Chapter VI CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This study is to investigate the current situation and adjustment problems which Taiwanese female expatriates encountered and to figure out their adjustment strategies.
Based on the findings, the study also tried to verify the fitness of these Taiwanese female expatriates’ adjustment situation in u –curve theory.
This study is a qualitative research and uses multiple cases method. The content of interview is represented in transcription in order to be a source of data analysis.
The conclusion is formulated according to the results of data analysis, and then proposed the suggestions.
Conclusions
Based on the research purposes and findings, the conclusions are proposed to describe the cross-cultural adjustment of Taiwanese female expatriates in China.
The adjustment strategies which adopted by Taiwanese female expatriates in
general life, culture, and work related problems are listed in the following tables.
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Table 6.1. Taiwanese female expatriates’ adjustment strategies in general life
Code Adjustment Aspect
Code Topic Code Adjustment Strategy Item
A-01-01 Reduce eating outside
A-01-02 Ask cookers to modify flavor A-01-03 Choose Taiwanese
restaurants 01 Diet
A-01-04 Gradually accept local flavor A-02-01 Use the heater
02 Weather
A-02-02 Reduce going outside A-03-01 Behaved themselves A-03-02 Collective action A-03-03 Reduce going outside A-03-04 Speak Taiwanese 03 Security
A-03-05 Avoid sensitive topics
A-04-01 Select dependable restaurants A-04-02 Reject to eat at local vendors A-04-03 Bear the uncleanness
04 Hygiene
A-04-04 Neglect the uncleanness A-05-01 Eat medicine brought from
Taiwan 05 Medical
Care
A-05-02 Go back Taiwan to take medical care
A General Life
06 Traffic A-06-01 Take company bus
07 Recreation A-07-01 Collective action
08 Education A-08-01 Expect better associated facilities
A-09-01 Self-study 09 Training &
Development A-09-02 Seek training channels A-10-01 Frequent contact with
families
A-10-02 Families would visit A-10-03 Share the thoughts with
families 10 Family
support
A-10-04 Being accompany with Taiwanese could lessen lonely feeling
A-11-01 Not think about marriage 11 Marriage
A-11-02 Go back Taiwan to get married
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Table 6.2. Taiwanese female expatriates’ adjustment strategies in culture Code Adjustment
Aspect
Code Topic Code Adjustment
Strategy Item B-01-01 empathy 01 Host culture
B-01-02 Neglect
B-02-01 Have patience and more communication B-02-02 Let local manager
supervise local employees B-02-03 Tight supervision B-02-04 Reserve flexible time B-02-05 Higher obedience
leads to easier management
B Culture
02 New
management style
B-02-06 Build a standard
operation procedure
Table 6.3. Taiwanese female expatriates’ adjustment strategies in work Code Adjustment
Aspect
Code Topic Code Adjustment Strategy
Item
C-01-01 Learning by doing C-01-02 Seek supervisors’
assistance 01 Job content
and duty
C-01-03 Participate study group C-02-01 Accept local systems
02 The
government policy and administrati on in China
C-02-02 Retain good
relationship with local government
C Work
03 Work
pressure
C-03-01 Leave the working for a while
A phenomenon could be aware from the above adjustment strategies which Taiwanese female expatriates adopted. It is the different attitudes they hold toward the different aspects. Facing the uncomfortable or unacceptable situation in the general life or culture, female expatriates easily tended to have a rather passive attitude and methods, such as decreasing going outside, bearing the situation, and neglecting. On the other hand, they used a positive stance to confront the difficulties in their work.
They adjusted their management style when they encountered the different employees’ work attitude in China. At the same time, they made efforts to strengthen their management abilities by self-study or seeking further training channels.
In female expatriates’ adjustment process, it shows low degree of fitness toward
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theory efficiently, a rough sketch could be drown in this study. According to the self-evaluation, one of female expatriates who stayed 6 months in China experienced a honeymoon stage to culture shock stage in adjustment; however, most of other female expatriates did not show obvious phenomena in their stages which u-curve theory mentioned.
It also pointed out that different assigned region would induce different adjustment problems. China is so big that every region has distinctiveness in culture and geographic characteristics. Thus, even though some female expatriates had prior assigned experience in China, as moving to other region or city, some culture shock or maladjustment may occur.
The previous cross-cultural experience would facilitate adjustment. Generally speaking, female expatriates could use prior expatriation experience to facilitate adjustment in present assignment, although some culture shock may still happen. The previous interaction, even experiences that they took the fragmental and discontinued business trip, provides positive aids on adjustment.
Marriage would be a factor which affected the female expatriates’ willingness in continuing assignment and future development planning in China. As to the different adjustment level between married and unmarried women, there were not obvious findings in this research. But married women would show stronger willingness in considering to settle down in China than unmarried women.
Recommendations
Recommendations to business
Female expatriates are still usually a small proportion in the assigned subsidiary.
Their strong willingness and efforts to assigned job are revealed in this study.
However, it found that lacking the affection support is a common problem for most of female expatriates. Thus, to assist their adjustment the company could make efforts on building much closer relationships around all Taiwanese colleagues in assigned subsidiary. For example, the company could build the mentor system, which means appointed an experienced Taiwanese expatriate colleague to be a new arrived female assignee’s mentor. This mentor is responsible for providing assistance and advice in living and working in assigned area. In addition, the company could hold more activities to enhance the connection and interaction around Taiwanese colleagues. In this case, female expatriates could receive more support from peers and reduce the feeling of isolation.
Furthermore, the separation with families is another adjustment problem. The company should offer expatriates convenient connection facilities, like network telephone, and let expatriates have an access to their families. And it also showed the important impact of accompanying families in this study; therefore, the company should encourage their families to relocate with expatriates. To attract expatriates and their trialing families, the relevant regulations and care should be set up.
The results also pointed out the aids of prior cross-cultural experience. The company could let the expatriation candidates have chances to be familiar with the assigned country before formal expatriation, no matter business trips or short-term assignment.
As these female expatriates end up their assignments and go back Taiwan
headquarters, their experience and advice should be systematically recorded. They
would be provided as an indication for future female expatriates and also a source for
expatriation policy and facilities improvement.
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