Relative culture: A study on contexting and extraversion among American and Polish expatriates

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to advance the understanding of the effect of extraversion on an expatriate's level of contexting (adopting a higher or lower level of context) while abroad. Particularly, this study focused on Polish expatriates in the US and American expatriates in Poland.

Design/methodology/approach

The participants were 30 American expatriates living in Poland and 41 Polish expatriates living in the USA.

Findings

The results from the regression analysis suggest that extraversion has a different effect on contexting among Polish expatriates than American expatriates, the higher the level of extraversion, the more context dependent the American expatriates were. Moreover, Polish and American expatriates differ in terms of contexting related to the universalism and the particularism dimensions of the seven cultural dimensions from Hampden-Turner and Trompenaars.

Originality/value

This advanced understanding led the researchers to give practical implications on the training of expatriates for their abroad assignments.

Citation

Maria Zajenkowska, A. and M. Zimmerman, J. (2014), "Relative culture: A study on contexting and extraversion among American and Polish expatriates", Baltic Journal of Management, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 2-21. https://doi.org/10.1108/BJM-05-2013-0087