Embeddedness and Retention of Low Status Self-Initiated Expatriates – The Role of an Inclusive Climate

Abstract

As the number of self-initiated expatriates increases, the need to integrate them well into the new workplace becomes more pertinent. This directs the attention towards those among them who have often been described as most weakly positioned in labor markets, namely foreign national women and individuals from low status countries. Therefore, drawing from social identity theory and the double jeopardy hypothesis, the present study examines a perceived organizational inclusion climate as a pivotal predictor of self- initiated expatriates’ (SIE) organizational embeddedness. Most importantly, we elucidate for whom a perceived organizational inclusion climate might be most critical and examine SIE gender and nationality prestige as indicators of minority status in the workplace. Analyses based on the data of 262 SIEs in Europe show that perceptions of working in an inclusive organizational climate relate positively to organizational embeddedness and subsequently turnover intentions. Supporting our hypothesized model, this mediated effect is conditional and stronger for female SIEs and SIEs with low nationality prestige.