Many Women
Many Voices
Dr
Anne Copeland, The Interchange Institute
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Women
who started their assignments well-prepared in terms of language
skill, cultural understanding, and career strategy had an easier
time fitting into the culture.
A
recently-released survey of 194 women who moved to a new country
because of their husbands' jobs has plenty to teach us about what
makes or breaks an international move, from the family's point of
view.
The women were
living temporarily in one of 17 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin
America, or the Middle East. The Many Women Many Voices study, conducted
by The Interchange Institute and underwritten by Prudential Financial,
is an in-depth, psychological look at the needs of expatriate women
in their roles as employees, wives, mothers, daughters, and friends.
One important
finding to emerge from this study was that women who had some pre-departure
language training had an easier time fitting into the culture. This
won't surprise many people perhaps, but there was an unexpected
parallel finding. Those who received language training after they
had moved to the new country did not particularly have better adjustment
than those who had no language training at all. That is, there was
something special about having language training ahead of the move.
Maybe the ability to enter the culture with the ability to communicate
with the local people had an immediate and lasting effect on their
adjustment. Or maybe having pre-departure language training was
sign of having had plenty of time to prepare for the move, a supportive
organization sending them, and/or simply an enthusiastic and proactive
approach to the move - all of which would help women's adjustment
too!
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Women
who had some pre-departure language training had an easier
time fitting into the culture
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Here are some
other findings:
- Different factors
influenced what women viewed as stressful and what affected their
deeper levels of adjustment. While practical support for learning
how to manage the tasks of daily living is important, it is critical
to offer women emotional and social support throughout the entire
assignment.
- There was no single world region that women found "easier"
to live in or in which they had the best adjustment. Nor did having
been on prior international assignments protect women from adjustment
problems.
- Only 6.2% of the spouses were consulted by their husbands' employers
before the decision to move was made. 28.3% said their husbands
had had more influence in making the decision to move than they
had. In addition, 31% of the spouses said they and/or their husbands/partners
felt pressured into accepting the assignment. Women who were consulted
by the employer, felt equally involved in the decision, and did
not feel pressured had significantly better adjustment.
- Women experienced
some gains and some losses as a result of the move. The most important
of these for their adjustment were their professional identity,
social status, material comfort and housing, and time with friends.
Those who experienced gains in these areas had better adjustment
while those with losses had poorer adjustment. Having a comfortable
home has a special significance for those living in a new country.
Gains or losses in money and time with family were unrelated to
adjustment.
- Mothers of
teenagers and women with no children had poorer adjustment than
mothers of younger or adult children. Having children meant both
having more opportunities for entering the new culture yet the possibility
of worry and stress.
- Employed women
and homemakers had similar levels of adjustment. Women who had losses
in professional identity and in the ability to live a life consistent
with their career role values had poorer adjustment.
- One of the
strongest predictors of adjustment was the social support women
felt they had. It was not the practical kind of support (like having
someone to tell how to find a doctor, or where to buy shoes) that
mattered, however. Women with the best adjustment had both casual
and intimate local friends. Women who relied to the largest extent
on long distance support (like e-mail) had the poorest adjustment.
In short, there
were women in this study who were thrilled with their experience
and others who were quite unhappy. And a whole lot in between. It
became clear from the findings that there is a lot that companies
and women can do to maximize the chances of having a successful
international experience. And so, for each finding in the report,
we list some specific Recommendations for HR managers and for accompanying
spouses.
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There
is a lot that companies and women can do to maximize the chances
of having a successful international experience.
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Dr. Anne Copeland is a clinical psychologist with a specialization
in families and children in intercultural transition. She is founder
and Executive Director of The Interchange Institute, a nonprofit
organization that studies and supports families and individuals
who have moved from one country to another. Through the Institute,
Dr. Copeland directs several research studies on intercultural transition
and writes publications and training materials for people facing
an intercultural move, including newcomers to the United States.
She is the author or co-author of over 60 research articles, chapters,
and professional presentations, and two books, including a research
text, Studying Families (Sage 1991) and Separating Together: How
Divorce Transforms Families (Guilford, 1994).
To order a copy
of the full 82-page report, released in Spring 2002, including detailed
statistical summaries of all the findings, and our List of Recommendations
go to:
http://www.interchangeinstitute.org/html/research.htm#women
or contact:
The Interchange
Institute
11 Hawes Street
Brookline, MA 02446
USA
www.interchangeinstitute.org
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