Modes of Cross-Cultural Leadership Adjustment: A Study of Anglo Expatriates in Latin America

Abstract

This paper responds to the demand for further research into cross- cultural leadership adjustment (CLA) (Shay and Tracey, 2009; Tsai et al, 2017) by examining the factors affecting the modes of CLA of expatriates in Latin America. It also uses data from a similar CLA study in Thailand (Tsai et al., 2017) to compare and contrast their findings from worldwide companies in Thailand with our findings in Latin America, to ascertain whether the adjustment process is similar in different countries with similarly high levels of novelty of subordinate characteristics. It explores issues regarding expatriate failure, especially in developing countries (Desatanick and Bennett, 1978 as cited in: Zeira and Banai, 1985), but here in the context of Latin America to gain insight into the factors that influence the CLA of expatriates; distinguishing between the factors that aid adjustment, and those that prevent it. We highlight some similarities between geographically distant samples; therefore it supports the use of the framework by Tsai et al. (2017) as a borderless model that can be applied to any culture with high novelty of subordinate characteristics.