Host country nationals characteristics and willingness to help self-initiated expatriates in the UAE

Abstract

This study investigates the role of host country nationals’ (HCNs) motivation to offer role information and social support in adjustment experience of self-initiated expatriates (SIEs). We draw on social identity theory and its variant, social categorization theory, to examine the determinants of support provided by HNCs to SEIs through survey data collected from 543 HCNs. The results of our study show that HCNs have a tendency to categorize SIEs based on certain salient characteristics, namely ethnocentrism and collectivism, whilst providing necessary role information and social support to the SIEs.

Keywords:

• Self-initiated expatriates (SIEs)
• host country nationals
• social identity theory
• social categorization theory
• United Arab Emirates